Elizabeth II seems to be a nice lady. She has been the embodiment of British decorum and values for more than six decades, keeping above the fray during the nastiness over Northern Ireland, keeping a stiff upper lip as her prime ministers presided over the dismantling of the British Empire, and remaining reasonably cool while her heir-apparent wed a teen-aged girl and kept his older mistress on the side — and while other offspring provided a steady diet of dirt for the scandal press.

So why do many Britons want to brand her as an untouchable? Why all the furor because Her Majesty put an affectionate hand on Michelle Obama’s back, and the American first lady responded with a similar gesture?

There followed a collective gasp from tradition-worshipers who seem to regard the touching of the queen as an affront surpassing the North Korean launch (or attempted launch) of a long-range missile.

We who spring from humbler roots have trouble grasping the magnitude of this supposed affront to majesty.

The queen of England never claimed to be a goddess. Whereas the emperor of Japan had to come clean with his subjects in 1945 and admit that he wasn’t a deity, British monarchs have always looked and acted like humans, albeit not always like the best of humans. While you could be hauled into court in Bangkok for stepping on a piece of money bearing the king’s portrait, in London they care not a sixpence if you step on a quid.

A Buckingham Palace spokesman unofficially gave the first lady a pass on what many considered to be a breach of etiquette.

“It was a mutual and spontaneous display of affection,” he said. “We don’t issue instructions on not touching the queen.”

Good for them.

In biblical times, people stricken with leprosy were required to shout “unclean! unclean!” to all who approached. The queen is no leper — and neither, by the way, is the American first lady — so there should be no need to wrap her in an antiseptic bubble and enforce a hands-off policy. Especially if the queen makes the first move.

Fortunately, the British monarchy does not affect the kind of arrogance shown by the king of Siam in the Broadway musical “The King and I.” Those who saw the movie version will recall the scene in which Yul Brynner insisted that Deborah Kerr keep her head lower than his at all times.

That would have been difficult for Michelle Obama, who stands nearly a foot taller than the queen and can even look over the head of the queen’s prince consort.

Anyhow, the Brits need to get used to the fact that Americans dispensed with royalty 233 years ago. Americans certainly should treat royalty with respect, but not necessarily with deference, and certainly not with subservience. If the queen can touch Michelle, Michelle can touch the queen.

The queen of England is her country’s head of state. That’s a ceremonial position that holds no real power other than the power to use moral suasion. The head of government is the prime minister. That’s the office that embodies the power. The queen may persuade prime ministers to her way of thinking, but she can’t command them.

The president of the United States is both head of government and head of state. He exerts real power in the government, and he also performs ceremonial duties — duties that he shares with his spouse. Michelle Obama can exert influence on her husband just as Elizabeth II can exert influence on her prime minister. The big difference is that Michelle can do it through pillow talk. The queen’s influence is much less direct.

Elizabeth II was born to privilege and trained from childhood for the role she would play. She accepted that role stoically. She grew up mostly in Windsor Castle, the royal family’s principal residence during World War II, and at the age of 19 became a state counselor to her father, King George VI.

While her sister, Margaret, was hitting the night spots and scandalizing the nation by romancing a divorced war hero, Elizabeth married Phillip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh, and accepted the straitjacket of behavior befitting a proper queen.

Michelle Obama grew up in a one-bedroom apartment on Chicago’s South Shore. Her dad was an employee of a city water plant. She was graduated cum laude from Princeton University, then went on to take her law degree from Harvard. The lady is smart. Probably smarter than the queen.

As a woman of beauty, poise and charm, the American first lady has wowed the international community. The queen of England obviously took an instant liking to her, which she demonstrated by spontaneously placing an affectionate hand on the first lady’s back.

The first lady responded in kind.

Let the snobs get their noses bent out of shape. Michelle Obama has shown that a woman growing up poor in America can take her place gracefully among the elite of society. Elizabeth II has shown that a woman born to privilege but imbued with a deep sense of duty and rectitude can spot quality in another woman and recognize it with a spontaneous gesture.

Let the queen be human.

Readers may write to Gene Owens at 317 Braeburn Drive, Anderson SC 29621 or e-mail him at WadesDixieco@AOL.com