The Child Victims Act (A.2596) was pulled from the legislative calendar on June 23, 2009 as Assembly leaders found they did not have enough votes to pass it. This bill would have extended the statute of limitations from 5 to 10 years for childhood sexual-abuse victims to bring cases against their abusers. A.2596 would have also created a one year window from the time the bill was enacted that would have allowed anyone to file a claim alleging sex abuse, no matter how old the victim now was or how long ago the alleged act occurred. After the one year period ended, the statute of limitations period would have reverted to the expanded 10 year period.
In the past few weeks, more and more information is coming to light about the role the leaders of the Catholic Church have played in their efforts to conceal abuse by pedophile priests and protect them from prosecution, thus maintaining the Church's reputation and good standing.
In light of these new revelations, it is time for the NY state legislature to revisit A.2596 and finally give the victims of the sexual abuse and systematic cover-up their day in court to face their abusers.
Not really a quote, but quite a paragraph buried in the Times' interesting piece about the marriage equality fight:
The state's Roman Catholic bishops have been somewhat distracted, too, having focused their lobbying energies this session on defeating a bill that would extend the statute of limitations for victims of sexual abuse to bring civil claims, and have appeared unprepared for the battle over marriage.
Yeah, I'm sure Jesus would want the pedophiles to get off scot-free.
I went to South Carolina in March so when I saw this video, I wasn't surprised. It is Republican country and while there are some Democrats there, it is the South. They will remind you of that.
One South Carolina priest apparently feels that invasion of privacy is now a practice of the Catholic Church. He is ordering is parishioners who voted for Barack Obama to repent before receiving Communion.
I will tell you that I have a girlfriend who is Catholic that voted for Barack Obama. Her family - all Polish Catholics - is very religious and for the most part, are anti-choice. Her mom volunteers every year at the Pro-Life booth at the county fair.
But her mom - my future mother-in-law - voted for Barack Obama. Her mom is a conservative Republican who proudly voted for Barack Obama. She was excited that she voted for him just like millions of Americans were.
When I heard about this, I asked this question: When will church and religion be what church and religion used to be about? When will it be a guide that helps us through life and helps us through life's toughest challenges and decisions? I have seen the Catholic Church evolve into a political establishment who apparently thinks they can tell their followers how to think. My advice to the Catholic Church would be to leave the political science to us. We can take care of it. But not everyone can be our guides when we need a guide and our adviser or counselor when we need one. That is where religion should play its role in our lives. Injecting politics into religion (or vice versa) is dangerous and will do nobody any favors.
