Jobs in America will return if hands-on managerial culture – the kind the Puritans exemplified and which created US prosperity – replaces the 'professional' MBA approach to business.
Theories abound. Some argue that poorly designed government policies and artificially low interest rates created a bubble, while others blame Wall Street's reckless lending practices.
Almost all, however, look to current or recent developments, not long-term historical trends. Yet the real story of the massive meltdown of 2008 starts not in the late 20th century but in the early 17th.
It was in the 1630s that the Puritan migration to America set the cornerstone for US economic prosperity – and it was our falling away from Puritan values in the 1970s that sowed the seeds of destruction.
This migration endowed the Bay Colony of Massachusetts with four core beliefs: (1) a conviction that the purpose of life, however vaguely conceived, was to establish the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth; (2) an aptitude for the exercise of mechanical skills; (3) a moral outlook that subordinated the interests of the individual to the group; and (4) an ability to assemble and use financial, material, and human resources to a single purpose, on a massive or a lesser scale.
These four beliefs created a powerhouse. The genius of America's inherited "hands-on," "can-do," "up-the-ladder" managerial culture cannot be overstated. In the course of three centuries, it turned a handful of small colonies into the greatest economic and political power on earth.
The perversion of this culture – spurred by the rise of the "professional manager," often with an MBA degree – has hollowed out the US economy and undermined American thrift and self-reliance. Forty years ago, the net national savings rate was 10 percent. Last year, it reached minus 2.5 percent.
The Puritans loved to get their hands dirty
The Puritan journey to America was a masterpiece of organization. Two substantial earlier attempts had failed. Of the 144 people who had sailed for Virginia in 1606, only 38 remained alive by the end of 1607. Of the roughly 100 Pilgrims who had sailed on the Mayflower in 1620, barely half survived until March 1621.
By way of contrast, 200 ships brought 14,000 migrants to the Bay Colony of Massachusetts between 1630 and 1640 – and nearly all survived. Only one ship was lost at sea. This third attempt succeeded because its organizers had mastered the logistics of travel. In 10 short years, they also laid the social, legal, political, religious, and commercial foundations of the future United States.
The Puritans equated godliness with craftsmanship. From the outset, a willingness to become involved in menial tasks, to "get one's hands dirty," distinguished American society from older and more stratified European societies. Managers rose to senior positions only after demonstrating ability at lower levels. Puritanism is, essentially, an attitude of mind and an associated series of practices which, in the right circumstances, can be, and have been, transferred between races, tribes, nations, and even religions.
This way of doing things would evolve to reach a peak of ability in what we call the Golden Age of Management (1920-70). Milestones leading up to it included: the adoption of a federal constitution by the former colonies in 1787, creating a secure political framework within which society could prosper; the establishment by the 1830s of the Springfield Armory, which historian Daniel Wren has described as "the first mechanised manufacturing plant" in the country; the integration of geographic and functional divisions at the Pennsylvania Railroad in the late 1850s; and the relaunch by Pierre du Pont of his family company in the early 20th century, providing the model for an alphabet of "blue chip" companies – AT&T, Boeing, Chrysler, John Deere, Eastman Kodak, Ford, General Motors, Hewlett Packard, IBM, and so on.
America's great managerial inheritance would be successfully transplanted into Japan under the US occupation (1945-52).
Japan's internal communications systems had been destroyed by bombing and neglect. As a result, a Civil Communications Section was created within the Supreme Allied Command to re-create them. It was necessary first to teach local suppliers how to manufacture to US standards of quality.
Before World War II, "made in Japan" had meant "of poor quality"; increasingly after the war, it would imply the opposite. Japan's communications equipment manufacturers evolved rapidly into a world-beating consumer electronics industry; other industries, such as automobiles, followed suit.
Japan would teach the very same lessons that it had learned from its US occupiers to the future Asian "Tigers" – notably to Taiwan, which imparted them to mainland China in the 1990s, and to Vietnam a decade later. About 70 percent of China's electronic exports are said to originate today in mainland factories owned or managed by Taiwanese.
The rise of the professional manager
Sadly, under the influence of top-tier business schools, America would walk away from its inherited managerial culture after 1970. This lowered the quality of manufactured goods. And it contributed to disasters as diverse as the savings and loan crisis, the Enron debacle, and today's global credit crisis.
Before 1970, management was regarded as a craft to be learned "on the job" under the eye of an experienced executive. As a junior manager climbed the ladder, he would also acquire what General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt has called "domain knowledge." As a result, banks in the mid-20th century were run by people who knew a lot about banking, engineering companies by people who knew a lot about engineering, and so on.
Under the new dispensation, management was reclassified as a profession to be practiced by holders of a special academic degree (the MBA) – just like medicine or the law. It was no longer considered necessary for an executive to learn the craft of management or to acquire "domain knowledge." The holder of an MBA was deemed capable of exercising control over any kind of organization through the medium of its accounts department. "Financial engineering" replaced mechanical engineering. The effect on the quality of decisionmaking in both the public and the private sectors was catastrophic.
As we say in our book "The Puritan Gift," American factory managers have in large part reclaimed the secrets they taught the Japanese over half a century ago; the rest of American business and society must now follow suit.
Bernanke faces tough choices, lousy options. By John W. Schoen
The Federal Reserve is sailing further into uncharted territory as it begins to unwind its trillion dollar-plus intervention in the financial markets and U.S. economy. As Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and central bank policymakers are finding, this new territory is not unlike a place that early mapmakers would have illustrated with demons and dragons.
In his semiannual economic update to Congress Wednesday, Bernanke fielded questions covering a wide range of the perils the Fed faces as it tries to reverse its unprecedented easy credit policy.
“I’m not in any way minimizing how hard this is,” Bernanke told the panel.
In his remarks, Bernanke walked a fine line between highlighting the Fed's accomplishments and acknowledging the challenges that now confront the central bank.
On the one hand, the Fed is trying to prepare investors and businesses for the prospect of higher interest rates after an unprecedented policy of keeping short-term rates near zero. But with the U.S. economy still in the early stages of a wobbly recovery, the Fed has to tread lightly for fear of spooking investors who worry that higher rates could snuff out the rebound.
Bernanke's vow to keep rates low for some time helped boost stock prices Wednesday after a two-day slide.
Even as it seeks that balance, the Fed is trying to navigate a sea filled with perils over which it has little control. On top of the list is a massive federal deficit worsened by congressional efforts to bail out the banking system and stimulate the battered economy. The Obama administration this month proposed a federal budget that would mean a third straight year of $1 trillion-plus deficits.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner addressed that issue in testimony Wednesday to the House Budget Committee when he said stimulus spending today would help control deficits tomorrow.
"If you care about future deficits — and you have to care about these future deficits — you need to care about economic growth today," Geithner said.
Congress is already at work on another round of spending, this time with the goal of taming a stubbornly high unemployment rate. On Wednesday, the Senate approved another $15 billion package of tax breaks and highway spending to create new jobs. The House has already approved a far bigger jobs package that would cost $155 billion.
Bernanke told the panel that "unemployment is the biggest problem we have" and that the government's stimulus spending so far has helped contain it.
"I think most economists would agree that the stimulus has created jobs relative to where the baseline would have been in the absence of the stimulus," he said.
So far, demand for fresh Treasury debt is holding up. But the worry is that too much borrowing here and around the world could spook investors, who would demand a higher return to lend money to the Treasury.
“It is possible that the bond market will become worried about sustainability (of the deficit) and we may find out self facing higher interest rates,” Bernanke told the House panel.
The Fed has even less control over other market forces that could push rates higher. The list includes the ongoing financial turmoil in Greece, where the government’s efforts to control spending and rein in debt has met strong local resistance. On Wednesday, a rally in Athens protesting spending cuts turned violent as police clashed with a crowd of some 50,000 demonstrators.
Bernanke told the House committee that the Fed has no plans to intervene in the debt crisis.
Greece and the European Union are playing what amounts to a game of chicken: Germany and France, which make up the economic flywheel of the single-currency euro zone, are loath to bail out what they see as the free-spending Greek government. European central bankers also fear that a bailout would only reward bad fiscal policies.
But if Greece defaults on its loans, it could push heavily indebted countries like Spain, Portugal and Ireland closer to the edge and imperil other European economies. It remains to be seen which side blinks first.
Meanwhile, the Fed faces looming perils closer to home, including the threat of increasing defaults on commercial real estate loans.
“It remains the biggest credit issue that we still have,” said Bernanke.
Unlike a typical home mortgage, commercial property is backed by much shorter-term lending. That means investors and property owners who paid top dollar at the height of the real estate boom in the middle of the decade are now scrambling to refinance those loans as they come due over the next few years.
Commercial real estate values have fallen by as much as a third, leaving many properties under water. Widespread defaults on these loans could put severe pressure on the smaller banks that hold them, further tightening credit and pushing rates higher for home buyers and small businesses.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Tuesday reported that the number U.S. banks edging toward trouble rose 27 percent to more than 700 in the latest quarter and that troubled loans continued to increase.
The residential real estate market, one of the main engines of the U.S. economy, also faces a number of critical hurdles. One is the pressure from rising inventory of unsold homes, as the ongoing wave of foreclosures brings more houses to market at distressed prices. The government reported Wednesday that new home sales fell to record low levels in January, in part because of the overhang of that “shadow” inventory.
Since the financial crisis began in September 2008, the Fed has been propping up the housing market by pushing mortgage rates lower through a massive buying spree of mortgage-backed bonds. With the bulk of that $1.25 trillion war chest now spent, the Fed has announced it will stop buying mortgage bonds. The hope is that the housing finance market has recovered enough to sustain mortgage rates at current level. A rise in those rates could cut off access to mortgages for many buyers, throwing more cold water on the housing market.
Bernanke was also quizzed about the ongoing drop in lending, especially among smaller community banks that provide the bulk of credit for small businesses that have traditionally been the biggest source of new jobs. The Fed chairman blamed the drop on “both tightened lending standards and weak demand for credit amid uncertain economic prospects.”
The credit contraction presents the Fed with yet another tough call. As long as credit remains tight, the economic recovery will remain weak. But with the financial system still recovering from a lending spree that produced historic losses, bankers are leery of making more risky bets.
In his semiannual economic update to Congress Wednesday, Bernanke fielded questions covering a wide range of the perils the Fed faces as it tries to reverse its unprecedented easy credit policy.
“I’m not in any way minimizing how hard this is,” Bernanke told the panel.
In his remarks, Bernanke walked a fine line between highlighting the Fed's accomplishments and acknowledging the challenges that now confront the central bank.
On the one hand, the Fed is trying to prepare investors and businesses for the prospect of higher interest rates after an unprecedented policy of keeping short-term rates near zero. But with the U.S. economy still in the early stages of a wobbly recovery, the Fed has to tread lightly for fear of spooking investors who worry that higher rates could snuff out the rebound.
Bernanke's vow to keep rates low for some time helped boost stock prices Wednesday after a two-day slide.
Even as it seeks that balance, the Fed is trying to navigate a sea filled with perils over which it has little control. On top of the list is a massive federal deficit worsened by congressional efforts to bail out the banking system and stimulate the battered economy. The Obama administration this month proposed a federal budget that would mean a third straight year of $1 trillion-plus deficits.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner addressed that issue in testimony Wednesday to the House Budget Committee when he said stimulus spending today would help control deficits tomorrow.
