Kate's New Picture

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think this would be 5, maybe 10% as bad had they not released that photo. Especially if, as seems likely, they lied about when it was taken.

I agree with you, but they were already behaving as though they were panicked before the photo. I remember on one of the threads that got shut down, discussing how odd it was that they responded to that coma rumors (which had ZERO substantiation and was just making rounds on twitter, but was not taken seriously by any credible news organization) and then again when William pulled out of that memorial last minute. And also the "clarifications" they issued on both the announcement of Kate's and Charles's illnesses (that Kate did not have cancer, and that Charles had a cancer they didn't reveal BUT it wasn't prostate cancer). It was just out of character and seemed to reflect a lack of control or sense of overwhelm (which is not usually the vibe one get's from the BRF, even when really difficult things are happening, like the Queen's death).

The last time the BRF seemed this panicked was Diana's death, and in that case it was much more straightforward -- how should the family, and the Queen in particular, respond to the death of someone who married the heir and was mother to another heir but then divorced? It was unprecedented and they got criticism but also many people understood it was a confusing situation to navigate.

This is different because whatever it is they are struggling with, we don't know. But they are definitely struggling.

Well-said. I think that the multiple unforced errors and missteps feel destabilizing — because we don’t understand why this is being played out by the BRF as “ a confusing situation to navigate “. And then people like me, who only paid attention to the BRF for the occasional pageants and the pretty clothes start wondering at the apparent duplicity, and looking a little bit closer.

Exactly. There is a helluva a lot of smoke blowing around here, and it can't all be from a cigarette. Where's the fire?

What else do they need to explain besides what they have already given explanations for? I think there are serious problems with their stories and something in addition to the health problem is going on, but a lot of people buy the explanations they have already given in terms of her whereabouts and the photoshop. I don’t know why they would go back on those stories and I don’t know what else they absolutely need to explain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In a way they are doing what Megan and Harry did-Give me Privacy, but pay attention to me to keep me relevant and worthy of income. As mentioned people could accept giving her time to heal. It was strange how it was done, Charles had a better approach, there was speculation, but it was contained. the photo and all the creepiness and lying is what blew this out of proportion and the problem is they may get what they want. I never cared much about them, got too invested, went down rabbit holes and am now detaching. Plenty will. They need us to care enough for the monarchy to be relevant and they can't just call us all back at whim.

What’s changed, too, is that most of us probably took for granted that they were blandly trustworthy. Going forward, every pronouncement and photograph will be scrutinized for unforced errors — if we bother to look at all. And it will likely get worse. People like me got pulled into all of this current spate of interest because the communications seemed so odd that they became almost entertaining, and because we’d had concerns about the ways that Diana and Meghan were treated by the press and by the BRF. I genuinely hope that Kate is okay, and none of the communications about her current situation have been clearly reassuring.

[Anonymous]

I started another thread semi-related to this one trying to understand how damage control works:

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/0/1193307.page#27085930

Didn't want to hijack this thread (which I still shamelessly love).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think this would be 5, maybe 10% as bad had they not released that photo. Especially if, as seems likely, they lied about when it was taken.

I agree with you, but they were already behaving as though they were panicked before the photo. I remember on one of the threads that got shut down, discussing how odd it was that they responded to that coma rumors (which had ZERO substantiation and was just making rounds on twitter, but was not taken seriously by any credible news organization) and then again when William pulled out of that memorial last minute. And also the "clarifications" they issued on both the announcement of Kate's and Charles's illnesses (that Kate did not have cancer, and that Charles had a cancer they didn't reveal BUT it wasn't prostate cancer). It was just out of character and seemed to reflect a lack of control or sense of overwhelm (which is not usually the vibe one get's from the BRF, even when really difficult things are happening, like the Queen's death).

The last time the BRF seemed this panicked was Diana's death, and in that case it was much more straightforward -- how should the family, and the Queen in particular, respond to the death of someone who married the heir and was mother to another heir but then divorced? It was unprecedented and they got criticism but also many people understood it was a confusing situation to navigate.

