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It is an interesting comparison when you think of the entitlements of the firstborn son in the Old Testament. It was a big deal. And many younger sons could understand Harry's situation.

But then see how God subverts that standard over and over again by not choosing the oldest: Seth, Shem, Jacob, Joseph/Judah, Moses, David, etc.

But then as Jesus is the true and rightful (and biological) firstborn, but voluntarily gives up his claim and exchanges his birthright with us: those "untimely born."

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Prediction. Meghan will cuckold Harry before it is all over. And eventually, it will be. He will continue to debase and humiliate himself in her service. When he is no longer useful to her ego, he will be chucked aside like an old piece of underwear.

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Yeah, I'm a little amazed at how negative folks are on social media about them. His whole life has been a near-impossible set of contradictions.

And as far as Meghan goes, Harry for years had seemed like a mess, then he meets her and suddenly get serious about life. How is that so terrible?

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Thanks for the pursuit of balance here. Harry is easy to hold in contempt, and that Time magazine cover surely doesn't help. To be a figurehead king is a mixed proposition, but to be a spare figurehead king is vestigiality stacked on vestigiality. I can't help but be overcome by the thought "Man wasn't meant to live this way." Of course, man isn't meant to live the way that Harry is living right now, either, but let's at least be cognizant of what he was trying to escape from.

To be vestigial royalty means you can never complain -- you're rich! But it must be the worst sort of rich that there is: better than poor, but ambiguously better than middle class. Wealth gives a man freedom, but figurehead royal status chains him back down again. I was born thoroughly middle class, and I certainly wouldn't trade my position at birth with Harry, and I doubt I'd even do so with William.

I recently watched the 1980s film "The Last Emperor" for the first time, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. What a bizarre life! But also a reminder that figureheads grappling with the paradoxes of their position is neither new nor peculiar to the West.

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Interestingly, Harry isn't actually rich. He got an inheritance from Diana, but his lifestyle was funded by his dad. He basically lived on an allowance. I think most of them do. The heir to the throne gets a significant income from the duchy of Cornwall, and there are various sources of funds to and assets held by the monarch, plus the taxpayer support for the monarchy, but Harry was not a conventionally wealthy person.

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"His upbringing did not equip him for any endeavors other than being a prince or a soldier. It’s not like he has great coding or other skills he could deploy in business or another productive endeavor. "

If Harry was truly interested in doing something useful with his life, several other royals could help him along in that process either directly or as an example to follow. His uncle, Prince Edward (also a spare) ran a media company for years and has mostly stayed out of controversy. Several of his first cousins have had jobs where we can assume they are at least contributing something useful to their employers. Harry himself was setup to do charity work by the family and was doing it prior to getting together with Meghan. Also, Charles was a callous husband and father, but Diana was no saint either, no one can argue she was faithful to their marriage with a straight face and who knows how many men William and Harry saw go in and out of her bedroom growing up. The media beautification of her after her death has been the biggest negative influence on Harry. It taught him the best way to receive positive attention is to play the eternal victim in public, which is what the Markles are doing now.

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Please don't.

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