"Pope Francis accepts resignation of Washington archbishop, but calls him a model for church" by Jason Horowitz, Elizabeth Dias and Laurie Goodstein New York Times October 12, 2018
VATICAN CITY — Instead of making an example of Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the archbishop of Washington, who was named in a recent Pennsylvania grand jury report that accused church leaders of covering up abuse, Pope Francis on Friday held him up as a model for the future unity of the Roman Catholic Church.
The pope cited Wuerl’s “nobility.”
Excuse me.
In an interview, Wuerl said that he would continue to live in Washington and that he expected to keep his position in Vatican offices that exert great influence, including one that advises the pope on the appointment of bishops.
Wuerl had a reputation as a reformer before the Pennsylvania grand jury report in August detailed widespread clerical abuse over many decades. The report included accounts of Wuerl’s poor handling of accusations against priests when he was the bishop of Pittsburgh, mentioning his name more than 200 times.
See: Catholic Church said to have covered for hundreds of ‘predator priests’
The report said Wuerl had relied on the advice of psychologists to permit priests accused of sexually abusing children to remain in the ministry.
They are about the last ones you should ask.
The Archdiocese of Washington on Friday released a letter from Francis, saying that Wuerl had sufficient evidence to “justify” his actions as a bishop and to “distinguish between what it means to cover up crimes or not to deal with problems, and to commit some mistakes.”
“However,” Francis’ letter added, “your nobility has led you not to choose this way of defense. Of this, I am proud and thank you.”
How can anyone follow this sick fools?
By making it clear he thought Wuerl had served the church well, Francis sent yet another mixed message on an issue that has troubled his papacy and threatened his legacy.
With this latest announcement, he's shredded any sense of it.
Francis became pope in 2013, appointing a commission to advise him on safeguarding children, creating a tribunal to try negligent bishops and speaking of a “zero tolerance” policy for offending priests, but critics say the pope has delivered more talk than action. Francis seemed to reveal a blind spot on the issue this year by initially defending Chilean bishops against accusations that they had covered up abuse. He later listened to the survivors, said he believed them and started removing bishops.
He's only Pope because Ratzenberger is implicated in the German scandal.
Why do you think he did the unthinkable and resigned?
The erosion of Wuerl’s standing was compounded by his association with his predecessor as archbishop of Washington, Theodore McCarrick. He recently stepped down from the College of Cardinals over accusations that he had molested an altar boy decades ago and coerced seminary students to share his bed.
It was a test of his resolve because the vast majority of the bishops knew of the sexual misconduct allegations, including O'Malley, even as they claim they had no idea.
In an extraordinary letter released in August, the Vatican’s former ambassador to the United States, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, accused Francis of covering up inappropriate behavior by McCarrick and called on the pope to resign.
The letter was very accusatory but he's at peace and will clarify (that confirms it).
In the weeks since, Francis has alluded to Viganò’s letter, to which he has said he will not respond, by speaking of the devil’s role in trying to divide the church. He seemed to do so again in Friday’s letter, warning against the “sterile division sown by the father of lies who, trying to hurt the shepherd, wants nothing more than that the sheep be dispersed.”
Yeah, the devil made them do it!
Or was he blaming Trump?
Remember this fraud excoriating him during the 2016 campaign?
Talk about moral hypocrisy!
Francis saw Wuerl as that shepherd. The cardinal’s Sept. 21 request that the pontiff accept his resignation reflected his dedication to “procure the good of the people entrusted to your care,” Francis wrote.
Wuerl had previously offered his resignation at age 75, as is customary in the church, but he was allowed to stay on in Washington, where he had served since 2006. In accepting his resignation now, Francis asked that Wuerl remain as the apostolic administrator of the archdiocese.
Asked what message it sent that Francis had kept him in power in Washington despite public outcry for accountability, he said, “Stepping aside as archbishop is an enormous and very painful step for me.”
Awwww!
Poor scumbag is hurting!
I doubt it is anything like the part of the anatomy that was violated by all the evil for which he covered.
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Related: Kentucky bishop: 66 sex abuse claims against 27 priests since 1937
Also see:
"Pope Francis compared abortion to a Mafia-style killing Wednesday, saying it’s the equivalent of hiring a hit man to ‘‘take out a human life to solve a problem.’’ Francis made the comments, among his strongest yet against abortion, during his weekly Wednesday audience dedicated to the commandment exhorting the faithful not to kill. Francis said some justify abortion as respecting others’ rights, but, he asked if it was fair ‘‘to take out a human life’’ to solve a problem: ‘‘Is it fair to hire a hit man to solve a problem? It is not fair. We cannot take out a human being, even if it is small.’’ It was the second time within recent months that Francis expressed the church’s opposition to abortion in violent, stark terms."
You know, I can see why he would take that position.
What predator wants to eliminate its prey?
