Does everyone have their popcorn ready for Harry & Meghan?

Skieurope- since you are in the know, care to share your thoughts on Andrew? My friend ran in a crowd in NYC that included him and she/he said that he was a jerk towards women and she/he believed all the Epstein stories to be true.

I share your friend’s opinion. But I will add that I don’t run in a crowd that includes him. :grin:

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There was a time when the press nicknamed him “Randy Andy”. But I think that just causes everyone to shudder nowadays.

However it highlights that “Waity Katy” was no more disrespectful than any of the other nicknames used for British royals.

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Unlike Britishers, others, specially ones from nations (including us) who were forcibly colonized, sure doesn’t owe royals any respect or need to use HRH or any other silly title they bestow upon their own family members themselves. May be if meeting in a diplomatic capacity but not as private citizens.

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I think it is polite to use the name people prefer. My sister had a nickname when she was young (under 10) but she decided she wanted to use her full name. Most of us use it, but one brother still calls her by the nickname. She doesn’t throw a fit about it. If they use the wrong last name (her husband’s/children’s), she just corrects them.

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I wonder if Catherine was jealous of Meghan. According to the book William/Catherine were big Suit fans. Meghan had a career, is articulate, involved in philanthropy before she even met Harry. Plus she is very attractive, too. I think she’s prettier than Kate. It doesn’t seem as if Kate was successful in her own right iwithout being in the RF, the way Meghan is.

Spoiler,

I thought it was so snotty for Catherine/William to tell her that they were not familiar enough with each other for Meghan to say something like “I understand, it’s baby brain”, when Kate was forgetful or something like that, and mentioned it to Meghan.

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I can not imagine saying “it’s baby brain” to anyone. Who does that? I would have been very offended.

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We say it amongst ourselves (the ladies) at work all of the time. And old lady brain. We also talk about colonoscopies and death and pretty much everything else.

I wouldn’t dream that it would offend someone, though I could possibly see the British being different. And context also matters I suppose.

Edit - now that I think about it, the guys also tease us about old lady/mom brains if we forget something too. It’s all in good fun. We tease each other about everything.

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I think being offended by that is way overkill. As I like to say, sometimes you just have to choose to not be offended.

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Generally I agree. But new moms are known to be sensitive, and it is a pretty sexist and clueless comment to make. Of course, actresses can be ditzy…( but M probably wouldnt like that tease)

It could be worse-she could have teased the Queen about having “senior moments”. The Queen very well may have joked about the issue with her own spouse. That does not mean she is willing to hear anyone else joking about it. Read the room.

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Huh? She called herself Kate before she ever met WIlliam. People disagree as to whether she started doing it when she was in secondary school or upon her arrival at St. Andrew’s, but she was definitely a self-named Kate before she met William and that’s what he called her for YEARS after he started dating her.

I spent some time googling and she didn’t revert to Catherine until 2008-precisely because she disliked the nickname “Waity Katie.”

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I think the Royals have a learned emotional unavailability due to the protocols that are in place for social interaction and public behavior. Harry talks about his father and the queen both being very emotionally distant and unaffectionate. He loved his grandmother, but at a public concert during her golden jubilee, he noticed she was tapping her foot and swaying to the music and that made him so happy he wanted to hug her, but knew he couldn’t. He also said that his mother once tried to hug the queen, but the queen dodged her so it appeared as if Diana was lunging at her.

I’m sure Kate has been instructed on how to be similarly unavailable. I think it’s terrible that the Royal protocols lead them to think that they are so special, that they can’t/won’t even interact with family members in a normal manner.

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For someone who is often suicidal level sensitive about criticism herself, calling a postpartum mother of three kids under 10, baby brain, and dismissing her concerns is very rude and insensitive.

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Well, just to play devil’s advocate, which I find myself doing a lot on this thread… as you say there are surely royal protocols about how to behave in public and probably in private as well, but it’s not necessarily a case of “if I weren’t so royal and special, I’d hug you.”

Hugging and other forms of physical and emotional demonstrativeness are not the normal manner of interaction in every family. My own mother, who was decidely not royal, nor even British (who in my experience tend to be more reserved), was emotionally distant and unaffectionate. If anyone tried to hug her she would certainly recoil. In fact, the first time she ever hugged me was when I was 21 or so, and visiting home for the first time since moving far away. I was absolutely stunned, because it was so out of character for her. Hugging me when I first walked in the door on my annual visit home became the norm, but emotional availability never did.

For someone like Harry, who appears to crave physical contact and displays of affection, the lack of same would be very difficult. And emotional distance is probably difficult for everyone, unless they happen to be similarly unemotional.

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Your version of normal isnt everyone’s. I can’t imagine hugging my sister-in-law. Neither of us want that.

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Yeah, we just disagree here. I would much rather someone say I had baby brain than think that I was stupid. And I’d rather have someone joke about a senior moment than think this is the beginning of dementia. :woman_shrugging:t4:

The hugging thing, for me, is kind of like that, too. Different strokes for different folks. People really jumped on Meghan for thinking that how the royals behave in public would be different than how they behave in private, and that she was surprised that they were one and the same. I don’t think it was so surprising to assume that they would keep the stiff upper lip in public but then let their hair down a LITTLE in private. Clearly that was a wrong assumption! But it’s the kind of assumption that would make the joke about baby brain no big deal. Again, clearly wrong.

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I certainly understand some cross-cultural misunderstading occured between the two women. What I dont understand is why M keeps talking about them, rather than just admitting that yes, they had some different expectations and took a while to get used to each other

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I had postpartum depression. What a silly reason that would be to be “offended”, and it makes me believe that Kate was looking for stuff to be offended at.

A postpartum mother would be offended by someone implying they should be happy with a new baby, why in The world would they be sad.

The was a discussion between the 2 of them and Kate was musing about all her forgetfulness. Meghan took it as girlfriend talk and it was a “oh, don’t worry about it….”, sort of things.

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Then why bring it up years later?

Maybe it is past time for M to recognize that she mis-stepped sometimes, not just others doing so. I am glad you would not be offended. I would be, and I know plenty of young mothers who would be. Like comments about " women drivers", many find it sexist and demeaning

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I read things and what was said doesn’t seem that bad.

But it could be the way it was said. Or in context to. Or the recipient takes it the wrong way. Hard to say and easy for the person who said something to be defensive and deny that they meant anything.

I’ve certainly been the recipient of some nasty comments and I know why I am offended. When I’ve upset someone by how I’ve said something, I try to put myself in their shoes and feel sorry that I’ve upset them.

But there are plenty in my life that when I voiced that I’m upset by something they’ve said, they will double down that I shouldn’t feel the way I do. And that I’m wrong, not them.

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