Privacy - Public Figures & Mere Mortals

My mother was quite paranoid, probably with good reasons as she was German. She came to the UK in the mid 30's & had quite a difficult time in the war. She didn't want anyone to "know her business" & wasn't forthcoming, even to me. So I now realise there are quite a few questions I have about her life that I do not know the answers to.

Possibly as a result of that I have gone the other way & do readily answer personal questions about my life & my beliefs to friends & family. I don't think there are any topics I'm not prepared to think about my position on & discuss. 

But there are people who ask very intrusive questions. If a topic comes up in conversation that is different to being interrogated about very personal aspects of ones life. I think my view is that the questioner should respect that some things are private. I don't like being subjected to a "third degree". I don't tend to ask very personal questions myself & think that if someone wants me to know something they will tell me. 

I am very much an "open book".

I am not in favour of the current trend for people in the public eye to "bare their souls" in public. I get very irritated by celebrities & influencers who try to tell me what to think & do. I am tired of hearing personal confessions from these people. I don't know them, so their personal information & opinions mean nothing to me. I actually wonder why they think it is appropriate & am amazed that the public is interested. 

The point of all this is that I have found the press & media treatment of  Catherine Princess of Wales dreadful. Yes she lives a very privileged life in the spotlight because she married into the Royal family. She seems to me to deal with her duties remarkably well, given that unlike William she wasn't brought up to it. Personally, whatever the perks, it wouldn't appeal to me. I don't believe that her position gives the press & media the right to scrutinise her every word & action & speculate wildly on what they have been told. The rumours, speculation & criticism are completely unwarranted & must be upsetting. She is entitled to a private life as is everyone.

I am sure that she has a staff to protect & advise her. I hope that they shield her from the worst excesses of the "conspiracy theorists". I hope that she doesn't actually read any of the rubbish that is published about her. 

We all seem to be living in a "goldfish bowl" where legitimacy is given to an aggressive press & media who want us to believe that almost everything is in the public interest. At any time anyone may be unfortunate enough to be under their microscope & have packs of journos & photographers hounding us. I sincerely hope it never happens to me.

Catherine has been exemplary & is dealing with an extremely difficult personal situation. She is entitled to privacy to cope with it. But privacy is in short supply for anyone in the public glare in the 21st century.