According to friends William wants to delay having a family as long as possible - due to the mayhem of the topless photos. A friend is reported as saying --- he is not ready for the madness that will happen once a pregnancy is announced. Kate does not want a family yet and wants to get Kensington Palace set up as a home before they consider anything.
William wishes he could have Zara Phillips life.
How true this is who knows? But William is definitely a changed man since the photo scandal and maybe he wants to put off having children for now? I don't remember the title of the magazine as I had to run for the bus.
I believe that it is well known that William's actual friends do not talk to the press. It is widely reported by reputable sources, to the best of my recollection. At least, it is one of the things I consider to be true about William.
Therefore ... all of this is conjecture. An unnamed source has very little credibility.
As much as it is a terrible thing, as awful as it is, and as much as they might or might not struggle with it privately, I do not believe this will alter any of the "grand scheme of things" plans in place. They will likely start a family when and how they have always intended and they will likely carry on with their duties when and how was always intended.
This is, is it not, part of the great value of the Monarchy? They lead not by rule and parliament, but by example. Who, in the Commonwealth, does not remember with fondness and a certain sort of nostalgic pride, the time of Churchill and George VI and Elizabeth, when they "carried on".
I was thinking of this line from the "Finest Hour" speech, where the sentiment lends itself to the situation, while making *
no* comparison to the events being so characterized.
Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, "This was their finest hour."
Yes, yes, I am, at best, hyperbolic
But the best examples almost always seem a little reaching, after all we cite the great from our history; a hard thing to do for those of us who are not great.
I just mean to say that they will carry on and do their duties and, believe me, if Prince William thought for one single second that he wanted Zara Phillips' life, none of *us* would know about it.
Maybe, in the fullness of time, this *will* be seen as their finest hour. A young, newly married couple suffer a terrible personal violation. She is untested by public life, he suffered youthful trauma related to the same violation. They bear a *tremendous* weight just being who they are - they carry the future of a two thousand year old tradition on them. The best, most comforting thing they can do for us is to "carry on". And I believe they will. And we will come to see this, whether they are blameless, or it is an error in judgement or an outright mistake, as a sort of crucible from which we hope they emerge stronger and more confident. A testing place.
If I am not mistaken, this was also the speech where Churchill had that great line about not allowing the past and present to fight, lest the future be lost.
So, certainly, the laws need to be changed, and we need a public dialogue on privacy and the right to be able to control the use of one's likeness, but in the context of the Duke and Duchess' specific issue, I think I believe I am done discussing it here. Because to frame a discussion that is not about them, per se, one that could take forever, around their personal issue feels a little exploitive; a further violation, if you will.
So, to all the very smart people who had good opinions and arguments, to all the people who engaged back, I thank you for the most excellent conversation.