Cue the music:
"Boston Philharmonic Orchestra hires investigator following child pornography case" by Kay Lazar Globe Staff October 13, 2018
Just weeks after the arrest of its artistic adviser on child pornography charges, the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra on Friday acknowledged that another employee recently resigned amid allegations he sent “inappropriate’’ text messages to members of the youth orchestra.
The orchestra also announced that it was hiring an independent investigative firm to examine “these situations” and the organization as a whole, according to a letter sent to members from managing director Elisabeth Christensen and board chairman Charles Dornbush.
That's called damage control in light of the cacophony coming from the orchestral pit.
The executives received a report about an employee sending inappropriate text messages right after the Sept. 25 arrest of David St. George. St. George was one of the three artistic advisers at the youth orchestra, which consists of members ages 12 to 21 years old.
St. George was charged in federal court with receiving and possessing in his Arlington home thousands of files of child pornography, including the sexual assaults of children between 6 and 8 years old.
“In light of those concerns and the David St. George arrest, we launched an investigation, which is ongoing,” Christensen said in an e-mail to the Globe. “We have no knowledge of any prior reports of these concerns.”
Christensen’s letter noted the other employee was suspended without pay and he resigned shortly after.
Christensen declined to identify the employee behind the alleged text messages, or detail the alleged misconduct.
“It is not our practice to comment on personnel matters,” Christensen said in an e-mail.
Hopefully, the music will drowned it out.
In the letter to the orchestra community, the executives said they are hiring an independent investigator “in light of these two troubling events” to perform a review of the organization. They tapped Scott Roberts, a partner in the Boston law firm Hirsch Roberts Weinstein, which specializes in employment issues.
“He is examining these situations and the BPO as a whole to help us gain a greater understanding of any underlying issues impacting our community,” the letter said.
Christensen and Dornbush wrote that they are committed to “a stronger, safer, and more transparent community.”
They are so polite to themselves, even if the institution is riddled with perverts!
They said they will require all staff to participate in educational programming and mandatory training on workplace harassment and related topics, “including what constitutes acceptable and appropriate interaction.”
Christensen’s letter said orchestra leaders “do not have evidence to suggest that [St. George’s] behavior involved any of our musicians or staff.”
Federal investigators said St. George received and downloaded child pornography on the Internet. St. George told investigators he had been collecting child pornography for an extended period of time, according to the criminal complaint.
And all I have are bursting-at-the-seam draft projects I'm neither working on nor going to finish.
Orchestra leaders also said in their letter that the organization will hold forums to gather more feedback.
They concluded their letter: “The developments of the last two weeks have been difficult for our entire community.”
Imagine how the victims felt.
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I guess the Globe doesn't want to crucify him.
That's why they ran the story on a Saturday and at the bottom of page A2 today.
I was surprised to see this:
"Israeli fire kills 6 Palestinians at Gaza protest" Associated Press October 12, 2018
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israeli forces shot dead six Palestinians on Friday, four of them in a single incident, in one of the deadliest days in months of mass protests along the security fence separating Gaza and Israel, Gaza’s Health Ministry said.
The ministry said four were killed in one location, where the Israeli military said it opened fire on a crowd of Palestinians who breached the fence and approached an army post. No Israeli troops were harmed, the army added.
No flaming kites or balloons?
As for the breaching of the fence, there is a 250-yard no man's land in-between.
Two other Palestinians were killed in other protest locations, the ministry said, adding that at least 140 Palestinians were wounded by live bullets.
The Israeli military said 14,000 Palestinians thronged the border fence areas, burning tires and throwing rocks, firebombs, and grenades at soldiers stationed atop earth mounds on the other side of the barrier.
Where they can fire away through their scopes in safety.
You know, like a turkey shoot.
Since March, Hamas has orchestrated near-weekly protests along the fence.
Yeah, the desperate protests of Palestinians who have nothing else to do are "orchestrated," while the paid for and rent a mob controlled opposition crowds that occupied D.C. for months are spontaneous grass roots, uh-huh.
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Palestinian protestors evacuated a man shot by Israeli troops during a protest at the Gaza Strip border Friday (Khalil Hamra/Associated Press).
I'm sure they "orchestrated" that, yeah.
And guess what?
No help is on the way:
"France’s Le Pen meets Bannon, changes mind on offer to help" by Elaine Ganley Associated Press October 12, 2018
PARIS — Marine Le Pen, the French far-right leader, has met with former White House strategist Steve Bannon and signaled her interest in his project to help European populist parties.
Two years on from helping to mastermind Donald Trump’s successful campaign to become US president, Bannon has his sights set on Europe and he is planning a foundation, called The Movement, to boost far-right parties.
They all said no thanks.
Le Pen’s apparent interest in working with Bannon stands in marked contrast to comments earlier this week when she said that only European voices should ‘‘shape the political forces . . . to save Europe.’’
Meanwhile, Le Pen’s legal situation grew murkier on Friday as investigative judges upped preliminary charges against her over the alleged misuse of European Union funds by her and her party.
How do you say sexism in French?
Never mind that she was robbed by Macron.
