Royal boobs

[french frank]

you seem to have a faith in the law and the police that many of us don't share

Non sequitur. I was simply pointing out what the law was, not what we could or could not expect from the police force - or any other authority.

We are not all being individually photographed on our private premises in circumstances where we have every reason to believe we are not being overlooked.

Some of us are with no idea that this is happening but thats ok because we aren't "royal"

No, it's not okay. That is my point of principle: if the right to privacy of the Duke & Duch of Cambridge is not protected, neither is mine. And that's why I support them - because I'm just as good as they are

You can argue that a lot of things are 'part of the same spectrum'. But the ethics of the British press aren't really relevant to citizens' right not to have cameras photographimg them, no matter where they are or what they're doing.

[french frank]

It is an odd thing that no-one seems to have a problem with 'he' and 'him', but 'who' and 'whom' are often muddled. Perhaps it partly explains why the distinction is dying, and most people say 'who' regardless.

Well, 'whom' is one of the dying vestiges of a case system which has almost died out anyway.

I note the forum software contains the instruction: 'Standard Phrase: Specify the time-limit (in minutes) within which the thread title may be edited by the user whom started the thread.' (Thurber! thou should'st be living at this hour.')

[Warwick]

Perhaps this thread should be named ' The Royal Pancakes'.

[Pabmusic]

Well, 'whom' is one of the dying vestiges of a case system which has almost died out anyway...

Yes it is, but most of it had died out by the fifteenth century. The pronouns I-me, thee-thou, he-him, she-her, they-their, we-us and they-them persist to this day (well, not thee-thou, of course, because we adopted the French system of using the second person plural as the 'polite' address, and it took over completely) and there's no sign that they're in any danger. Who-whom is different, and I doubt it will last much longer, even though it represents exactly the same grammatical point as he-him, she-her or they-their.

[ahinton]

Perhaps this thread should be named ' The Royal Pancakes'.

...or maybe Panning the Royal Cupcakes...or even Have Lens, Can Tab...

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

[gurnemanz]

Private Eye has just dropped through my letter box. Front cover has William saying to Kate:
"Get your writs out, darling"

[Serial_Apologist]

Private Eye has just dropped through my letter box. Front cover has William saying to Kate:
"Get your writs out, darling"

Recoining the famous phrase, "writ for rats".

[ahinton]

David Titterington was an organ scholar at Oxford; it seems a shame now that he wasn't one at Cambridge instead, for that might have given the Eye even more to write about...

Seriously, though, what does anyone think about the situation and reactions to it had the photos concerned been taken without the subject's permission or knowledge but of a less exposed Duchess?

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

(well, not thee-thou, of course, because we adopted the French system of using the second person plural as the 'polite' address, and it took over completely)

Not completely. In some dialects, you will still hear "Where's tha' goin'?" and similar uses of "thou".

[scottycelt]

Getting back on-topic ...

Surely the real issue here is 'the invasion of privacy' aspect and, in the days of readily-available hard-core pornography on the internet, has very little to do with Kate's comparatively tame semi-nakedness.

Ex-PM John Major has likened the photographer's actions to nothing less than that of a 'peeping tom'.

That, for me, sums this whole pathetic thing up whether the victim happens to be a duchess or a destitute street-girl.

[Flay]

France: bringing you topless royals since 1793

[Pabmusic]

Not completely. In some dialects, you will still hear "Where's tha' goin'?" and similar uses of "thou".

Yes and, come to think of it, my grandmother used it.