US Catholic Church Demands Answers from Disgraced Politician

[mhatrw]

http://www.totalcatholic.com/universe/index.php?news_id=1742&start=0&category_id=&parent_id=0&arcyear=&arcmonth=

The Archdiocese of Miami has written to disgraced Congressman Mark Foley demanding he name the priest he claims abused him as a boy. Foley, who admits he is gay, resigned from congress following revelations that he sent suggestive and inappropriate e-mails to a 16 year-old boy who was working as a congressional page.

However, the former Republican representative for Florida, who was raised as a Catholic in Palm Beach, Florida, where he acted as an altar boy in his youth, blamed his actions on alcoholism, and alleged that he had been abused by a priest when he was aged 13-15.

In response to the claims, the Church sent a formal letter asking Mark Foley's attorney to name the clergyman involved and report the crime to the police.

"Until such time as you identify the alleged perpetrator, all clergy that served in Palm Beach County have been needlessly placed under suspicion," Church attorney J Patrick Fitzgerald wrote.

[JohnnyLib2]

1. church attorney J. Patrick Fitzgerald?

I'll ask, someone has to.

[JohnnyLib2]

12. my error

wrong name, sorry.

[badgerpup]

2. Homina, homina....

Foley's attorney didn't think this one through, apparently.
The Catholic Church has gotten REALLY sensitive lately about accusations of abuse...
you poke them on that nerve and they gonna JUMP.

Wonder what's going to happen when IF it turns out that Foley wasn't really molested after all and this was a ploy similar to his 'alcoholism' to get him off the hook?
:nuke: :nopity:

:popcorn:

[saigon68]

9. The old ladies don't open their Little black purses for $$$$ in the plate

If they think the good Father Feeney is Rodgering the 10 year old server in the rectum.

[xultar]

11. Exactly what I was thinking. and Homina, Homina, Homina...buhwawawa!

[calimary]

39. There'd be Hell to pay, for sure.

And it might not have been there in Florida, either. If he was in school somewhere else, lots of people are gonna be googling and otherwise checking into his background to see where. I think even Will Pitt did it, and suggested his own home turf - because evidently they went to school in the same diocese - Boston, was it?

[Chipper Chat]

3. "If you are abused as a child you will become an adult abuser."

I hear this crap all the time and I don't believe it. I just don't see the correlation. If you are in a serious bodily-injury auto accident at six years of age doesn't mean you will try to run down people or cause accidents as an adult. I'm not a psychologist; maybe some of you are and you can argue this.

[lvx35]

8. I don't think its TOTAL bs...

They say that kids tend to imprint on their parents and so forth...So if a kid gets hit in his youth, he associates it with something "a parent just has to do" and justifies hitting his own kids. But of course, this cycle can be broken, and wrong is wrong. Being a victim of some crime doesn't make it less a crime if you commit it.

[NashVegas]

18. Thirty Years Ago, You Might Have Had a Point

We didn't openly discuss childhood sexual abuse in public until the late 1970s, early 1980s.

Now that we've taken it out of the closet and put it out there, people know it's wrong.

We all know better now. Someone who has sexual feelings towards children KNOWS that to act on it is to engage in societal-destructive behavior. That they would actually do so is pathological. Why do you think NAMBLA-types are doing flips and twists to justify their shit?

[lvx35]

34. I'm just saying that the trend exists

and it does. Especially in certain population. Mentally disabled people are victimized a lot, and when they are sexually abusive there is a trend of them having "learned it" from an abuser usually present. Wrong is wrong, but I think you have to take trends into account.

[crim son]

14. I believe it has to do with the sexual response.

Abusive or not, the sexual act causes arousal. The victim then associates the abusive behavior with arousal and it becomes what "works" for him. Thus a predator is born. It's pretty basic psychology.

[KurtNYC]

25. Certainly doesn't seem to work that way for rape victims

many of whom modify their appearance and behavior to become less sexually attractive.

[LostinVA]

26. Yup, I was thinking the same thing

[crim son]

32. I gave my response below.

Rape has nothing to do with sex; it's an act of violence.

[crim son]

30. Because rape is a one time event.

and it's a violent and not sexual act. Many abusive situations go on for months if not years and over time the person's sexual response is conditioned to the abusive behavior. Abuse victims often report feeling terrible guilt because they experienced physical pleasure while being abused. My friend, I'm not trying to suggest that the abuser is not ultimately responsible. I'm saying that there is indeed a link between being abused and becoming an abuser.

[bitchkitty]

17. You're right - it is crap.

http://www.co.multnomah.or.us/dcj/acjsoffendersupmythsandfacts.pdf

[LostinVA]

20. I don't agree with this either -- I also don't think studies necessarily

show this either.

Children who are abused/molested usually (and rightfully so) have anger issues, and that can lead to physical, non-sexual abuse against people. But, people like Foley are predators, plain and simple.

I also don't believe his claims of being harmed by a nameless member of "the clergy" (notice how his attorney didn't utter "priest").

