What's Happening In This Picture?

On Sunday, I linked to a story in the UK Daily Mail that reported on the Duchess of Cornwall's apparent bewilderment at President Biden's flatulence at a soiree following the Cop26 conference in Glasgow. Something kept bothering me about that story that hasn't gone away.

Consider this. The Duchess of Cornwall, who had been Prince Charles's mistress of long standing prior to their 2005 marriage, has kept a low public profile despite her formal status as Princess of Wales. However, given the state of the queen's health and her age, it's become inevitable that sooner rather than later, the duchess will be the royal consort, with a standing equivalent to Prince Philip. In other words, she'll be a national figure of high dignity and prestige, and I assume she's preparing to ease into that role as we speak.

I've got to think that under those circumstances, even remarks attributed to her by unnamed sources but carried in the UK press must have some level of sanction by the royal family's press office. And as far as I know, the palace hasn't done anything to dissociate the duchess from those remarks.

What's going on? My wife thinks the UK, as well as other US allies on the Afghanistan mission, still resents Biden leaving them high and dry in his precipitous withdrawal. I would guess that's a good part of it, and quite possibly HM Government is tacitly OK with those remarks as well.

But the photo above, from the same Daily Mail story and showing the big guy clapping Prince William on the shoulder with a facial expression suggesting he's just delivered the punch line to an off-color joke, raises just as much concern. I don't normally follow the rules of etiquette for meeting the royal family, but at the back of my mind I had an idea you're not supposed to touch them. Indeed:

[I]t does seem that touching the royals is pretty much off-bounds. Whether by directive or convention, most people restrict themselves to a handshake as opposed to a hearty back slap or bear hug.

Former Australian premier Paul Keating felt the wrath of public opinion and was dubbed the "Lizard of Oz" for touching the Queen's back during a royal tour to Australia in 1992, in what was seen as a purposeful snub and a representation of his country's republican desires.

But apparently there is in fact some flexibility here; the link mentions that Michelle Obama hugged the queen on a state visit. But the other problem I see is the big guy's facial expression. Let's allow that plastic surgery and Botox stiffen the face and limit normal animation, but it's hard to avoid thinking he's projecting an oddly incongruous sense of high cameraderie, again as if they're both roaring at a dirty joke. The prince's face is away from the camera, but I suspect he's smiling politely while smoothly disregarding the hand on the shoulder.

I would go so far as to wonder if, the possible effect of Botox aside, the big guy is blotto, or more descriptively, s***faced. Just sayin'. That might explain as well the extended fart in front of the duchess, and it might even lend some credence to the so far completely baseless rumor that the big guy had an episode of incontinence during his private audience with the pope. But speaking of the Vatican, on October 30 I linked to Raymond Arroyo's remarks on why they limited coverage of the big guy's visit:

“I think the Vatican was concerned that a live meeting, video of a live meeting, might expose Biden to a gaffe. No telling what he might say, and you heard some of the blarney about drinking and whiskey and being an Irishman. They wanted to tamp some of that down,” he continued.

As I say, the Vatican has the best intelligence network in the world.

Completely unrelated, Vice President Harris is in Paris apparently trying to patch things up.