I believe Diana was a leader in volunteering for ‘hard’ causes like AIDS and land mines. William and Harry learned from their mother are also seem to enjoy hands on volunteer work.
I’m not a big Charles fan, but the Prince’s Trust supports young (poor) people with education and jobs.
The Queen was from a different generation when they gave money but didn’t really get their hands dirty.
I agree that the Prince’s Trust is a very worthwhile organization.
Considering the size of her (the queen’s) estate and the extent of both Charles’ and William’s wealth, she wasn’t donating much money to worthy causes either.
I wonder if all the future streamlining will ever eventually backfire. Citizens will start wondering why they are just supporting these 10+ people.
If they wanted to leave, then go for it. For me, the “have their cake and it eat too” was that they appeared (to me, a non-royal watcher!) that they wanted to leave, but keep a lot of the perks.
And to be clear, I liked them. I liked them a lot! Now, I am just tired of the whole, public, sad situation.
I don’t consider myself a big Royal Family watcher. I’ve been to London several times and have visited some of the RF tourist attractions but I don’t/didn’t watch live broadcasts of Royal weddings and such. I’m just not that interested or invested in it.
That said, I did watch the whole Harry and Meghan Netflix series because I was curious about all the hate directed at them. Here are just some of my random (and rambling) thoughts:
For instance the video of the invasion of privacy with the drones on the island was disturbing to see….as well as the breach in the perimeter of Tyler Perry’s property. People who claim they would be left alone if H and M would just quietly retreat from the public’s eye are naive or purposefully playing dumb.
I can only imagine the distress of feeling like you live under a bell jar. People can scrutinize your every word and gesture, but you may not speak. In my opinion the “bend the knee” submission is unhealthy as well as unsustainable.
I guess I see it from a feminist viewpoint. I believe in the evolution of institutions. Case in point is the marriage vow. It was over 30 yrs ago but when DH and I got married, I struck obey from “love, honor and obey”. It didn’t agree with me then. I still don’t like it.
I also couldn’t help but imagine H and M’s concern for their children. If they didn’t/don’t share photos/videos of them are they inviting paparazzi to “bounty hunt” the kids? (D****IfYouDo/D*****IfYouDon’t) It’s why I feel King Charles should help with security costs…more as a father than the institution. Indefinitely? I think not…but I would value my son and his family’s safety over public perception.
Also, the Oscar Wilde quote applies to the RF as well, so we’ll see how all the drama plays out in the long game. The quick take may not withstand the test of time.
Lastly, I’m not motivated enough to research the timeline of events and the source quoting from UK media (which I’m unfamiliar as an American), however I do find it curious when hateful/critical stories coincide with less than flattering RF gossip/news. It seems a little too convenient, almost a deliberate distraction, from Andrew, Rose Hanbury, Camilla,etc…just my opinion.
We’ll see if Harry agrees. My understanding is all the princes must do this at the coronation. Let’s see if he passes on the cermony.
Yes, it is quite the coincidence isn’t it?
Here is a brief take/overview of Harry and Meghan. Read it and make your own assessment of this perspective.
That piece is obviously one sided.
The princess of Kent is very involved in Wimbledon. That she named two sheep Venus and Serena doesn’t surprise me and I’m sure was meant as an honor. Maybe she has other sheep named Roger and McEnroe and Chrissy and Martina?
Sure, make Harry a US citizen so he can receive the honors he deserves?
Yes, Harry was the spare. He’s not as high a rank as William, he didn’t like that so he left. That’s all fine. Now he’s trying to make a living based on leaving, which is fine too. I just don’t think he should try to bring down the monarchy because he didn’t win the birth order race.
Princess Michael of Kent has the sheep. She is not the princess of Kent, which is a title that does not exist. She also has made her fair share of gaffes over the years, like this on her way to lunch with Meghan
That’s her SIL, the Duchess of Kent.
It puts a slightly different spin on it when you find out the two sheep are black, and that this is the same Princess who wore a Blackamoor broach to a palace lunch with Meghan.
In hindsight, H & M should have had closer involvement with Meghan’s father. They should have brought him under their wings, met with him, and underscored the importance of not speaking to the media. They should have given him some sort of stipend, since he seemed hard up for money. It’s rather short sighted that they didn’t think he would sell his story for money when he was not rich.
They tried is my understanding. He was walking her down the aisle, for God’s sake. And I would never sell a negative story about my kid to the media no matter how hard up I was for money.
Neither would I but he did and it caused a major rift and the ‘letter’ that got leaked to the press. Why didn’t she call him? Anyway, he had not even met Harry before the engagement was announced. They didn’t seem to bring him into their sphere. Not excusing his behavior but with their problems with the press, they should have anticipated something like this and worked to prevent it.
They tried calling before the wedding, multiple times. He wouldn’t pick up or respond, which is why they went the letter route.
Come on, give him a stipend to not be a total loser?
I thought the calls were after the tabloids paid him for photos. Harry apparently met her mother before the wedding but not the father.
Thank you for linking the Steve Smith op-ed. he actually describes the situation as it is and supports what he says with facts. The lengths to which people go to deny the institutional racism is pathetically silly considering that the wealth of the British Royal family was largely built on “colonizing” countries with non-white native populations.
I’m truly baffled at the lengths so many Americans are willing to go to extend support and every possible benefit of the doubt to British royalty while rationalizing disdain for H & M for telling the story of how things really happened. Do statements from the firm and the tabloid newspapers really have that much credibility?
Just saw this article released today (and taken from Harry’s book that will be released next week).