This is different because whatever it is they are struggling with, we don't know. But they are definitely struggling.

Well-said. I think that the multiple unforced errors and missteps feel destabilizing — because we don’t understand why this is being played out by the BRF as “ a confusing situation to navigate “. And then people like me, who only paid attention to the BRF for the occasional pageants and the pretty clothes start wondering at the apparent duplicity, and looking a little bit closer.

Exactly. There is a helluva a lot of smoke blowing around here, and it can't all be from a cigarette. Where's the fire?

What else do they need to explain besides what they have already given explanations for? I think there are serious problems with their stories and something in addition to the health problem is going on, but a lot of people buy the explanations they have already given in terms of her whereabouts and the photoshop. I don’t know why they would go back on those stories and I don’t know what else they absolutely need to explain.

Who said they "need" to do anything? People may still speculate, but that doesn't obligate them to do anything at all. Not a single thing. Both can be true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think this would be 5, maybe 10% as bad had they not released that photo. Especially if, as seems likely, they lied about when it was taken.

I agree with you, but they were already behaving as though they were panicked before the photo. I remember on one of the threads that got shut down, discussing how odd it was that they responded to that coma rumors (which had ZERO substantiation and was just making rounds on twitter, but was not taken seriously by any credible news organization) and then again when William pulled out of that memorial last minute. And also the "clarifications" they issued on both the announcement of Kate's and Charles's illnesses (that Kate did not have cancer, and that Charles had a cancer they didn't reveal BUT it wasn't prostate cancer). It was just out of character and seemed to reflect a lack of control or sense of overwhelm (which is not usually the vibe one get's from the BRF, even when really difficult things are happening, like the Queen's death).

The last time the BRF seemed this panicked was Diana's death, and in that case it was much more straightforward -- how should the family, and the Queen in particular, respond to the death of someone who married the heir and was mother to another heir but then divorced? It was unprecedented and they got criticism but also many people understood it was a confusing situation to navigate.

This is different because whatever it is they are struggling with, we don't know. But they are definitely struggling.

Well-said. I think that the multiple unforced errors and missteps feel destabilizing — because we don’t understand why this is being played out by the BRF as “ a confusing situation to navigate “. And then people like me, who only paid attention to the BRF for the occasional pageants and the pretty clothes start wondering at the apparent duplicity, and looking a little bit closer.

Exactly. There is a helluva a lot of smoke blowing around here, and it can't all be from a cigarette. Where's the fire?

What else do they need to explain besides what they have already given explanations for? I think there are serious problems with their stories and something in addition to the health problem is going on, but a lot of people buy the explanations they have already given in terms of her whereabouts and the photoshop. I don’t know why they would go back on those stories and I don’t know what else they absolutely need to explain.

I don't think "most" people buy the explanations given. In particular, a lot of people do not believe that Kate is the one who photoshopped the photo, or that she was the one who actually issued the apology. I also think their actions have only intensified the questions about what is going on with Kate that stem all the way from the original announcement. Now, I think it's perfectly reasonable for Kate to choose to keep that private and that the demands to tell people are unreasonable. But their press office has behaved so oddly that now a lot of people assume that it must be something really bad, which mean the assurances that she's fine and recovering are now suspect.

I mean, there are not going to riots over this. And I think the people who are claiming outlandish things (like that the woman in the car on Monday was a body double, or all the rumor about Rose Hanbury) are mostly fringe conspiracy theorists or people just having fun with it. But no, I don't think the palace has adequately reassured people or answered the questions floating around.

[Anonymous]

The only reason to think they need to do anything is if you think controlling people's reactions to the BRF is completely under their control. It isn't. They can't guarantee anything about that, just like none of us can. We can control our own actions, though.

Hopefully she is being treated well and given the supports she needs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think this would be 5, maybe 10% as bad had they not released that photo. Especially if, as seems likely, they lied about when it was taken.

