Well, that's completely up to him, isn't it? Prince Friso doesn't seem to regret his choice and neither does Princess Märtha Louise. At least she doesn't seem unhappy to me. And to be completely honest, if I were in Sofias shoes I would be happy about having way more freedom and space if CP does a Friso/Märtha Louise.
I don't know if Friso seems happy (he always seems a little grumpy or annoyed to me), but I agree with you that it is CP's choice what path he would choose to take. It isn't necessarily up to him though, because parliament could grant their permission with no conditions, they could reject the request to marry outright, they could approve the marriage with conditions, etc. Also the king could reject the request, approve it outright, strip CP of his titles, grant him others, etc. Those things are not up to CP. His only choice is to marry or not and to make that decision based on the consequences it brings.
Like I said before, this problem can be solved with a bit cash (for buying the copyrights). So, not a big problem at all.
I don't want to speak for Iva, but I don't believe she seriously thought the nude pictures of Sofia would actually be posted before state visits, although currently they could as they are still being published. I believe she used an example of the absurd/unthinkable to highlight the bigger issue which is the fact that the photographs exist in the first place. If I had made this statement, I think the point I would be trying to make is that the copyright can be bought, the pictures can be removed from future publications, but that is only pro-active, not retro-active. The photographs would still exist in the original publications, on search menus on the internet (even if you could not open them), and in people's individual memory.
Such as this? What do you mean with 'this'? Could you explain it in more detail, because I really don't what you mean with that specifically. How is this relationship doomed to end bad in comparison to others?
This is a lot, but you asked for more detail
:
If you've read any of my previous posts in this thread, you know I am not a fan of the choices Sofia has made in addition to much of her behavior. My belief about this relationship is that Sofia typifies the "gold-digger" - someone from more modest circumstances pursues someone from much more comfortable circumstances...usually portraying themselves in a certain way to gain the affections of the wealthier party and when it becomes too difficult to keep up the charade of their insincere "love" for that person, they hit the road with a nice settlement/alimony/house/clothes/jewels/etc. These claims could all be made of the other crown princely couples but as a point of contrast:
Mette-Marit - perhaps the most "scandalous" of the current crop of crown princesses - single mother, used drugs, etc. But also seems to be the one most genuinely in love with her prince. She never pursued notoriety or the limelight.
Maxima - came from a wealthy, affluent background but had established a career. By all accounts, very intelligent, approachable and down-to-earth. Maybe she did pursue WA because he is a prince, but he seems much happier to me than he appeared to be when he was single.
Letizia - had some baggage as well with the previous marriage, and if JC and Sofia had not made what IMHO is miscarriage of justice by making Felipe end the relationship with Isabel Sartorius, Letizia would probably never have been in the picture. But she is. Looking at her life prior, she was educated and had established a career for herself. She doesn't seem that happy to me now, especially in the last year when she is looking WAY too thin and kind of haggard, but we don't have a way of knowing otherwise. She also doesn't seem to be head over heels in love with Felipe, but that could also be because of her professional training and experience with the media.
Mathilde - noble birth, impeccable behavior, and for someone who married a much older man (isn't Philippe 11 years older than her?), she seems happy, content, and fulfilled...and she sure has been producing heirs. Whether or not people here or anywhere else like them as individuals, Philippe and Mathilde to me are the snooty people's Haakon and Mette-Marit. They seem genuinely in love, just not as much fun as the Norwegian couple.
Since you introduced Mary into this thread, I'll address your statements on her below. As far as a comparison with these women, the most damaging/haunting things from their past is a son (Marius), a self-confessed experimentation with drugs, a civil marriage license and divorce decree, and a father's involvement in an oppressive military regime. Certainly not spotless, but IMHO those things are minor compared to Sofia. While I agree that there is no ideal candidate for a princess, there still exists at least a sliding scale of appropriate to inappropriate. The fact that Mette-Marit might have been closer to the latter and now seems to have re-invented herself doesn't mean that Sofia could or would or that anyone should overlook Sofia's
very recent past. Assuming Mette-Marit was the most inappropriate choice out of the current crown princesses, at least there are not AFAIK photographs of her topless, and dozens of photographs of her in a bikini posing suggestively with her legs spread. And none of these women stated that they wanted to be famous, wanted to be a model/actress, none of them participated in a reality program that centers on flaunting sexuality.
As to the relationship between CP & Sofia, I don't know if it is "doomed", I merely stated that more often than not a relationship with these two types of personalities historically tends to fail. My question after learning more about Sofia was this: why would someone who is so intent on being famous hooking up with a guy who doesn't want to be famous?
And where Sofia as a possible Princess is concerned I recommend you to read the early posts of CP Frederik's new girlfriend Mary Donaldson in the DRF Forum. There she is labeled as a "cold and calculated woman" who "will make Frederik unhappy in the long run". A woman who's to much of a "career woman to ever be a warm, loving wife and mother". Everyone was hoping and praying for "Frederik to get back to his senses". And now have a close look at reality. They're happily married, have four cute and healthy children and the "cold and calculated woman" is everybody's darling now. So, who the hell are we to judge Sofia now? Who says she can't be just what Mary is in Denmark right now? Keep my words in mind, because I'm more and more sure CP and Sofia are in for the long run too.
Initially I was going respond to these statements and contrast them with the other individuals as well, but I took the time to look back at the threads mentioned that had criticisms of Mary. As I find the expression of an opinion of Mary to be a loaded invitation to those who gush over every time she blinks/steps/breathes to have to respond with countless posts as to why that opinion/poster are wrong, I won't be presenting my assessments of her here - good and bad.
In looking back at those threads, however, I found something very interesting. Many people presented opinions there, some not very flattering, some including both good and bad comments...and for the most part, posters either respected one another's opinions or, even when disagreeing, didn't take those disagreements personally. I am left wondering when it was that the army of Maryphiles began attacking in force anyone who said anything unflattering about her. Look back for yourself at those threads and then read any of the current ones. There is a COMPLETE difference in the tone of the posts. Maybe the really nasty posts about Mary in the current threads are a result of some of her fans being overly aggressive in their defense of her. I don't know, but if someone cannot quote or refer to unflattering comments about Mary in older threads as a means to show how she has improved or developed by complimenting her without someone feeling it necessary to "defend" her and list all the redeeming qualities they see in her (whether it is their own perception or if she actually has those qualities), perhaps all discussions of Mary need to be removed from this forum.
