If you thought higher-ups in the Catholic Church couldn't possibly make more offensive statements regarding their sex abuse scandal, well, they've done it again. You might remember Pope Benedict's personal preacher having to apologize because he compared the allegations against the church to "the collective violence suffered by the Jews." Father Raniero Cantalamessa said in a sermon that the allegations that the Vatican systematically hushed up cases of sexual abuse of children by priests were similar to the "most shameful aspects of anti-Semitism", with the use of stereotypes and the spreading of collective guilt. Yeah, because 6 million Jewish people being killed for their religion is exactly the same as a church having to deal with much-deserved negative attention because there are numerous priests doing terrible things to children and the church is not doing enough to stop it (and there's proof of that). You also might remember a senior cardinal (Cardinal Angelo Sodano) saying during Easter mass that the Catholic faithful will not be swayed by "petty gossip" about child sex abuse allegations. Because someone stepping forward and saying they were molested by their priest is definitely the quintessential definition of petty gossip.
The latest offensive comment comes from Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone who said that it was not clergy celibacy that was to blame for the abuse of children, instead it was homosexuality. He said, "Many psychologists, many psychiatrists have demonstrated that there is no relationship between celibacy and pedophilia; but many others have demonstrated, I was told recently, that there is a relationship between homosexuality and pedophilia." Who told you that?! What legitimate psychological researcher would say that? Who are these "many" people? It's probably conservative, hack psychologists/psychiatrists (funded by the church).
France became the first country to criticize the cardinal. The French foreign ministry spokesman said, "This is an unacceptable linkage and we condemn this. France is firmly engaged in the struggle against discrimination and prejudice linked to sexual orientation and gender identity." A gay rights activist in Italy said that the cardinal is "clumsily trying to shift attention to homosexuality and away from the focus on new crimes against children that emerge every day." (Full Story)
I cannot believe that the homosexuality-pedophilia link is still being made today. It's disgusting. There is no (legitimate) research that gay people are more likely to be pedophiles or that pedophiles are more likely to be gay. There is no causal link. Could some of these priest sex offenders be gay? Of course. But are they pedophiles because they're gay? No. They just happen to be a pedophile that is also gay. There are plenty of straight pedophiles. Researchers that have examined the Catholic sex abuse cases have found that a majority of the victims were boys (i.e., the abuse was same-sex). However, researchers at John Jay College of Criminal Justice (those behind a lot of the research on the church sex abuse cases) and other experts on sex offenders say that this does not necessarily mean the abusers were gay. They say that priests have the most access to boys, which likely explains the high percentage of male victims. Yes, I'm sure there are priests that are gay and specifically target boy victims -- but once again, the problem is not the homosexuality, it's the pedophilia. There is nothing inherent about homosexuality that makes gay people have the urge to be attracted to children in a sexual manner.
That latest from Kyrgyzstan is that the former president Mr. Bakiyev, who flew to his home village in the south of the country after last week's uprising, has said he will step down in return for security guarantees for himself and his family. He also wanted a "guarantee that the roaming of these armed people in Kyrgyzstan, that this redistribution of property, and this armed free-for-all stops." If these conditions are met, he said he would be willing to negotiate, sign documents that legitimize the interim government, and step down. He also said he was prepared to stand trial as long as it was safe for him to do so. But he warned that there could be further violence if attempts are made to arrest him by force. He also repeated his called for an international investigation into the violent demonstrations that happened last Wednesday, in which more than 80 people died.
In response, Roza Otunbayeva, the interim leader, said Bakiyev had "blood on his hands" and that he should stand trial over the recent deadly political unrest. She said he missed his chance to leave the country. She said, "Bakiyev has exceeded the limits of his immunity by spilling blood and now he must be brought to trial and answer before the law." She added that his relatives, who held influential posts in his government, as well as the former defense minister were "people who shot citizens" and should also stand trial. She warned, "There can be no discussion of assurances of their safety, except for their legal defense in court." (Full Story) (Full Story)
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