I agree with you, but they were already behaving as though they were panicked before the photo. I remember on one of the threads that got shut down, discussing how odd it was that they responded to that coma rumors (which had ZERO substantiation and was just making rounds on twitter, but was not taken seriously by any credible news organization) and then again when William pulled out of that memorial last minute. And also the "clarifications" they issued on both the announcement of Kate's and Charles's illnesses (that Kate did not have cancer, and that Charles had a cancer they didn't reveal BUT it wasn't prostate cancer). It was just out of character and seemed to reflect a lack of control or sense of overwhelm (which is not usually the vibe one get's from the BRF, even when really difficult things are happening, like the Queen's death).

The last time the BRF seemed this panicked was Diana's death, and in that case it was much more straightforward -- how should the family, and the Queen in particular, respond to the death of someone who married the heir and was mother to another heir but then divorced? It was unprecedented and they got criticism but also many people understood it was a confusing situation to navigate.

This is different because whatever it is they are struggling with, we don't know. But they are definitely struggling.

Right. I found the “Kate’s sick, see you the week after Easter” (or whatever the exact language was) was odd - sort of too vague and specific at the same time. But most people didn’t think much more of it. It’s was the KP/BP bungling of PR after that that started questions. Then the MD photo, which could not have been handled worse. Then full on fiasco ensues. And just continues until I don’t know when.

I think they’re (widely) returning to the “never complain never explain” philosophy so we will get an update at Easter and they’ll go back to normal without commentary. We probably won’t ever get a satisfactory answer for all the weird things that happened. I won’t believe the line about Kate doing the photoshop unless one of her kids writes a tell-all to corroborate the story, and by that time I’ll probably be dead.

They complain and explain excessively. I mean that doesn’t fit with the staged pap shots, photoshopped photo, picture of the back of Kate’s head etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In a way they are doing what Megan and Harry did-Give me Privacy, but pay attention to me to keep me relevant and worthy of income. As mentioned people could accept giving her time to heal. It was strange how it was done, Charles had a better approach, there was speculation, but it was contained. the photo and all the creepiness and lying is what blew this out of proportion and the problem is they may get what they want. I never cared much about them, got too invested, went down rabbit holes and am now detaching. Plenty will. They need us to care enough for the monarchy to be relevant and they can't just call us all back at whim.

You never cared about them, yet you are here reading and commenting…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

He looks so much like his father. Ick.

He looks fine. I'm not even partial to white men, and William looks perfectly fine. He's tall, fit, well dressed, and has some low key BDE. Harry is the one who looks ick.

Absolutely nothing about William has ever projected BDE!!

It's not about looks, hun.

Yep…all I see is shrimp.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

He looks so much like his father. Ick.

He looks fine. I'm not even partial to white men, and William looks perfectly fine. He's tall, fit, well dressed, and has some low key BDE. Harry is the one who looks ick.

Absolutely nothing about William has ever projected BDE!!

It's not about looks, hun.

Yep…all I see is shrimp.

Some people will get turned on by just the littlest things. It takes all kinds, and every pot has a lid, no matter how wizened.

[Anonymous]

I can't decide if these people are badly trying to cover up something huge or are really so inept that they still can't grasp that the BRF have basically morphed into celebrities and they can't cope.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

He looks so much like his father. Ick.

He looks fine. I'm not even partial to white men, and William looks perfectly fine. He's tall, fit, well dressed, and has some low key BDE. Harry is the one who looks ick.

This is the worst take in the history of Earth. Literally.

You should be laughed out of town.

Lol. Yeah…he absolutely does not have BDE. He has “I’m going to be king someday” energy. They are not the same.

They are most definitely not the same. If so, Charles has it, too.

That PP should never live down such a clown take.

💯 that Balding Dude Energy

He definitely has this one!

[Anonymous]

Am I the only one who thought the photo was lovely and would have been satisfied to leave it at that until after Easter?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lately he always has this look on his face. Can't read what it is actually is. Anger? Guilt? Anxiety? It's striking.

I always get controlled anger vibes..creeps me out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Am I the only one who thought the photo was lovely and would have been satisfied to leave it at that until after Easter?

Yes because it's fake and creepy.