Of course, I am not certain, but I suspect that Bill Donahue is a less than effective advocate for the Catholic Church. He just seems to have a knack for making sure that everyone knows about every harsh criticism people make about the church, even when those criticisms are pretty much universally acknowledged as being valid. Who, after all, is actually denying the rampant child molestation problem that has been exposed within the priesthood? Only a few lunatics defend that behavior. Almost no one thinks that the church has done enough, now or historically, to protect children from priestly sexual predators. So, I don’t think it’s a good public relations move to attack everyone who has something negative to say about that situation, even if they say it with a degree of hostility.
About The Author
BooMan
Martin Longman a contributing editor at the Washington Monthly. He is also the founder of Booman Tribune and Progress Pond. He has a degree in philosophy from Western Michigan University.
When it comes to Maher, I can take him or leave him. But I would suggest to Donahue that the best way to avoid having issues like this continually raised is to do everything one can to eliminate child molestation and predation from his religious organization. The problem isn’t that Maher talks about it, the problem is that the issue exists at all. Pushing back against those who point out this fact instead of expending the lions share of your energy trying to purge the evil in ones own house just makes you look like a self righteous, hypocritical douchebag. Not to mention, a total and complete asshole.
But if the shoe fits…………
That would require priestly marriage, including gay marriage. The Church is a haven for pedophiles who can hide their aversion to adult relationships behind “celibacy”.
The issue with Catholics like Bill Donahue is that they are not really advocating for the Catholic Church but a certain faction of the Catholic Church. Most of those folks very soon will be attacking the Pope for being a “communist”. Just watch.
And watch what happens when the Catholic Supreme Court strips away women’s rights to contraception coverage in their employers’ insurance.
That certain fraction is sending out a message that does not appeal to the youth in this country. The Pope knows if you don’t fill up the pews, get young people to be priests and nuns the church will die.
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In my experience, few crimes are more universally despised than kid-fucking. If Mr. Donahue wants to negate hostile media attention, perhaps just maybe he shouldn’t be shilling for an institution that has over a period of decades perpetrated the largest global conspiracy in human history to protect, cover up or deny the crimes of, and keep in positions of authority literally thousands of pedophilic predators.
Until they deal meaningfully with that, not only do they deserve all the Mahers in the world, but they’ll find that even among many devout Catholics, their self-appointed roles as moral arbiters of anything will be treated as the preposterously grim joke that it is.
Hey Booman: I like where this post started.
Expand it a bit.
What percentage of people, say, 15-30, who self-identify as Catholic, are Republicans, Democrats, pro-choice/birth control, pro-forced birth/anti-birth control.
People like Donahue are fairly fucking irrelevant to the people who will be running shit in a couple of decades. He can say what he wants, rant about how the Catholic church is being attacked for protecting and encouraging pedophiles, etc.
But it doesn’t mean a fucking thing to young people. At all. The Catholic Church and Catholic priests in general are basically default props of jokes involving pedophilia.
This is Bill Donahue’s legacy to the Catholic Church. He isn’t worth a fucking penny, and I think he knows it. Which is why he has to yell as loudly as he is.
Any particular one fraction is actually sending out a communication it does not attract the particular children’s in this particular state. Your Pope understands unless you refill the particular pews, get teenagers for being priests in addition to nuns the particular cathedral may kick the bucket.
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The new pope lead the Catholic Church to its origins.i am Bates
Nobody’s perfect. People are just more active when it comes to the negatives insights rather than the positive.
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EMR
If I were Bill Donahue, I would STFU. All it will take is one casual aside from the new pope that “Bill Donahue doesn’t speak for the Catholic Church” and Donahue is finished.