"If you care about future deficits — and you have to care about these future deficits — you need to care about economic growth today," Geithner said.
Congress is already at work on another round of spending, this time with the goal of taming a stubbornly high unemployment rate. On Wednesday, the Senate approved another $15 billion package of tax breaks and highway spending to create new jobs. The House has already approved a far bigger jobs package that would cost $155 billion.
Bernanke told the panel that "unemployment is the biggest problem we have" and that the government's stimulus spending so far has helped contain it.
"I think most economists would agree that the stimulus has created jobs relative to where the baseline would have been in the absence of the stimulus," he said.
So far, demand for fresh Treasury debt is holding up. But the worry is that too much borrowing here and around the world could spook investors, who would demand a higher return to lend money to the Treasury.
“It is possible that the bond market will become worried about sustainability (of the deficit) and we may find out self facing higher interest rates,” Bernanke told the House panel.
The Fed has even less control over other market forces that could push rates higher. The list includes the ongoing financial turmoil in Greece, where the government’s efforts to control spending and rein in debt has met strong local resistance. On Wednesday, a rally in Athens protesting spending cuts turned violent as police clashed with a crowd of some 50,000 demonstrators.
Bernanke told the House committee that the Fed has no plans to intervene in the debt crisis.
Greece and the European Union are playing what amounts to a game of chicken: Germany and France, which make up the economic flywheel of the single-currency euro zone, are loath to bail out what they see as the free-spending Greek government. European central bankers also fear that a bailout would only reward bad fiscal policies.
But if Greece defaults on its loans, it could push heavily indebted countries like Spain, Portugal and Ireland closer to the edge and imperil other European economies. It remains to be seen which side blinks first.
Meanwhile, the Fed faces looming perils closer to home, including the threat of increasing defaults on commercial real estate loans.
“It remains the biggest credit issue that we still have,” said Bernanke.
Unlike a typical home mortgage, commercial property is backed by much shorter-term lending. That means investors and property owners who paid top dollar at the height of the real estate boom in the middle of the decade are now scrambling to refinance those loans as they come due over the next few years.
Commercial real estate values have fallen by as much as a third, leaving many properties under water. Widespread defaults on these loans could put severe pressure on the smaller banks that hold them, further tightening credit and pushing rates higher for home buyers and small businesses.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Tuesday reported that the number U.S. banks edging toward trouble rose 27 percent to more than 700 in the latest quarter and that troubled loans continued to increase.
The residential real estate market, one of the main engines of the U.S. economy, also faces a number of critical hurdles. One is the pressure from rising inventory of unsold homes, as the ongoing wave of foreclosures brings more houses to market at distressed prices. The government reported Wednesday that new home sales fell to record low levels in January, in part because of the overhang of that “shadow” inventory.
Since the financial crisis began in September 2008, the Fed has been propping up the housing market by pushing mortgage rates lower through a massive buying spree of mortgage-backed bonds. With the bulk of that $1.25 trillion war chest now spent, the Fed has announced it will stop buying mortgage bonds. The hope is that the housing finance market has recovered enough to sustain mortgage rates at current level. A rise in those rates could cut off access to mortgages for many buyers, throwing more cold water on the housing market.
Bernanke was also quizzed about the ongoing drop in lending, especially among smaller community banks that provide the bulk of credit for small businesses that have traditionally been the biggest source of new jobs. The Fed chairman blamed the drop on “both tightened lending standards and weak demand for credit amid uncertain economic prospects.”
The credit contraction presents the Fed with yet another tough call. As long as credit remains tight, the economic recovery will remain weak. But with the financial system still recovering from a lending spree that produced historic losses, bankers are leery of making more risky bets.
Study: 1.2 million households lost to recession. By John W. Schoen
Since Richard Brown lost his job to the recession and his Boston home to foreclosure a year ago, he’s been working short-term consulting assignments until he gets back on his feet. In the meantime, he’s been “couch surfing.”
“I’ve lived with my brother, my cousin, my friend and my dad,” he said. “The IRS keeps calling me, asking me: ‘What’s your address?’ And I say, ‘What week is this?’”
Armed with college degree and an MBA, Brown, 49, built a solid resume over three decades as a corporate controller for several Fortune 500 companies, including W.R. Grace and Wal-Mart, before launching his own global consulting business with clients in Europe and Mexico. But when the Panic of 2008 sent clients scrambling, he was unable to keep up with a jump in his mortgage payments and lost his home to foreclosure.
Brown represents one of the more than 1.2 million households lost to the recession, according to a report issued this week by the Mortgage Bankers Association that looked at data between 2005 and 2008. That number doesn’t include information from 2009, when job losses and foreclosures continued to rise.
So it's likely that the full impact of the 8.4 million jobs lost and nearly three million homes foreclosed on since the recession began has taken an even bigger toll on the number of American households.
“Given the depth of the downturn in 2009, and the ongoing weakness in the job market through the beginning of this year, this study gives no reason to expect that household formation has picked up at all," said Gary Painter, a professor at the University of Southern California who conducted the study.
The study also shed some light on what happens to the people in those "lost" households. It’s widely assumed that many who lose a home to foreclosure become renters. But since the recession began, there has been a five-fold increase in “overcrowding” of remaining households — defined as more than one person per room, according to the study.
That doubling-up is happening as families who lose their homes move in with friends or family. In other cases, younger people have delayed moving out on their own, instead staying with their parents until the economy improves. Others who fail to find work after graduating from college move back home.
Falling homeownership levels
The decline in households is weighing on both the home buying and rental markets. Since the number of home foreclosures began surging in 2007, the national homeownership rate has been steadily falling. But renters also have been forced to double up or move in with friends or family. That’s a major reason that the vacancy rate for U.S. apartments stood at 8 percent in the first quarter, the highest level since 1986, according to a report this week from Reis, a real estate research firm.
The future pace of household destruction or formation is uncertain. A lot depends on how quickly the job and housing markets recover. The outlook for both is mixed.
Though many economists expect the economy to add several hundred thousand new jobs a month as the recovery gains strength, it will likely take years to restore employment to its pre-recession levels. After the 2001 recession, it took four years of job growth to restore a 2 percent drop in employment. This time around employment levels have fallen by 6 percent.
Homeownership levels, meanwhile, continue to decline. New foreclosures filings are running about 300,000 a month, according to RealtyTrac. There are currently some 5 million homeowners that are 90 days or more past due on their mortgages, according to Fannie Mae chief economist Doug Duncan.
Though the pace of foreclosures has recently begun to taper off, there are indications they may pick up again as lenders redouble efforts to work out bad loans, and mortgage defaults continue to bring new foreclosures.
“Some of the foreclosure backlogs are working their way through the system at this point,” Duncan told CNBC.
Millions more homeowners who are current on their mortgages owe more than their home is worth. Though the government recently issued another round of guidelines to lenders urging them to reduce the principal owed on those loans, the process is mostly voluntary.
Rise in homelessness
So far, lenders have been slow to cut the size of a mortgage to make monthly payments more affordable. As a result, an increasing number of families are walking away from their homes in a process known in the industry as “strategic default.”
That can become contagious, said Duncan, as neighbors follow suit. “If they see someone else in their neighborhood that walks away, it increases the likelihood they will seriously consider not paying theirs,” he said.
It’s not a move to be taken lightly. The resulting damage to a borrower’s credit history can hurt job prospects with a new employer or create a barrier to renting.
In some cases, the loss of a house to foreclosure is leaving families homeless, though there is little national data available on how many are affected. A recent study by the Department of Housing and Urban Development found family homelessness on the rise since the recession began, with the biggest increases in suburban and rural areas.
Other groups, like the National Alliance to End Homelessness, report that a rising number of older adults are without a permanent place to live.
“The limited existing research tells a story of increasing homelessness among adults ages 50 and older,” the group said in a recent report.
The formation of new households isn’t expected to pick up again until at least 2012, according to the MBA study, even as the population continues to increase. Between 2005 and 2008, those 1.2 million households were lost even as the population grew by 3.4 million.
In the meantime, former homeowners like Brown are left scrambling for alternatives. He recently move into a rooming house where he continues to track down consulting work.
“I pay $600 for a third-floor room that gets hot in the summer,” he said. “It’s a blow. I don’t belong here. I’m an educated person. I’ve held executive positions. And here I am in a boarding house where Russian is a first language.”
“I’ve lived with my brother, my cousin, my friend and my dad,” he said. “The IRS keeps calling me, asking me: ‘What’s your address?’ And I say, ‘What week is this?’”
Armed with college degree and an MBA, Brown, 49, built a solid resume over three decades as a corporate controller for several Fortune 500 companies, including W.R. Grace and Wal-Mart, before launching his own global consulting business with clients in Europe and Mexico. But when the Panic of 2008 sent clients scrambling, he was unable to keep up with a jump in his mortgage payments and lost his home to foreclosure.
Brown represents one of the more than 1.2 million households lost to the recession, according to a report issued this week by the Mortgage Bankers Association that looked at data between 2005 and 2008. That number doesn’t include information from 2009, when job losses and foreclosures continued to rise.
So it's likely that the full impact of the 8.4 million jobs lost and nearly three million homes foreclosed on since the recession began has taken an even bigger toll on the number of American households.
“Given the depth of the downturn in 2009, and the ongoing weakness in the job market through the beginning of this year, this study gives no reason to expect that household formation has picked up at all," said Gary Painter, a professor at the University of Southern California who conducted the study.
The study also shed some light on what happens to the people in those "lost" households. It’s widely assumed that many who lose a home to foreclosure become renters. But since the recession began, there has been a five-fold increase in “overcrowding” of remaining households — defined as more than one person per room, according to the study.
That doubling-up is happening as families who lose their homes move in with friends or family. In other cases, younger people have delayed moving out on their own, instead staying with their parents until the economy improves. Others who fail to find work after graduating from college move back home.
Falling homeownership levels
The decline in households is weighing on both the home buying and rental markets. Since the number of home foreclosures began surging in 2007, the national homeownership rate has been steadily falling. But renters also have been forced to double up or move in with friends or family. That’s a major reason that the vacancy rate for U.S. apartments stood at 8 percent in the first quarter, the highest level since 1986, according to a report this week from Reis, a real estate research firm.
The future pace of household destruction or formation is uncertain. A lot depends on how quickly the job and housing markets recover. The outlook for both is mixed.
Though many economists expect the economy to add several hundred thousand new jobs a month as the recovery gains strength, it will likely take years to restore employment to its pre-recession levels. After the 2001 recession, it took four years of job growth to restore a 2 percent drop in employment. This time around employment levels have fallen by 6 percent.
Homeownership levels, meanwhile, continue to decline. New foreclosures filings are running about 300,000 a month, according to RealtyTrac. There are currently some 5 million homeowners that are 90 days or more past due on their mortgages, according to Fannie Mae chief economist Doug Duncan.
Though the pace of foreclosures has recently begun to taper off, there are indications they may pick up again as lenders redouble efforts to work out bad loans, and mortgage defaults continue to bring new foreclosures.
“Some of the foreclosure backlogs are working their way through the system at this point,” Duncan told CNBC.
Millions more homeowners who are current on their mortgages owe more than their home is worth. Though the government recently issued another round of guidelines to lenders urging them to reduce the principal owed on those loans, the process is mostly voluntary.
Rise in homelessness
So far, lenders have been slow to cut the size of a mortgage to make monthly payments more affordable. As a result, an increasing number of families are walking away from their homes in a process known in the industry as “strategic default.”
That can become contagious, said Duncan, as neighbors follow suit. “If they see someone else in their neighborhood that walks away, it increases the likelihood they will seriously consider not paying theirs,” he said.
It’s not a move to be taken lightly. The resulting damage to a borrower’s credit history can hurt job prospects with a new employer or create a barrier to renting.
In some cases, the loss of a house to foreclosure is leaving families homeless, though there is little national data available on how many are affected. A recent study by the Department of Housing and Urban Development found family homelessness on the rise since the recession began, with the biggest increases in suburban and rural areas.
Other groups, like the National Alliance to End Homelessness, report that a rising number of older adults are without a permanent place to live.
“The limited existing research tells a story of increasing homelessness among adults ages 50 and older,” the group said in a recent report.
The formation of new households isn’t expected to pick up again until at least 2012, according to the MBA study, even as the population continues to increase. Between 2005 and 2008, those 1.2 million households were lost even as the population grew by 3.4 million.
In the meantime, former homeowners like Brown are left scrambling for alternatives. He recently move into a rooming house where he continues to track down consulting work.
“I pay $600 for a third-floor room that gets hot in the summer,” he said. “It’s a blow. I don’t belong here. I’m an educated person. I’ve held executive positions. And here I am in a boarding house where Russian is a first language.”
Teens, Young adults have difficulties finding employment. By Josh Harvison
ONESBORO, AR (KAIT) – High school students entering college and college graduates are having a more difficult time finding jobs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The BLS suggests 15.2% of all employees between the ages of 16 and 29 are unemployed. Officials with Arkansas State University said the unemployment rate could be due to a number of reasons.
"There are people that are staying in the job force longer that are staying in these jobs longer and there are people that are our age and older that are working in food service industries and hotel industries and those kinds of things," said Terry Finney, Director of ASU Financial Aid.
Finney said more students are deciding to pursue a higher education even after college graduation.
"I think you're also seeing a lot of students who are getting out of school with their bachelor degrees and they're looking for jobs, and they can't find what they're looking for or they can't find a job and we see a lot of students coming back to grad school now," said Finney. "There are a lot of people out there that are looking for jobs. That's why a lot of people go to another area and get a job or a position."
The unemployment rate for workers 16-29 is the highest since the Bureau of Labor Statistics was created in 1948.
"A lot of people are staying in those so it could be the entry level jobs that people are having a hard time finding and where a lot of the shortages come from," said Finney. "With everything that has closed down and how people have cut back and how folks are losing jobs, laying people off, then maybe that's not such a surprise after all."
Jessica Rhodes and Tiffany Sims said they have been trying to find jobs within their degree for more than a year.
"I really did not prefer to work here because I did want to be somewhere in my profession so I'm just stuck right now," said Rhodes, who works as a cashier at a home improvement store. "It seems like, it's just hard and when I do graduate I'm moving out of Arkansas."
"If you're set on staying in one place, you may have a hard time finding a job but if you're willing to relocate, you may have a better chance of finding a job," said Finney.
"It's hard because I have to rely on my mom and most of my job money goes to pay loans off and stuff. It's a struggle because you have to live day by day in paying school loans," said Sims.
Finney said some fields are not lacking in the job market, including education and medicine.
"There are people that are staying in the job force longer that are staying in these jobs longer and there are people that are our age and older that are working in food service industries and hotel industries and those kinds of things," said Terry Finney, Director of ASU Financial Aid.
Finney said more students are deciding to pursue a higher education even after college graduation.
"I think you're also seeing a lot of students who are getting out of school with their bachelor degrees and they're looking for jobs, and they can't find what they're looking for or they can't find a job and we see a lot of students coming back to grad school now," said Finney. "There are a lot of people out there that are looking for jobs. That's why a lot of people go to another area and get a job or a position."
The unemployment rate for workers 16-29 is the highest since the Bureau of Labor Statistics was created in 1948.
"A lot of people are staying in those so it could be the entry level jobs that people are having a hard time finding and where a lot of the shortages come from," said Finney. "With everything that has closed down and how people have cut back and how folks are losing jobs, laying people off, then maybe that's not such a surprise after all."
Jessica Rhodes and Tiffany Sims said they have been trying to find jobs within their degree for more than a year.
"I really did not prefer to work here because I did want to be somewhere in my profession so I'm just stuck right now," said Rhodes, who works as a cashier at a home improvement store. "It seems like, it's just hard and when I do graduate I'm moving out of Arkansas."
"If you're set on staying in one place, you may have a hard time finding a job but if you're willing to relocate, you may have a better chance of finding a job," said Finney.
"It's hard because I have to rely on my mom and most of my job money goes to pay loans off and stuff. It's a struggle because you have to live day by day in paying school loans," said Sims.
Finney said some fields are not lacking in the job market, including education and medicine.
How to land thousands of dollars in savings
How to improve your credit rating
It's not just a number – it’s thousands of dollars in potential savings. Follow these tips and polish up your score
By Vanessa Milne
1. Take it seriously
Even if you have a decent credit rating, you're throwing money away if it's not exemplary. Your rating, or score, sums up how much of a lending risk you are, and plays a huge part in how creditors decide whether they want your business and whether you'll be able to get theirs. With a great score, you'll be offered – and be able to negotiate – better deals: Those zero-percent car-financing bargains, for example, generally go only to those with spotless credit ratings. And better rates will save you thousands of dollars on everything from your mortgage to credit-card interest charges.
2. Play the numbers
Canada has two main credit-reporting agencies: TransUnion and Equifax. They analyze your financial history to create scores in an effort to predict your behaviour in 10 years' time, based on how similar you are to those people who repay their loans promptly. Scores are measured from 300 to 900; you want to have a score of at least 650; one below that is considered "poor" or "very poor" and will make it hard to get credit. A score is labelled "great" if it's above 750. According to Equifax, the average Canadian checks in at 751; TransUnion reports that 47 percent of Canadians have a score above 750 but also that 12 percent of Canadians have a score of less than 600.
3. Find out where you stand
To get the most complete picture of your credit rating, or if you're about to ask for a loan and don't want any surprises, check with both TransUnion and Equifax. They use different formulas, and since it's impossible to tell which company your lender will contact, it's best to review each of them. For about $30, they'll email you a detailed report, which includes your score, your credit history for the past six years (essentially a record of whether or not you've made your bill payments) and an explanation of how you rank in the general population. Both companies provide tips for improving your score; if you really want to geek out, TransUnion also offers a monthly subscription that lets you see your score anytime, along with pie charts and line graphs that track it over time and analyze other factors. If you need just the basics or want to check for mistakes or potential identity theft, you're entitled to one free credit-history report – which doesn't include your score – once a year.
4. Sweat the small stuff
When it comes to improving your credit rating, the one habit that will help you most is always making at least your minimum payments, on time. Agencies can't see how much of your balance you've paid, but they can see if you hit the minimum – or if you miss payments entirely. "So many people say, 'Oh, it's only a $10 payment this month, I'll miss it and make it next month,'" says Laurie Campbell, the spokesperson for Credit Counselling Canada, a nationwide non-profit agency that offers advice on debt repayment to consumers. "If you tend to do that every second or third month, you'll have a spotty credit rating." On the bright side, credit ratings are based on your financial behaviour in the past six years; any missed payments further back than that drop off your credit history.
5. Be debt-conscious
A common myth is that the more debt you qualify for, the better, says Campbell. "A lot of people make this mistake. But say I'm a potential creditor, and you ask me for a $10,000 loan. I look and see that you have six credit cards, with maximum limits on them that total about $40,000. You may not owe a cent on any of those cards, but I see that you could get yourself $40,000 into debt, plus whatever I give you." Her rule of thumb is to use only one or two credit cards. (If you decide to cancel a few of your cards, terminate them in reverse chronological order, from the one you've had the least amount of time to the oldest; your score usually improves with a longer credit history.) After that, keep paying off your credit cards to lower your debt load (the amount of debt you are carrying compared with your income and assets). "Once you get above 50 percent of your credit limit, it can harm your credit," says Tom Reid, the director of consumer solutions at TransUnion. He recommends keeping your balance to less than 35 percent of your limit. If you're working on improving your score, put the credit cards away for a few months and pay off the balance to get that number as low as possible.
6. Reap the rewards
It won't take you long to see an improvement; the good news is that most people can raise their scores in just a few months. "Most of this is common sense: Just go look at your credit report, see what you owe, and start paying it off as fast as you can," says Mike Lofquist, marketing and communications manager for Equifax. "Everything's going to improve."
It's not just a number – it’s thousands of dollars in potential savings. Follow these tips and polish up your score
By Vanessa Milne
1. Take it seriously
Even if you have a decent credit rating, you're throwing money away if it's not exemplary. Your rating, or score, sums up how much of a lending risk you are, and plays a huge part in how creditors decide whether they want your business and whether you'll be able to get theirs. With a great score, you'll be offered – and be able to negotiate – better deals: Those zero-percent car-financing bargains, for example, generally go only to those with spotless credit ratings. And better rates will save you thousands of dollars on everything from your mortgage to credit-card interest charges.
2. Play the numbers
Canada has two main credit-reporting agencies: TransUnion and Equifax. They analyze your financial history to create scores in an effort to predict your behaviour in 10 years' time, based on how similar you are to those people who repay their loans promptly. Scores are measured from 300 to 900; you want to have a score of at least 650; one below that is considered "poor" or "very poor" and will make it hard to get credit. A score is labelled "great" if it's above 750. According to Equifax, the average Canadian checks in at 751; TransUnion reports that 47 percent of Canadians have a score above 750 but also that 12 percent of Canadians have a score of less than 600.
3. Find out where you stand
To get the most complete picture of your credit rating, or if you're about to ask for a loan and don't want any surprises, check with both TransUnion and Equifax. They use different formulas, and since it's impossible to tell which company your lender will contact, it's best to review each of them. For about $30, they'll email you a detailed report, which includes your score, your credit history for the past six years (essentially a record of whether or not you've made your bill payments) and an explanation of how you rank in the general population. Both companies provide tips for improving your score; if you really want to geek out, TransUnion also offers a monthly subscription that lets you see your score anytime, along with pie charts and line graphs that track it over time and analyze other factors. If you need just the basics or want to check for mistakes or potential identity theft, you're entitled to one free credit-history report – which doesn't include your score – once a year.
4. Sweat the small stuff
When it comes to improving your credit rating, the one habit that will help you most is always making at least your minimum payments, on time. Agencies can't see how much of your balance you've paid, but they can see if you hit the minimum – or if you miss payments entirely. "So many people say, 'Oh, it's only a $10 payment this month, I'll miss it and make it next month,'" says Laurie Campbell, the spokesperson for Credit Counselling Canada, a nationwide non-profit agency that offers advice on debt repayment to consumers. "If you tend to do that every second or third month, you'll have a spotty credit rating." On the bright side, credit ratings are based on your financial behaviour in the past six years; any missed payments further back than that drop off your credit history.
5. Be debt-conscious
A common myth is that the more debt you qualify for, the better, says Campbell. "A lot of people make this mistake. But say I'm a potential creditor, and you ask me for a $10,000 loan. I look and see that you have six credit cards, with maximum limits on them that total about $40,000. You may not owe a cent on any of those cards, but I see that you could get yourself $40,000 into debt, plus whatever I give you." Her rule of thumb is to use only one or two credit cards. (If you decide to cancel a few of your cards, terminate them in reverse chronological order, from the one you've had the least amount of time to the oldest; your score usually improves with a longer credit history.) After that, keep paying off your credit cards to lower your debt load (the amount of debt you are carrying compared with your income and assets). "Once you get above 50 percent of your credit limit, it can harm your credit," says Tom Reid, the director of consumer solutions at TransUnion. He recommends keeping your balance to less than 35 percent of your limit. If you're working on improving your score, put the credit cards away for a few months and pay off the balance to get that number as low as possible.
6. Reap the rewards
It won't take you long to see an improvement; the good news is that most people can raise their scores in just a few months. "Most of this is common sense: Just go look at your credit report, see what you owe, and start paying it off as fast as you can," says Mike Lofquist, marketing and communications manager for Equifax. "Everything's going to improve."
Tiger Woods blasted by Augusta chairman Billy Payne
Augusta chairman Billy Payne has stern words for Woods
Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents
AUGUSTA, Ga.—In his annual news conference on Wednesday, Augusta National chairman Billy Payne took the unprecedented step of chastising the game's No. 1 player, Tiger Woods, for the recent revelations about his personal life.
At the end of a prepared statement before he fielded questions from reporters, Payne made clear his displeasure about Woods' admission of serial infidelity that led to a 45-day stint in rehab and has tarnished his previously squeaky-clean image.
Augusta National chairman Billy Payne made no secret of his displeasure with Tiger Woods' infidelity.
"It is not simply the degree of his conduct that is so egregious here; it is the fact that he disappointed all of us, and more importantly, our kids and our grand kids," Payne said. "Our hero did not live up to the expectations of the role model we saw for our children."
Woods, a four-time Masters champion, will play this week at Augusta National for the first time since the scandal broke on Thanksgiving night when he crashed his SUV outside his Orlando home. Within days, news reports of multiple affairs surfaced amid a steady stream of salacious details.
Woods apologized for what he called "transgressions" on his web site on Dec. 2, then went into seclusion and eventually rehab. His first public comments about the scandal came in February when he read a 15-minute prepared statement in the clubhouse at TPC Sawgrass.
At that point, Woods said he would be taking an indefinite break from the game. But he announced three weeks ago that he would return to competition at the Masters and Woods has come to Augusta National several times in the interim to prepare.
His opening tee shot at 1:42 p.m. on Thursday will mark Woods' first in competition in five months. He will play with K.J. Choi and Matt Kuchar in the first two rounds.
"We are not unaware of the significance of this week to a very special player, Tiger Woods—a man who in a brief 13 years clearly and emphatically proclaimed and proved his game to be worthy of the likes of Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer," Payne said.
"As he ascended in our rankings of the world's great golfers, he became an example to our kids that success is directly attributable to hard work and effort. But as he now says himself, he forgot in the process to remember that with fame and fortune comes responsibility, not invisibility."
Payne's surprisingly candid comments on Wednesday were carefully worded and delivered in a forum normally reserved for discussion of changes to the Augusta National and the club's charitable endeavors.
Payne declined to expand on other questions about Woods, saying only that security issues have been addressed and that the world No. 1 did attend Tuesday's Champions Dinner. He also noted that he's not worried about the season's first major being overshadowed by a single player.
"We are very secure in who we are, and the Masters has almost now a 74-year history," Payne said. "We just kind of do things our way. We are not threatened by other big news stories or things like that."
Payne politely refused to say whether Woods made a statement or apologized to the other Masters champions at Tuesday's festivities. Asked how the world No. 1 was received, the chairman again demurred, noting the mood is "always great" at the dinner, "always, always."
"He was at the Champions Dinner and yes, I had a conversation with him," Payne said. "But I don't want to go into detail about what it was."
Payne said he is hopeful Woods and his fans can move forward. His behavior off the course, though, may now be more career-defining than the miraculous shots Woods always seems to hit or the tournaments he will end up winning.
"Certainly his future will never again be measured only by his performance against par; but measured by the sincerity of his efforts to change," Payne said. "I hope he now realizes that every kid he passes on the course wants his swing, but would settle for his smile.
"I hope he can come to understand that life's greatest rewards are reserved for those who bring joy to the lives of other people. We at Augusta hope and pray that our great champion will begin his new life here tomorrow in a positive, hopeful and constructive manner, but this time, with a significant difference from the past.
"This year, it will not be just for him, but for all of us, who believe in second chances."
Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents
AUGUSTA, Ga.—In his annual news conference on Wednesday, Augusta National chairman Billy Payne took the unprecedented step of chastising the game's No. 1 player, Tiger Woods, for the recent revelations about his personal life.
At the end of a prepared statement before he fielded questions from reporters, Payne made clear his displeasure about Woods' admission of serial infidelity that led to a 45-day stint in rehab and has tarnished his previously squeaky-clean image.
Augusta National chairman Billy Payne made no secret of his displeasure with Tiger Woods' infidelity.
"It is not simply the degree of his conduct that is so egregious here; it is the fact that he disappointed all of us, and more importantly, our kids and our grand kids," Payne said. "Our hero did not live up to the expectations of the role model we saw for our children."
Woods, a four-time Masters champion, will play this week at Augusta National for the first time since the scandal broke on Thanksgiving night when he crashed his SUV outside his Orlando home. Within days, news reports of multiple affairs surfaced amid a steady stream of salacious details.
Woods apologized for what he called "transgressions" on his web site on Dec. 2, then went into seclusion and eventually rehab. His first public comments about the scandal came in February when he read a 15-minute prepared statement in the clubhouse at TPC Sawgrass.
At that point, Woods said he would be taking an indefinite break from the game. But he announced three weeks ago that he would return to competition at the Masters and Woods has come to Augusta National several times in the interim to prepare.
His opening tee shot at 1:42 p.m. on Thursday will mark Woods' first in competition in five months. He will play with K.J. Choi and Matt Kuchar in the first two rounds.
"We are not unaware of the significance of this week to a very special player, Tiger Woods—a man who in a brief 13 years clearly and emphatically proclaimed and proved his game to be worthy of the likes of Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer," Payne said.
"As he ascended in our rankings of the world's great golfers, he became an example to our kids that success is directly attributable to hard work and effort. But as he now says himself, he forgot in the process to remember that with fame and fortune comes responsibility, not invisibility."
Payne's surprisingly candid comments on Wednesday were carefully worded and delivered in a forum normally reserved for discussion of changes to the Augusta National and the club's charitable endeavors.
Payne declined to expand on other questions about Woods, saying only that security issues have been addressed and that the world No. 1 did attend Tuesday's Champions Dinner. He also noted that he's not worried about the season's first major being overshadowed by a single player.
"We are very secure in who we are, and the Masters has almost now a 74-year history," Payne said. "We just kind of do things our way. We are not threatened by other big news stories or things like that."
Payne politely refused to say whether Woods made a statement or apologized to the other Masters champions at Tuesday's festivities. Asked how the world No. 1 was received, the chairman again demurred, noting the mood is "always great" at the dinner, "always, always."
"He was at the Champions Dinner and yes, I had a conversation with him," Payne said. "But I don't want to go into detail about what it was."
Payne said he is hopeful Woods and his fans can move forward. His behavior off the course, though, may now be more career-defining than the miraculous shots Woods always seems to hit or the tournaments he will end up winning.
"Certainly his future will never again be measured only by his performance against par; but measured by the sincerity of his efforts to change," Payne said. "I hope he now realizes that every kid he passes on the course wants his swing, but would settle for his smile.
"I hope he can come to understand that life's greatest rewards are reserved for those who bring joy to the lives of other people. We at Augusta hope and pray that our great champion will begin his new life here tomorrow in a positive, hopeful and constructive manner, but this time, with a significant difference from the past.
"This year, it will not be just for him, but for all of us, who believe in second chances."
Anti-Catholicism and the Times
“Anti-Catholicism,” said writer Peter Viereck, “is the anti-Semitism of the intellectual.” It is “the deepest-held bias in the history of the American people,” said Arthur Schlesinger Sr.
If there was any doubt that hatred of and hostility toward the Catholic Church persists, it was removed by the mob that has arisen howling “Resign!” at Pope Benedict XVI.
To American Catholics, the story of pedophile priests engaged in criminal abuse of children, of pervert priests seducing boys, is unfortunately all too familiar. That some bishops covered up for pedophiles and seducers and enabled corrupt clergy to continue to prey on boys was equally disgraceful.
But to American Catholics, this is an old story. The priests have been defrocked, some sent to prison, like John Geoghan, who was strangled in his cell. Bishops have been removed. “Zero tolerance” has been policy for a decade.
Pope Benedict came to America to apologize for what these men did. And no one has been more aggressive in rooting out what he calls the “filth” in the church. And as the recent scandals have hit Ireland and Germany, why the attack on the pope here in America?
Answer: The New York Times is conducting a vendetta against this traditionalist pope in news stories, editorials and columns.
“Vatican Declined to Defrock U.S. Priest Who Abused Boys,” blared the headline over a Laurie Goodstein story that began thus:
“Top Vatican officials — including the future Pope Benedict XVI — did not defrock a priest who molested as many as 200 deaf boys …
“In 1996, Cardinal Ratzinger failed to respond to two letters about the case from Rembert G. Weakland, Milwaukee’s archbishop at that time.”
The facts:
That diabolical priest, Lawrence C. Murphy, was assigned to St. John’s School for the Deaf in 1950, before Joseph Ratzinger was even ordained.
Reports of his abuse of the deaf children surfaced in the 1950s. But, under three archbishops, nothing was done. Police and prosecutors were alerted by parents of the boys. Nothing was done.
Weakland, who became archbishop in 1977, did not write to Rome until 1996.
And as John Allen of National Catholic Reporter noted last week, Cardinal Ratzinger “did not have any direct responsibility for managing the overall Vatican response to the crisis until 2001. … Prior to 2001, Ratzinger had nothing personally to do with the vast majority of sex abuse cases, even the small percentage which wound up in Rome.”
By the time Cardinal Ratzinger was commissioned by John Paul II to clean out the stable, Murphy had been dead for three years.
Yet here is Times columnist Maureen Dowd’s summation of the case:
“Now we learn the sickening news that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, nicknamed ‘God’s Rotweiler,’ when he was the church’s enforcer on matters of faith and sin, ignored repeated warnings and looked away in the case of the Rev. Lawrence C. Murphy, a Wisconsin priest who molested as many as 200 deaf boys.”
In Goodstein’s piece, Weakland is a prelate who acted too slowly. The controversy over his clouded departure from the Milwaukee archdiocese is mentioned and passed over at the bottom of the story. It belonged higher.
For Weakland was a homosexual who confessed in a 1980 letter he was in “deep love” with a male paramour who shook down the archbishop for $450,000 in church funds as hush money to keep his lover’s mouth shut about their squalid affair.
According to Rod Dreher, Weakland moved Father William Effinger, who would die in prison, from parish to parish, knowing Effinger was a serial pederast.
When one of Effinger’s victims sued the archdiocese but lost because of a statute of limitations, Weakland counter-sued and extracted $4,000 from the victim of his predator priest.
Dreher describes Weakland’s tenure thus:
“He directed Catholic schools … to teach kids how to use condoms as part of AIDS education and approved a graphic sex-education program for parochial-school kids that taught ‘there is no right and wrong’ on the issues of abortion, contraception and premarital sex. He has advocated for gay rights and women’s ordination, bitterly attacked Pope John Paul II, denounced pro-lifers as ‘fundamentalist’ and declared that one could be both pro-choice and a Catholic in good standing.”
Speaking of sex-abuse victims in 1988, Weakland was quoted: “Not all adolescent victims are so innocent. Some can be sexually very active and aggressive and often streetwise.”
Just the kind of priest the Times loves, and just the kind of source on whom the Times relies when savaging the pope and bashing the church.
As the Catholic League’s Bill Donahue relates, 80 percent of the victims of priestly abuse have been males and “most of the molesters gays.”
And as the Times‘ Richard Berke blurted to the Gay and Lesbian Journalists Association 10 years ago, often, “three-quarters of the people deciding what’s on the front page are not-so-closeted homosexuals.”
Is there perhaps a conflict of interest at The New York Times, when covering a traditionalist Catholic pope?
Patrick J. Buchanan is founding editor of The American Conservative and author, most recently, of Churchill, Hitler, and the “Unnecessary War”.
COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM
Filed under: Religion, Scandal, media
25 Responses to “Anti-Catholicism and the Times”
1.
J.R. Fountain, on April 5th, 2010 at 10:04 pm Said:
Dear Pat,
What do you find most repulsive about child molestation and child rape? Those who commit the atrocities or those who were asked to help and did nothing like Joseph Ratzinger or those who continue to apologize for the cowards who did nothing like you? I think all of you are are the worst of cowards. But everyone needs an apologist and you have to be the one for Pope Joseph Ratzinger – Patron Saint of Child Rapists. And columnists like you, who hide their weakness by diverting attention to the real issues. What part of this scenario has anything good in it? Children were raped, Joey the Ratz knew about it, Joey did nothing, children continued to be raped, and Pat continues to make excuses for Joey’s actions by blaming someone else. That pretty much sums it up.
J. R. Fountain
2.
John, on April 5th, 2010 at 11:04 pm Said:
Sir,
You are mistaken and sick. These horrible old men have not been put in jail. Look at Rev. Francis Stinner, a monster who was knocked of the church in the mid-2000s, after more than 30 years (!!!!) of Vatigan knowledge of his crimes. He continues to live in a residential home in Somers, NY where he is feet away from many small boys. Look up his name in the phone book. He did damage to me and hundreds of other boys.
I would say, “rpt in hell” to him, if he hadn’t destroyed my belief in the church when he served as the head of the religion department at the Catholic high school I attended and was molested by him at.
3.
Dave, on April 6th, 2010 at 6:38 am Said:
Excellent article. The world needs to know this scandal is primarily a homosexual problem. The church has tried relentlessly to reach out to the homosexual community but, continually, has it’s hand bitten by them. Any sex outside of marriage (of course between a man and a woman) is a sin and puts people at risk of losing their salvation. This is the truth that many do not want to hear. Those molesting priests should have never been ordained in the first place because of their homosexuality.
4.
Mike, on April 6th, 2010 at 7:39 am Said:
These gays are sinister. They infiltrated the Church because it was a great place to get ahold of adolescent boys, steal Church money and debauch with other gay priests. What a perfect playground for them. Now the perverts at large are protesting outside St. Patricks in NYC pretending these pervert priests are not gay. Yes, they are gay and they have infiltrated the Church to its very heights. But you know they are really just a chastisement on the vast majority of Catholics who are not really Caholic because they willingly choose to violate Church teachings on birth control, abortion, cohabitation,etc, etc.
5.
francis nelson gould, on April 6th, 2010 at 8:22 am Said:
i see no coming back for priesthood till there is a renunciation of the practice of homosexuality and the church exchanges the word pedophile for homosexual. Many young men when they know can get in, graduate, get ahead, not be surrounded their whole life with those they find instinctively something wrong with, will gratuitously encounter the love to become good priests. I think New York Times is doing its job admirably condemning priests bishops and cardinals and popes who knew of abuse and did not refer to authorities for justice. Hooray for the NY Times.
Btw, I’m a retired guy who goes to Mass couple times a week.
6.
Joe A, on April 6th, 2010 at 8:54 am Said:
The vitriol spewed by Maureen Dowd in her editorial and the earlier article in the Times amount to a smear against the Church’s leadership and against Pope Benedict personally. These new incidents aren’t about some massive Church conspiracy to cover up and get their priests off the hook, as reading the Times articles would clearly imply. After reading the Times article and Dowd’s editorial, it is obvious that the Times has a bitter anti-Catholic bias. Even a casual observer, as I am, can read the facts of the case and see that the story should have been about Weakland, his dissident views, and his cover up of a perverted priest under his authority. As for the German priest, it is a further example of what happened in Boston: hiding, transferring, and coddling of sexual predators in priestly garments by some foolish bishops of the Church. Who knows how much Cardinal Ratsinger knew at the time? The Times certainly assumes the worst, that much is clear, and they make every tenuous connection to Benedict as damning as possible.
With that said, of course the Church deserves criticism fro failing to take seriously the crimes of its priests and act to stop them. By choosing to keep the scandals an internal matter and failing to act decisively, many bishops and priests have destroyed the faith of people like John and the many people who have left the Church because of it. If the Church has failed to live up to its mission, it is certainly because of its churchmen, not the Church itself.
But the point of this article is not to apologize for the awful crimes committed or the human filth who got away with them or those who knew and did nothing. These things should be brought to light and justice done. But the irrational hatred of the Times columnists for the Church makes it that much harder for the truth to come to light and justice done.
7.
MArk, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:03 am Said:
ACtually JR. Fountain, Pope Benedict did alot of work rooting out child abuse cases in the Church.
Before you start pouncing lets look at facts actually facts not reported in the media.
8.
Constance, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:10 am Said:
God bless Pope Benedict. Lord spare us from the evil and deceitful homosexual perverts trying to destroy Your church from within and from the outside. You said ” The gates of hell cannot prevail against Your church.” Amen, so be it..
9.
Barney Rebble, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:16 am Said:
We have such a well-tuned and coordinated chorus singing hate at PJB, and the Catholic church, that it seems discordant to try to inject some balance here.
I would point out that a priest whose original orientation was homosexual, if he is faithful to his vows, has left his sexual identity behind.
We are concerned with rates of failure, and priests both hetero and otherwise show a much lower failure rate that the population in general.
What is egregious, of course, is the betrayal of trust, and the damage to peoples’ faith, as well as the desire to cover such matters up, and the enabling of future crimes.
But just like you can smell a stealth-lib who likes to hang out at a conservative site, who hasn’t come to exchange ideas or build up conservatism, so too you can smell anti-catholic and anti-christian fervor.
Some don’t sound like the kind of “forgive the person, but imprison because of the action” christians that I normally meet in church.
10.
GeneK, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:29 am Said:
As a lifelong practicing Catholic Pat B. is just another apologist and not very good at it. In the “traditional” Church of the 1950’s I and every other altar boy was molested by our parish priest. We would warn others what to do if Father tried such and such. Later in life I personally learned of priests who had female lovers some for over 40 years and on one occasion a secret wife and children. It is not just a homosexual problem. The Bishops of the Church have failed miserably as the Good Shephard.
11.
tbraton, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:33 am Said:
“But you know they are really just a chastisement on the vast majority of Catholics who are not really Caholic because they willingly choose to violate Church teachings on birth control, abortion, cohabitation,etc, etc.”
It sounds like you knew my ex-wife very well. You failed to mention that she divorced her first husband before she married me. In her defense, she was definitely not homosexual.
12.
Bill Mulligan, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:44 am Said:
Pat,
I generally agree with you opinions and insights. On the issue at hand, it also seems the facts are on your side with regard to Ratzinger’s guilt in the case of Murphy. However, Ratzinger is no “traditionalist”, in fact he is no Catholic. The guy is full of modernist indifferentism and relativism. Ever read his goobly goop? He and his Vatican II predecessors are ultimately responsible for the wretched fruit of the last 40 years of destruction in the Church.
Bill Mulligan
13.
Linda Adams, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:57 am Said:
The smoke of Satan has entered the Catholic Church through the very evil acts of priests who allowed Satan to enter their hearts. The Catholic Church must be purified of this evil, and there will be suffering both on the part of the victims and the holy priests who truly follow in the footsteps of Jesus. There is so much anger and hurt among the victims. We must pray for them, that they be cleansed of the hurts and betrayals they have suffered. Holy Mass and communions, rosaries, and novenas must be prayed from the heart for them. We must love and pray for them as they are children of God, and they have been robbed of their innocence and abused beyond belief. . We must also pray for the priests, bishops, cardinals and our beloved Pope who are carrying the cross of betrayal and mistrust before the world. Our Heavenly Father weeps over these crimes and Our Blessed Mother weeps too for the hurts and pain, and abuse that were given by priests who are supposed to personify her Son, Jesus Christ. It is true that “the gates of hell cannot prevail against the Church”. We, the members, of the Catholic Church, must pray unceasingly for the victims and for our priests.We must pray and carry the light of Christ in the darkness of this world. We must do our part to stop the gates of hell. God will do the rest. Jesus, we trust in You!
14.
Tony J, on April 6th, 2010 at 11:38 am Said:
Pat, you’ve really outdone yourself this time. That shark is well and truly jumped.
But then, since there’s no video footage of Ratzinger actually ordering anyone to carry on the Catholic Church’s institutionalised practice of protecting and enabling paedophiles, I guess it can’t have happened.
And since it can’t have happened, anyone reporting on it – must – be fired up by Liberal anti-Catholic bias.
And anyway, Teh Gayz Did It! So there!
So simple a child could have thought of it. A child, or a deeply sick old man.
15.
Ronnie, on April 6th, 2010 at 12:19 pm Said:
First I want to apologize to John for all the pain and degradation he went through. This scandal was/is an abomination and the Church will have to forever hide their heads in shame for allowing this to happen. Please accept my heartfelt thoughts and prays for your recovery… As for the Priest you mentioned I have no doubt that what you wrote was true, but I would like to know further about this if this Priest is getting away with what amounts to murder of the innocence of children….Having said all that, I don’t believe this was a systematic abuse perpatrated by the Church.. Most Bishops sent these predators away for treatment but the mistake they made was taking the advise of the secular doctors and sending them back into mininstry. As in the case of the Milwarkee diocese, the gay Bishop was primarity responsible for that, allowing this abusive Priest to continue. The Pope was not notified until the late nineties and notably canceled the statue of limitations on this case. The rest is history…Finally all of that does not excuse your abuse. and for that I am truly sorry….
16.
Marcie U., on April 6th, 2010 at 12:51 pm Said:
What about the police and lawyers who covered up when they were advised of the abuse by priests? Weren’t they the ones who advised bishops how to deal with the issue. I may be wrong, but that is my understanding based on a story the mother of one victim shared on the TODAY show several years ago.
There were many cover ups by many people. Maybe it is time for the NYT to do a more thorough investigation into who advised them to protect the priests.
The vile and evil of those espousing to be priests is deplorable and they will have to face their God who will have the final say.
These men are despicable! Let us pray for all those whose lives have been touched by their filthy predators.
Look at all the good priests who far out number the abusers.
What about all the other faith denominations and the Scout Leaders who have done the same? It is an addiction of evil!
17.
Bernadette, on April 6th, 2010 at 1:42 pm Said:
Let us zero in on Pat’s final question of the article,”Is there perhaps a conflict of interest at The New York Times, when covering a traditionalist Catholic Pope?” I would contend, yes indeed there is and homosexually oriented bishops is a big part of it, but the obvious part of it is currently that the richest man in the world is a major stock holder. He is also a prime
beneficiary of an order currently before The Curia for final adjudification. I contend that this order and this beneficiary and homosexual, unorthodox, liberation theology and socialist leaning bishops would like to demonize BXVI and let Sodano and themselves continue with business as usual.
18.
Jon_in_Charlotte, on April 6th, 2010 at 1:49 pm Said:
My mother recently overheard a women state, ” I was born and raised Catholic, I raised my children Catholic, but, no more.” The women’s statement came in reaction to the recently reported trangressions within the Church, most specifically the sexual abuse of 200 deaf boys in the Diocese of Milwaukee. The women’s decision to denounce her religion must have delighted satan. As, shall the millions of others who join her in abandoning the Church as a result of the recent revelations of the scandals involving child molestation.
Why should satan be so delighted? Because his plan is working as he witnesses one after another baptized Catholic leave the Mother Church, selectively rejecting recieving the Eucharist, the body and blood of Jesus Christ, in the process. Most of the Catholics who are exiting the Church do so without understanding what they’re leaving behind, over half of Catholics born after 1960 don’t believe in the Divine Presence in the Eucharist. If Christians truly believed that Christ is present in the Eucharist would they even consider to abandon the provider of It. It would be as if persons dying from a disease choose not to go to the hospital which provides the cure because the hospital is filled with doctors who engage in activities that are seen as offensive by the ill patients. They would rather die than be served their cure by someone they’ve deemed reprehensible. This self-denial comes as a result of pride.How satan must be laughing at his handiwork.
So, how has satan managed to injure and persecute the Church? The answer is through the same method he has used to curse humanity, through the proliferation of fear. The tactic used by satan in the Garden of Eden, using fear (fear of being without) to prompt temptation which leads to a self-serving (rather than serving God’s desire) action towards alleviating the fear, is the same one serving his effort to crucify the Church.
The exact match which was struck leading to this fire is uncertain, but, it can be presumed that it was an incident(s) ignited be fear. For example, one man’s lust (the fear of being without a specific desire) could have led to sexually abusing a boy who evolves into a homosexual young man. This young man, a faithful Catholic, fears being tormented by society as a result of his sexuality and chooses to become a priest, not from being called, but rather from an act of self preservation. Since the choice of becoming a priest was not founded in love, a desire to do the will of God, but rather fear, then the fruit of the individual’s service to the Church is ripe to spoil. This priest could allow his own lust to lead to abuse or affairs with other priests/seminarians and/or he could become a bishop and be empathetic to incidences of abuse. Other Bishops could be put in positions, from dealing with abuse cases, where they fear the Church being damaged by controversy or criticisms so decisions are made to alleviate the fear. However, the choice to move an abusive priest from one parish (based on the presumption that by moving him from the object of his lust will fix the problem) to another poured gasoline of the fire.
To truly love the Church and be a servant for Christ the leadership within the Church should have been willing to suffer the consequences of condemning the cases of abuse and turning over the priest to the proper authorities.
However, it has been one fear leading to another leading to another which now has led baptized Catholics fearing to be associated with their Church. Those who tolerated the original slate of offenses are now facing the latest allegations with the mentality of injure me once shame on you, injure me twice and shame on me. So pride (fear of being without respect and admiration) compels the individual to choose to not defend the Church or the Catholic religion for the sake of not being criticized for their beliefs.
If what is occurring to the Church is part of the passion which it is prophesized to endure then the persecutions that it has been challenged with are going to continue to get worse. As the Church strives through its own passion will Catholics be as Peter, denying their association to the Church, or be as John, drawn by the Blessed Mother to be there at the foot of the crucifixion.
19.
maggie lindon, on April 6th, 2010 at 2:26 pm Said:
When two bishops in a row resigned after exsposure of homosexual acts and payoff to minors and over twenty five years or more, I began to read and study back through the history of The Church to find the source of this behavior and cover-up. The conclusion is it began as someone else has pointed out, when Adam noticed he needed a fig leaf. St. Paul offered a sugestion of how to deal with it. Peter Damien tried. St. Frances tried another way. Gerald Fitzgerald as the first therapist of Priests with this problem said, “They were incurable.” He said the bishops should put them on a monastery island and they should never be around the general populace again. So I don’t want to hear that the bishops were acting according to the pronosis of therapists. They have been crucifying, Jesus, by exaulting ,the reputation of a man, group of men or all manhood, over the dignity of the human person of motherhood and childhood. The difference between other men and the all male hierarchy of The Church doing this is the priesthood acts in the person of Christ. They are thereby mocking God. It will go better for Ninevah on that day.
20.
Fran Rossi, on April 6th, 2010 at 2:40 pm Said:
Pat, so, since you’re straight and the majority of reporters at TAC are straight, then by your reasoning, TAC is conspiring against homosexuals and linking them to pedophiles, who are, historically, STRAIGHT.
21.
marcum, on April 6th, 2010 at 2:49 pm Said:
It’s as grand moment for many who childishly hate the holy father (aka, the pope) to rip into him as demons devour the innocent (like pedifiles themselves) without a measure of consideration of the facts. Sequestering unique packets of imformation to build a mental thought process is not in seeking Truth. As humans, our lives are connected day to day by time worn truths and not the splendor of fashionable mental visualizations. The residue of the 60’s and 70’s sex revolution to western civ. was disastrous to the balance of true human nature. The progressive ethos broke down the gates to the common sensibilities of man. The freedom of sexual experiment and unhinged expression became the zeitgeist and thus the Church, the family, marriages, children, schools all have paid dearly and will continue to do so. Remember how defiant the secularists inside and outside the church were about Humane Vitae in 1968- and then came Rowe v Wade, Card. Bernardine in Chicago’s ‘Seanless Garmet’ to sell abortion to Kennedy democrats and the nuns who threw off their habits in exchange for a sexually liberating lifestyle and walked away fro being devoted teachers in Catholic schools (so much for the sincere care for children in our midst indeed).
Listening to the voices of well-known, broken and angry Vatican (Magisterium) haters who are at the seed of these social tragedies are making the most of an opportunity in using a more than willing accomplice (the main stream media) for political and also monetary gain. I’ve met many of them, they hate their political enemy far more than they give a damn for those who are victims in the alledged cases.
Also noteworthy, is that, recent statistics show that secular public schools have far more sexual abuse cases on record in percentage than does instances affiliated with the Catholic Church. Try to present this statistic and see how quick the door gets shut in your face. Now that is liberal tolerance in action.
22.
Madame Defarge, on April 6th, 2010 at 3:45 pm Said:
“Simon, Simon! Listen! Satan has received permission to test all of you, to separate the good from the bad, as a farmer separates the wheat from the chaff. But I have prayed for you Simon, that your faith will not fail. And when you turn back to me, you must strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:31-32
Satan is sifting out the Church for Our Lord.
Pray for Pope Benedict XVI!
23.
R J Stove, on April 6th, 2010 at 7:06 pm Said:
In an article for a Sydney-based magazine that was written – indeed was published – well before the latest NYT lynching-bee, I wrote: “Maria Monk has not died, but merely moved to a ritzier address, where she maintains a blatant ménage à trois with Dan Brown and Christopher Hitchens.” Little did I know how extra a weight of truth my words would come to acquire.
On another magazine’s comments blog, someone wrote (if memory serves me) the following words: “Wake me up when the NYT starts whining about pedophile imams and pedophile atheists.” Couldn’t put it better myself, particularly in view of Daniel Cohn-Bendit’s basing a pagan political career on his self-confessed kiddy-fiddling. As for Britain’s Peter Tatchell and Harriet Harman …
24.
Digusted, on April 6th, 2010 at 7:37 pm Said:
Anti Catholcism is right. Nobody looks at all the abuse cases, they just focus on Catholic priests. I saw a survey the other day where more abusers are in other denominations and also, the highest rate of abuse is in families, from parents or relatives. Wake up people, ths is a clear case of abusive accusations and prejudicial remarks against Catholicism. No one really cares about the victims, all they are foccused on is making the Catholic church look bad.. Either accuse all abusers or none.
25.
Jack of All Tirades, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:50 pm Said:
There may be a thread of anti-catholicism in the media, but this is what I cannot figure out:
You have a number of priests who were caught molesting children. Instead of calling the police, the first instinct is to protect the church and then move the priest to another parish?
That’s what’s driving the frenzy. I’m personally an agnostic. If someone else wants to go to church, that’s fine with me – this is America and people have the freedom to worship (or not worship) as they wish. I’m sure John Stuart Mill would agree with me on this point. However, once church members start committing crimes, it becomes a societal issue and everyone can weigh in.
When you have people within a church that shield child molesters, then they’re an accessory to the crime. Why haven’t they been prosecuted under RICO statutes? It wasn’t for the pope to decide whether or not the Wisconsin priest was defrocked – he should have made sure that law enforcement knew of the priest’s actions so that the priest could have died in jail where he belonged.
Everyone can dress this up as the work of satan – but this is pretty clear: This mess is the result of sick people who were protected rather than handed over to the police. I’m surprised that a ‘conservative’ magazine cannot see this as a simple issue of law and order. It sounds instead like everyone is busy at pointing the finger at society rather than the true criminals.
If there was any doubt that hatred of and hostility toward the Catholic Church persists, it was removed by the mob that has arisen howling “Resign!” at Pope Benedict XVI.
To American Catholics, the story of pedophile priests engaged in criminal abuse of children, of pervert priests seducing boys, is unfortunately all too familiar. That some bishops covered up for pedophiles and seducers and enabled corrupt clergy to continue to prey on boys was equally disgraceful.
But to American Catholics, this is an old story. The priests have been defrocked, some sent to prison, like John Geoghan, who was strangled in his cell. Bishops have been removed. “Zero tolerance” has been policy for a decade.
Pope Benedict came to America to apologize for what these men did. And no one has been more aggressive in rooting out what he calls the “filth” in the church. And as the recent scandals have hit Ireland and Germany, why the attack on the pope here in America?
Answer: The New York Times is conducting a vendetta against this traditionalist pope in news stories, editorials and columns.
“Vatican Declined to Defrock U.S. Priest Who Abused Boys,” blared the headline over a Laurie Goodstein story that began thus:
“Top Vatican officials — including the future Pope Benedict XVI — did not defrock a priest who molested as many as 200 deaf boys …
“In 1996, Cardinal Ratzinger failed to respond to two letters about the case from Rembert G. Weakland, Milwaukee’s archbishop at that time.”
The facts:
That diabolical priest, Lawrence C. Murphy, was assigned to St. John’s School for the Deaf in 1950, before Joseph Ratzinger was even ordained.
Reports of his abuse of the deaf children surfaced in the 1950s. But, under three archbishops, nothing was done. Police and prosecutors were alerted by parents of the boys. Nothing was done.
Weakland, who became archbishop in 1977, did not write to Rome until 1996.
And as John Allen of National Catholic Reporter noted last week, Cardinal Ratzinger “did not have any direct responsibility for managing the overall Vatican response to the crisis until 2001. … Prior to 2001, Ratzinger had nothing personally to do with the vast majority of sex abuse cases, even the small percentage which wound up in Rome.”
By the time Cardinal Ratzinger was commissioned by John Paul II to clean out the stable, Murphy had been dead for three years.
Yet here is Times columnist Maureen Dowd’s summation of the case:
“Now we learn the sickening news that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, nicknamed ‘God’s Rotweiler,’ when he was the church’s enforcer on matters of faith and sin, ignored repeated warnings and looked away in the case of the Rev. Lawrence C. Murphy, a Wisconsin priest who molested as many as 200 deaf boys.”
In Goodstein’s piece, Weakland is a prelate who acted too slowly. The controversy over his clouded departure from the Milwaukee archdiocese is mentioned and passed over at the bottom of the story. It belonged higher.
For Weakland was a homosexual who confessed in a 1980 letter he was in “deep love” with a male paramour who shook down the archbishop for $450,000 in church funds as hush money to keep his lover’s mouth shut about their squalid affair.
According to Rod Dreher, Weakland moved Father William Effinger, who would die in prison, from parish to parish, knowing Effinger was a serial pederast.
When one of Effinger’s victims sued the archdiocese but lost because of a statute of limitations, Weakland counter-sued and extracted $4,000 from the victim of his predator priest.
Dreher describes Weakland’s tenure thus:
“He directed Catholic schools … to teach kids how to use condoms as part of AIDS education and approved a graphic sex-education program for parochial-school kids that taught ‘there is no right and wrong’ on the issues of abortion, contraception and premarital sex. He has advocated for gay rights and women’s ordination, bitterly attacked Pope John Paul II, denounced pro-lifers as ‘fundamentalist’ and declared that one could be both pro-choice and a Catholic in good standing.”
Speaking of sex-abuse victims in 1988, Weakland was quoted: “Not all adolescent victims are so innocent. Some can be sexually very active and aggressive and often streetwise.”
Just the kind of priest the Times loves, and just the kind of source on whom the Times relies when savaging the pope and bashing the church.
As the Catholic League’s Bill Donahue relates, 80 percent of the victims of priestly abuse have been males and “most of the molesters gays.”
And as the Times‘ Richard Berke blurted to the Gay and Lesbian Journalists Association 10 years ago, often, “three-quarters of the people deciding what’s on the front page are not-so-closeted homosexuals.”
Is there perhaps a conflict of interest at The New York Times, when covering a traditionalist Catholic pope?
Patrick J. Buchanan is founding editor of The American Conservative and author, most recently, of Churchill, Hitler, and the “Unnecessary War”.
COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM
Filed under: Religion, Scandal, media
25 Responses to “Anti-Catholicism and the Times”
1.
J.R. Fountain, on April 5th, 2010 at 10:04 pm Said:
Dear Pat,
What do you find most repulsive about child molestation and child rape? Those who commit the atrocities or those who were asked to help and did nothing like Joseph Ratzinger or those who continue to apologize for the cowards who did nothing like you? I think all of you are are the worst of cowards. But everyone needs an apologist and you have to be the one for Pope Joseph Ratzinger – Patron Saint of Child Rapists. And columnists like you, who hide their weakness by diverting attention to the real issues. What part of this scenario has anything good in it? Children were raped, Joey the Ratz knew about it, Joey did nothing, children continued to be raped, and Pat continues to make excuses for Joey’s actions by blaming someone else. That pretty much sums it up.
J. R. Fountain
2.
John, on April 5th, 2010 at 11:04 pm Said:
Sir,
You are mistaken and sick. These horrible old men have not been put in jail. Look at Rev. Francis Stinner, a monster who was knocked of the church in the mid-2000s, after more than 30 years (!!!!) of Vatigan knowledge of his crimes. He continues to live in a residential home in Somers, NY where he is feet away from many small boys. Look up his name in the phone book. He did damage to me and hundreds of other boys.
I would say, “rpt in hell” to him, if he hadn’t destroyed my belief in the church when he served as the head of the religion department at the Catholic high school I attended and was molested by him at.
3.
Dave, on April 6th, 2010 at 6:38 am Said:
Excellent article. The world needs to know this scandal is primarily a homosexual problem. The church has tried relentlessly to reach out to the homosexual community but, continually, has it’s hand bitten by them. Any sex outside of marriage (of course between a man and a woman) is a sin and puts people at risk of losing their salvation. This is the truth that many do not want to hear. Those molesting priests should have never been ordained in the first place because of their homosexuality.
4.
Mike, on April 6th, 2010 at 7:39 am Said:
These gays are sinister. They infiltrated the Church because it was a great place to get ahold of adolescent boys, steal Church money and debauch with other gay priests. What a perfect playground for them. Now the perverts at large are protesting outside St. Patricks in NYC pretending these pervert priests are not gay. Yes, they are gay and they have infiltrated the Church to its very heights. But you know they are really just a chastisement on the vast majority of Catholics who are not really Caholic because they willingly choose to violate Church teachings on birth control, abortion, cohabitation,etc, etc.
5.
francis nelson gould, on April 6th, 2010 at 8:22 am Said:
i see no coming back for priesthood till there is a renunciation of the practice of homosexuality and the church exchanges the word pedophile for homosexual. Many young men when they know can get in, graduate, get ahead, not be surrounded their whole life with those they find instinctively something wrong with, will gratuitously encounter the love to become good priests. I think New York Times is doing its job admirably condemning priests bishops and cardinals and popes who knew of abuse and did not refer to authorities for justice. Hooray for the NY Times.
Btw, I’m a retired guy who goes to Mass couple times a week.
6.
Joe A, on April 6th, 2010 at 8:54 am Said:
The vitriol spewed by Maureen Dowd in her editorial and the earlier article in the Times amount to a smear against the Church’s leadership and against Pope Benedict personally. These new incidents aren’t about some massive Church conspiracy to cover up and get their priests off the hook, as reading the Times articles would clearly imply. After reading the Times article and Dowd’s editorial, it is obvious that the Times has a bitter anti-Catholic bias. Even a casual observer, as I am, can read the facts of the case and see that the story should have been about Weakland, his dissident views, and his cover up of a perverted priest under his authority. As for the German priest, it is a further example of what happened in Boston: hiding, transferring, and coddling of sexual predators in priestly garments by some foolish bishops of the Church. Who knows how much Cardinal Ratsinger knew at the time? The Times certainly assumes the worst, that much is clear, and they make every tenuous connection to Benedict as damning as possible.
With that said, of course the Church deserves criticism fro failing to take seriously the crimes of its priests and act to stop them. By choosing to keep the scandals an internal matter and failing to act decisively, many bishops and priests have destroyed the faith of people like John and the many people who have left the Church because of it. If the Church has failed to live up to its mission, it is certainly because of its churchmen, not the Church itself.
But the point of this article is not to apologize for the awful crimes committed or the human filth who got away with them or those who knew and did nothing. These things should be brought to light and justice done. But the irrational hatred of the Times columnists for the Church makes it that much harder for the truth to come to light and justice done.
7.
MArk, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:03 am Said:
ACtually JR. Fountain, Pope Benedict did alot of work rooting out child abuse cases in the Church.
Before you start pouncing lets look at facts actually facts not reported in the media.
8.
Constance, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:10 am Said:
God bless Pope Benedict. Lord spare us from the evil and deceitful homosexual perverts trying to destroy Your church from within and from the outside. You said ” The gates of hell cannot prevail against Your church.” Amen, so be it..
9.
Barney Rebble, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:16 am Said:
We have such a well-tuned and coordinated chorus singing hate at PJB, and the Catholic church, that it seems discordant to try to inject some balance here.
I would point out that a priest whose original orientation was homosexual, if he is faithful to his vows, has left his sexual identity behind.
We are concerned with rates of failure, and priests both hetero and otherwise show a much lower failure rate that the population in general.
What is egregious, of course, is the betrayal of trust, and the damage to peoples’ faith, as well as the desire to cover such matters up, and the enabling of future crimes.
But just like you can smell a stealth-lib who likes to hang out at a conservative site, who hasn’t come to exchange ideas or build up conservatism, so too you can smell anti-catholic and anti-christian fervor.
Some don’t sound like the kind of “forgive the person, but imprison because of the action” christians that I normally meet in church.
10.
GeneK, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:29 am Said:
As a lifelong practicing Catholic Pat B. is just another apologist and not very good at it. In the “traditional” Church of the 1950’s I and every other altar boy was molested by our parish priest. We would warn others what to do if Father tried such and such. Later in life I personally learned of priests who had female lovers some for over 40 years and on one occasion a secret wife and children. It is not just a homosexual problem. The Bishops of the Church have failed miserably as the Good Shephard.
11.
tbraton, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:33 am Said:
“But you know they are really just a chastisement on the vast majority of Catholics who are not really Caholic because they willingly choose to violate Church teachings on birth control, abortion, cohabitation,etc, etc.”
It sounds like you knew my ex-wife very well. You failed to mention that she divorced her first husband before she married me. In her defense, she was definitely not homosexual.
12.
Bill Mulligan, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:44 am Said:
Pat,
I generally agree with you opinions and insights. On the issue at hand, it also seems the facts are on your side with regard to Ratzinger’s guilt in the case of Murphy. However, Ratzinger is no “traditionalist”, in fact he is no Catholic. The guy is full of modernist indifferentism and relativism. Ever read his goobly goop? He and his Vatican II predecessors are ultimately responsible for the wretched fruit of the last 40 years of destruction in the Church.
Bill Mulligan
13.
Linda Adams, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:57 am Said:
The smoke of Satan has entered the Catholic Church through the very evil acts of priests who allowed Satan to enter their hearts. The Catholic Church must be purified of this evil, and there will be suffering both on the part of the victims and the holy priests who truly follow in the footsteps of Jesus. There is so much anger and hurt among the victims. We must pray for them, that they be cleansed of the hurts and betrayals they have suffered. Holy Mass and communions, rosaries, and novenas must be prayed from the heart for them. We must love and pray for them as they are children of God, and they have been robbed of their innocence and abused beyond belief. . We must also pray for the priests, bishops, cardinals and our beloved Pope who are carrying the cross of betrayal and mistrust before the world. Our Heavenly Father weeps over these crimes and Our Blessed Mother weeps too for the hurts and pain, and abuse that were given by priests who are supposed to personify her Son, Jesus Christ. It is true that “the gates of hell cannot prevail against the Church”. We, the members, of the Catholic Church, must pray unceasingly for the victims and for our priests.We must pray and carry the light of Christ in the darkness of this world. We must do our part to stop the gates of hell. God will do the rest. Jesus, we trust in You!
14.
Tony J, on April 6th, 2010 at 11:38 am Said:
Pat, you’ve really outdone yourself this time. That shark is well and truly jumped.
But then, since there’s no video footage of Ratzinger actually ordering anyone to carry on the Catholic Church’s institutionalised practice of protecting and enabling paedophiles, I guess it can’t have happened.
