Once, by the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok, Thailand, I threw some bread into the water at a point where stone steps rise towards a riverside temple. Almost immediately, a congealing, writhing scrum of desperate, gluttonous fish rose up from the murky depths to compete for that bread. Audibly, their tails and fins slapped the brown water.
Think of Catherine Middleton as the bread and disreputable newspapers and social media outlets as the greedy fish - feeding with impunity. Manufacturing tales, promoting lies, endlessly speculating. Filling columns, contributing to the unholy din, mocking and disparaging, saying what the hell they wanted to say.
And now that Princess Catherine has told her sad and ongoing personal health tale, do any of those who were in the feeding frenzy pause for a moment to say "Sorry!"? No, of course they don't. They would probably prefer more of the same because truth does not sit comfortably in their agendas.
Sitting on a wooden park bench, Catherine looked older and thinner as she gazed into the camera. She has obviously been to hell and back - not that the voracious fish mob would care.
I'm not a royalist and for large parts of my life I thought of The Royal Family as an archaic encumbrance that symbolised historical privilege, preventing ordinary Britons from breaking down the barriers to success. My views have mellowed somewhat over the years. I think of Prince William as a decent, intelligent and compassionate man who fell in love with a good woman when he was at university in Scotland. Their three children seem adorable.
William and Catherine have done their royal duties for this country. They didn't run away to California. They were steadfast and uncomplaining, supporting good causes and trying to make a difference.
The least they could have expected was some kindness, some respect, some quietness when cancer crept into their lives. Instead, they were met with a deluge of intrusive nastiness. I wish them both well and hope that with the assistance of medical people, Catherine can leave this nightmare behind her and finally get the all clear.
from Yorkshire Pudding https://ift.tt/cgK6u2Y
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