[stillcool]

33. what you learn....

is what you teach. I've had my share of lessons in violence and abuse, and they are very hard lessons to unlearn. My inability to cope in this society is my fault. I am the problem. However, to prevent future problems like me, one needs to refrain from teaching all those life-scarring lessons.

[NashVegas]

37. "My inability to cope in this society is my fault."

No, not at all.

Your burdon, not your fault. No one ever asked to be abused, no one should ever have to be.

It's never too late to unlearn. I'm 43. At the age of 40, I finally started confronting my abusers and my enablers. Only time will tell if it truly turned my life around, but I do know that I've been rocked. The last three years have been a roller coaster. Somedays I don't want to get out of bed, others I want to kiss the ground. I wouldn't trade this, even the bad days, for anything.

It's never too late to unlearn.

[greeneyedboy]

4. ahahaha. bet Foley's attorney didn't anticipate that. oops!

if he names someone long-dead w/no family, reporters may naturally be curious to know details about where/when the priest took advantage of him.
and if he names someone with an obvious connection, he will likely offend and upset people in his own community.

[Lasher]

5. Prolly forgot his name.

Time to haul out the ol' Dummy Defense. Or maybe he can't comment because there's an ongoing investigation. Wait until we get all the facts, after about 40 years go by.

Gimme that old soft shoe - two, three, four...

[jayctravis]

36. Yeah, he'll pull a Condi.

"I do not recall..."

I would assume that type of info would be hard to forget.

[LibDemAlways]

6. Foley's attorney never said Foley's alleged abuser

was a priest. That will be his out. The abuser wasn't a priest, but some fictional long-dead neighbor/non-denominational clergyman Foley doesn't wish to name out of respect for the man's bogus non-existent family.

[REP]

7. From The Headline, Thought They Wanted Tips on Technique

After reading the story, who could ever think that a priest would molest a child? :sarcasm:

[leftchick]

10. where did they send the letter?

where is the so called rehab he is at?

[JohnnyLib2]

13. It's CYA for the Church, sure, but

important anyway. Any predator needs to be stopped.

If Foley isn't actually in a treatment program--and there's nothing solid on that--he's out there on the prowl.

[marshall]

28. I went to Catholic boarding school in the 70s

It was well known among the boys which priests got too friendly, which ones liked to hang around the bathrooms and watch the showers, etc.

A relative who lives in Ireland told me the Irish have known for years that some priests are predators. He said they wouldn't dream of leaving their chilren for sleepovers at the rectory, as it appears so many Americans have done.

[OhioChick]

15. Uh-Oh......

The GOP didn't think of this scenerio, obviously....

[NashVegas]

16. They Want That Name So They Can Deny It

And cover records. Just a hunch.

[LostinVA]

19. The Archdiocese is exactly right

By not naming the priest, he is smearing the name of EVERY priest who served the parish while Foley acted as acolyte there. As well as protecting someone who may still be harming children.

Personally, I think Foley is a lying piece of scum.

[Chipper Chat]

21. I wouldn't be surprised if Karl Rove told him to say that.

Rove controls EVERYTHING the republicans do. You cant tell me otherwise.

[LostinVA]

24. giggle

[KurtNYC]

27. I think the Catholic church beat Foley to the smearing part

Every Catholic priest in the world has been smeared by the action/inaction of the Catholic church with their decades of institutionalized sexual molestations.

[The Stranger]

22. The corporate media is burying this story.

[autorank]

23. Good for the Church....

I doubt they'd issue the question if they didn't know the answer - this guy Foley is a big fat liar. How do you know? His lips are moving.

Nice line counselor:

""Until such time as you identify the alleged perpetrator, all clergy that served in Palm Beach County have been needlessly placed under suspicion," Church attorney J Patrick Fitzgerald wrote.

[hunter]

29. It was Fluffy, Father Pat's horny little leg-humping dog...

:P

I do suspect Foley's attorney is now thinking "Oooops!"

But even if it's true, and Foley is some sort of victim, the Republican political machine covered it up and put minors who were in their care at risk.

[rodeodance]

31. IT was wrong for Foley to say this. The church is right on this matter---

the crime -if committed -needs to be reported.


Not all priests abuse----

[Grins]

35. NO! NO! NO! The church is wrong.

Foley, through his attorney, has already admitted the clergy abuse. An attorney, I assume a member of that state's bar and on behalf of his victim/client, made a public announcement that a crime was committed. That alone should have sparked the Florida State Attorney General to action.

The church should not have written to Foley, they should written to the Florida Attorney General and demand an answer as to why they haven't begun an investigation on an admitted felony. They should demand that the AG do his duty and discover who was the assailant, if only to protect the church. Why hasn't the State Attorney General taken action?

Also, the last thing you want is for the Church to find out, then clam up and have it handled via an ecclesiastical court... in Rome, a la Bernard Law.

I'm not an attorney. Any out there want to throw in their 2 pennies?

[Miss_Underestimated]

38. If this doesn't work for Foley, he can always blame it on Clinton.

:eyes: