What's The Deal With Kim & Bette?

It's not a day that ends in "y" if there isn't some sort of Twitter feud going on, am I right? That's a rhetorical question. Of course I'm right. The Twitter feud of Tuesday, March 8? Kim Kardashian vs. Bette Midler. Sure, I know Kardashian also clapped back at Chloë Grace Moretz and Piers Morgan, but honestly, her beef with the legend who is Bette Midler is far more intriguing, because Midler's joke surrounding Kardashian's nude selfie might not be the whole story. And also because I can't believe that the second eldest Kardashian had the chutzpah to confront a Sanderson sister. Things could have gotten real dicey.

First, let's get a hold on what went down the past couple days between the two impossibly famous ladies: Kardashian posted a nude selfie on Twitter. Then, later on, Midler made a joke on Twitter about the pic, writing, "Kim Kardashian tweeted a nude selfie today. If Kim wants us to see a part of her we've never seen, she's gonna have to swallow the camera." Eventually, the reality star bit back with two different tweets. The first one read, "hey @BetteMidler I know it's past your bedtime but if you're still up and reading this send nudes #justkidding." And, the second one: "hey @BetteMidler I really didn't want to bring up how you sent me a gift awhile back trying to be a fake friend then come at me #dejavu." Which, you know, ouch on all accounts.

But not to be outdone —because Twitter makes sure no fight ever truly dies and, uh, she's Bette freakin' Midler — the actor wrote back, saying, ".@KimKardashian: I never tried to fake friend you. Looks like anyone can take a selfie but not everyone can take a joke..." Woof. How about we all agree to let people post selfies, nude or not, in peace and, in turn, also agree to try and be just a little less sensitive?

Problem solved? Yeah, probably not. Here's the thing. As E! Online pointed out, it seems that Kardashian did go in pretty hard on Midler, more so than the others, considering that she dished her two different tweets full of beef. Naturally, this sparked my curiosity. What was it about Midler's tweet got her so riled up? But I realized that was the wrong question to ponder. You see, the nude selfie tweet may not be the major sticking point at all.

If you follow Midler on Twitter as I do, you know that she's very up on her pop culture and her politics. So, as I dug through some of her tweets, I came upon two that I found particularly interesting in the scheme of this feud:

Yeah, those quips reference Kardashian's husband and mom, probably the two people in life that she'd be inclined to defend most vehemently. Do I know for sure if Kardashian read those tweets? No, I don't. But is it possible she did? Certainly. All I know is that Kardashian's focus on Midler seemed pointed. And these earlier jests, in addition to the nude selfie witticism, could very well be why.