And since it can’t have happened, anyone reporting on it – must – be fired up by Liberal anti-Catholic bias.
And anyway, Teh Gayz Did It! So there!
So simple a child could have thought of it. A child, or a deeply sick old man.
15.
Ronnie, on April 6th, 2010 at 12:19 pm Said:
First I want to apologize to John for all the pain and degradation he went through. This scandal was/is an abomination and the Church will have to forever hide their heads in shame for allowing this to happen. Please accept my heartfelt thoughts and prays for your recovery… As for the Priest you mentioned I have no doubt that what you wrote was true, but I would like to know further about this if this Priest is getting away with what amounts to murder of the innocence of children….Having said all that, I don’t believe this was a systematic abuse perpatrated by the Church.. Most Bishops sent these predators away for treatment but the mistake they made was taking the advise of the secular doctors and sending them back into mininstry. As in the case of the Milwarkee diocese, the gay Bishop was primarity responsible for that, allowing this abusive Priest to continue. The Pope was not notified until the late nineties and notably canceled the statue of limitations on this case. The rest is history…Finally all of that does not excuse your abuse. and for that I am truly sorry….
16.
Marcie U., on April 6th, 2010 at 12:51 pm Said:
What about the police and lawyers who covered up when they were advised of the abuse by priests? Weren’t they the ones who advised bishops how to deal with the issue. I may be wrong, but that is my understanding based on a story the mother of one victim shared on the TODAY show several years ago.
There were many cover ups by many people. Maybe it is time for the NYT to do a more thorough investigation into who advised them to protect the priests.
The vile and evil of those espousing to be priests is deplorable and they will have to face their God who will have the final say.
These men are despicable! Let us pray for all those whose lives have been touched by their filthy predators.
Look at all the good priests who far out number the abusers.
What about all the other faith denominations and the Scout Leaders who have done the same? It is an addiction of evil!
17.
Bernadette, on April 6th, 2010 at 1:42 pm Said:
Let us zero in on Pat’s final question of the article,”Is there perhaps a conflict of interest at The New York Times, when covering a traditionalist Catholic Pope?” I would contend, yes indeed there is and homosexually oriented bishops is a big part of it, but the obvious part of it is currently that the richest man in the world is a major stock holder. He is also a prime
beneficiary of an order currently before The Curia for final adjudification. I contend that this order and this beneficiary and homosexual, unorthodox, liberation theology and socialist leaning bishops would like to demonize BXVI and let Sodano and themselves continue with business as usual.
18.
Jon_in_Charlotte, on April 6th, 2010 at 1:49 pm Said:
My mother recently overheard a women state, ” I was born and raised Catholic, I raised my children Catholic, but, no more.” The women’s statement came in reaction to the recently reported trangressions within the Church, most specifically the sexual abuse of 200 deaf boys in the Diocese of Milwaukee. The women’s decision to denounce her religion must have delighted satan. As, shall the millions of others who join her in abandoning the Church as a result of the recent revelations of the scandals involving child molestation.
Why should satan be so delighted? Because his plan is working as he witnesses one after another baptized Catholic leave the Mother Church, selectively rejecting recieving the Eucharist, the body and blood of Jesus Christ, in the process. Most of the Catholics who are exiting the Church do so without understanding what they’re leaving behind, over half of Catholics born after 1960 don’t believe in the Divine Presence in the Eucharist. If Christians truly believed that Christ is present in the Eucharist would they even consider to abandon the provider of It. It would be as if persons dying from a disease choose not to go to the hospital which provides the cure because the hospital is filled with doctors who engage in activities that are seen as offensive by the ill patients. They would rather die than be served their cure by someone they’ve deemed reprehensible. This self-denial comes as a result of pride.How satan must be laughing at his handiwork.
So, how has satan managed to injure and persecute the Church? The answer is through the same method he has used to curse humanity, through the proliferation of fear. The tactic used by satan in the Garden of Eden, using fear (fear of being without) to prompt temptation which leads to a self-serving (rather than serving God’s desire) action towards alleviating the fear, is the same one serving his effort to crucify the Church.
The exact match which was struck leading to this fire is uncertain, but, it can be presumed that it was an incident(s) ignited be fear. For example, one man’s lust (the fear of being without a specific desire) could have led to sexually abusing a boy who evolves into a homosexual young man. This young man, a faithful Catholic, fears being tormented by society as a result of his sexuality and chooses to become a priest, not from being called, but rather from an act of self preservation. Since the choice of becoming a priest was not founded in love, a desire to do the will of God, but rather fear, then the fruit of the individual’s service to the Church is ripe to spoil. This priest could allow his own lust to lead to abuse or affairs with other priests/seminarians and/or he could become a bishop and be empathetic to incidences of abuse. Other Bishops could be put in positions, from dealing with abuse cases, where they fear the Church being damaged by controversy or criticisms so decisions are made to alleviate the fear. However, the choice to move an abusive priest from one parish (based on the presumption that by moving him from the object of his lust will fix the problem) to another poured gasoline of the fire.
To truly love the Church and be a servant for Christ the leadership within the Church should have been willing to suffer the consequences of condemning the cases of abuse and turning over the priest to the proper authorities.
However, it has been one fear leading to another leading to another which now has led baptized Catholics fearing to be associated with their Church. Those who tolerated the original slate of offenses are now facing the latest allegations with the mentality of injure me once shame on you, injure me twice and shame on me. So pride (fear of being without respect and admiration) compels the individual to choose to not defend the Church or the Catholic religion for the sake of not being criticized for their beliefs.
If what is occurring to the Church is part of the passion which it is prophesized to endure then the persecutions that it has been challenged with are going to continue to get worse. As the Church strives through its own passion will Catholics be as Peter, denying their association to the Church, or be as John, drawn by the Blessed Mother to be there at the foot of the crucifixion.
19.
maggie lindon, on April 6th, 2010 at 2:26 pm Said:
When two bishops in a row resigned after exsposure of homosexual acts and payoff to minors and over twenty five years or more, I began to read and study back through the history of The Church to find the source of this behavior and cover-up. The conclusion is it began as someone else has pointed out, when Adam noticed he needed a fig leaf. St. Paul offered a sugestion of how to deal with it. Peter Damien tried. St. Frances tried another way. Gerald Fitzgerald as the first therapist of Priests with this problem said, “They were incurable.” He said the bishops should put them on a monastery island and they should never be around the general populace again. So I don’t want to hear that the bishops were acting according to the pronosis of therapists. They have been crucifying, Jesus, by exaulting ,the reputation of a man, group of men or all manhood, over the dignity of the human person of motherhood and childhood. The difference between other men and the all male hierarchy of The Church doing this is the priesthood acts in the person of Christ. They are thereby mocking God. It will go better for Ninevah on that day.
20.
Fran Rossi, on April 6th, 2010 at 2:40 pm Said:
Pat, so, since you’re straight and the majority of reporters at TAC are straight, then by your reasoning, TAC is conspiring against homosexuals and linking them to pedophiles, who are, historically, STRAIGHT.
21.
marcum, on April 6th, 2010 at 2:49 pm Said:
It’s as grand moment for many who childishly hate the holy father (aka, the pope) to rip into him as demons devour the innocent (like pedifiles themselves) without a measure of consideration of the facts. Sequestering unique packets of imformation to build a mental thought process is not in seeking Truth. As humans, our lives are connected day to day by time worn truths and not the splendor of fashionable mental visualizations. The residue of the 60’s and 70’s sex revolution to western civ. was disastrous to the balance of true human nature. The progressive ethos broke down the gates to the common sensibilities of man. The freedom of sexual experiment and unhinged expression became the zeitgeist and thus the Church, the family, marriages, children, schools all have paid dearly and will continue to do so. Remember how defiant the secularists inside and outside the church were about Humane Vitae in 1968- and then came Rowe v Wade, Card. Bernardine in Chicago’s ‘Seanless Garmet’ to sell abortion to Kennedy democrats and the nuns who threw off their habits in exchange for a sexually liberating lifestyle and walked away fro being devoted teachers in Catholic schools (so much for the sincere care for children in our midst indeed).
Listening to the voices of well-known, broken and angry Vatican (Magisterium) haters who are at the seed of these social tragedies are making the most of an opportunity in using a more than willing accomplice (the main stream media) for political and also monetary gain. I’ve met many of them, they hate their political enemy far more than they give a damn for those who are victims in the alledged cases.
Also noteworthy, is that, recent statistics show that secular public schools have far more sexual abuse cases on record in percentage than does instances affiliated with the Catholic Church. Try to present this statistic and see how quick the door gets shut in your face. Now that is liberal tolerance in action.
22.
Madame Defarge, on April 6th, 2010 at 3:45 pm Said:
“Simon, Simon! Listen! Satan has received permission to test all of you, to separate the good from the bad, as a farmer separates the wheat from the chaff. But I have prayed for you Simon, that your faith will not fail. And when you turn back to me, you must strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:31-32
Satan is sifting out the Church for Our Lord.
Pray for Pope Benedict XVI!
23.
R J Stove, on April 6th, 2010 at 7:06 pm Said:
In an article for a Sydney-based magazine that was written – indeed was published – well before the latest NYT lynching-bee, I wrote: “Maria Monk has not died, but merely moved to a ritzier address, where she maintains a blatant ménage à trois with Dan Brown and Christopher Hitchens.” Little did I know how extra a weight of truth my words would come to acquire.
On another magazine’s comments blog, someone wrote (if memory serves me) the following words: “Wake me up when the NYT starts whining about pedophile imams and pedophile atheists.” Couldn’t put it better myself, particularly in view of Daniel Cohn-Bendit’s basing a pagan political career on his self-confessed kiddy-fiddling. As for Britain’s Peter Tatchell and Harriet Harman …
24.
Digusted, on April 6th, 2010 at 7:37 pm Said:
Anti Catholcism is right. Nobody looks at all the abuse cases, they just focus on Catholic priests. I saw a survey the other day where more abusers are in other denominations and also, the highest rate of abuse is in families, from parents or relatives. Wake up people, ths is a clear case of abusive accusations and prejudicial remarks against Catholicism. No one really cares about the victims, all they are foccused on is making the Catholic church look bad.. Either accuse all abusers or none.
25.
Jack of All Tirades, on April 6th, 2010 at 9:50 pm Said:
There may be a thread of anti-catholicism in the media, but this is what I cannot figure out:
You have a number of priests who were caught molesting children. Instead of calling the police, the first instinct is to protect the church and then move the priest to another parish?
That’s what’s driving the frenzy. I’m personally an agnostic. If someone else wants to go to church, that’s fine with me – this is America and people have the freedom to worship (or not worship) as they wish. I’m sure John Stuart Mill would agree with me on this point. However, once church members start committing crimes, it becomes a societal issue and everyone can weigh in.
When you have people within a church that shield child molesters, then they’re an accessory to the crime. Why haven’t they been prosecuted under RICO statutes? It wasn’t for the pope to decide whether or not the Wisconsin priest was defrocked – he should have made sure that law enforcement knew of the priest’s actions so that the priest could have died in jail where he belonged.
Everyone can dress this up as the work of satan – but this is pretty clear: This mess is the result of sick people who were protected rather than handed over to the police. I’m surprised that a ‘conservative’ magazine cannot see this as a simple issue of law and order. It sounds instead like everyone is busy at pointing the finger at society rather than the true criminals.
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