Can only have the right kind of woman running a country, and Le Pen ain't it.
She is a suspect in a case over payments to parliamentary assistants in the EU parliament who reportedly worked elsewhere, including at her party headquarters.
Le Pen stepped down from her post as a European parliamentary deputy to become a French lawmaker after last year’s legislative elections, but remains shadowed by the case in which some 15 people have been placed under investigation, including Aliot.
Whatever happened to the investigation into Lagarde?
And she still works there?
Even gets her own space on the Globe op-ed page, huh?
Wow.
On Friday, a judicial official said Le Pen was now being charged with misappropriation of public funds rather than breach of trust. The official wasn’t authorized to speak publicly and asked for anonymity.
Yeah, charge her with whatever comes up in the fish net.
Mueller heading that investigation, too?
Le Pen has other legal issues to contend with, one notable one with regard to her posting of photos on Twitter in December 2015 that showed executions by IS extremists. She was handed preliminary charges in March for distribution of violent images. Le Pen posted the images after the November 2015 Paris attacks by IS that killed 130 people.
Le Pen said Friday that an investigation has also been opened over her September Twitter post of a court document ordering she submit to a psychiatric exam in the case.
‘‘This judicial harassment is becoming terrifying!’’ she tweeted Friday.....
They have left wing mobs banging on the Supreme Court doors, too?
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Related: Friday's French Toast
Soggy now.
"Ga.’s GOP gubernatorial candidate sued over claims of suppressing thousands of minority voters" Washington Post October 12, 2018
Brian Kemp, Georgia’s secretary of state and Republican gubernatorial candidate, has been hit with a lawsuit claiming his office is jeopardizing the voting rights of tens of thousands of minority Georgians, a controversy that has led his Democratic opponent’s campaign to call for his resignation.
A coalition of civil rights groups sued Kemp in his official capacity Thursday over a 2017 voting law that has hampered the registrations of more than 50,000 people — with approximately 80 percent of them being black, Latino, or Asian-American, according to the lawsuit, filed in a federal court in Atlanta.
That is where the printed ballot ended.
The so-called ‘‘exact match’’ law requires election officials to flag and pause any voter registration application if the identifying information doesn’t precisely match the voter’s information in existing records, even because of something as small as a missing hyphen or a transposed number. While voters are not barred from casting a ballot, they must take extra steps to verify their identities.
Kemp, who is locked in a tight race against Democratic nominee Stacey Abrams, is tasked with carrying out the voting law in his role as secretary of state, which has led Democrats to accuse him of attempts to suppress the minority vote to gain an edge in the election.
They sure are good at accusing people.
On Thursday, Abrams’s campaign called on Kemp to resign as secretary of state ‘‘so that Georgia voters can have confidence that their secretary of state competently and impartially oversee this election,’’ spokeswoman Abigail Collazo said in a statement to CNN. Abrams is a former state representative and founder of a voting rights advocacy group.
Kemp has denied the allegations of any impropriety or voting rights violations, characterizing the accusations from Abrams and Democrats on Twitter as misleading and a manufactured problem. He emphasized that Georgia has ‘‘shattered’’ its all-time voter registration record this year, with more than 6.8 million voters.
Spokespeople for Kemp could not immediately be reached for comment late Thursday, but Candice Broce, spokeswoman for the secretary of state’s office, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the claims in the lawsuit are ‘‘completely bogus.’’
‘‘The so-called ‘exact match’ law was passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. [Nathan] Deal. It mirrors a Florida law recently upheld in federal court,’’ Broce said. ‘‘The 53,000 Georgians cited in the complaint can vote in the Nov. 6 election. Any claims to the contrary are politically motivated and utterly false.’’
The purpose of the lawsuit is to cry foul if she doesn't win.
In fact, that is what I expect to see all across the country if Democrats don't win. They will whine, cry, and complain that the election was stolen from them.
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I wonder how many illegals and convicts are on the rolls in Georgia.
"Boston man, 34, accused of indecent assault on T station escalator at Downtown Crossing" by Travis Andersen Globe Staff October 12, 2018
A 34-year-old Boston man is facing a criminal charge for an alleged indecent assault of a woman who was attacked from behind Wednesday afternoon on an escalator at the Downtown Crossing T stop.
In a statement, MBTA Transit Police identified the suspect as Jeffrey Phillips. He’s accused of committing the assault around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.
“Upon arrival officers met with a female who informed the officers moments earlier she was on the escalator near the Orange Line southbound when she was indecently assaulted from behind,” the release said. “The victim provided a description of the offending male.”
Police scoured the area and spotted Phillips in the vicinity of Winter Place, according to the statement.
Phillips was arraigned Thursday in Boston Municipal Court, where bail was set at $100, according to Suffolk District Attorney John P. Pappas’s office. A not-guilty plea was entered on Phillips’s behalf.
His lawyer didn’t immediately return voice and e-mail messages seeking comment.
Phillips’s next court date is slated for Nov. 5.....
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