Wha...?

The history of how some leaders of the Roman Catholic Church covered up sexual abuse by clergy isn't pretty.

Recently, some folks claimed that Pope Benedict XVI, while he was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, didn't do as much as he could have in his role overseeing a commission that dealt with clergy sex abuse cases. The most prominent story has been in The New York Times, but I'm not linking it because a number of folks who were directly connected to the main case in the story have pointed out the reporter didn't bother to interview them. Given that Benedict met with and spoke to abuse victims in Australia and the U.S., and that he sent a Pastoral Letter to clergy in Ireland that dealt only with that issue, it seems as though he recognizes the severity of the problem now, whether or not he did earlier.

In any event, the Associated Press offers some helpful perspective on the definition of "piling on" here.

Yes, you read that correctly. The Associated Press not only bothered to attend a press conference given by Mehmet Ali Agca, they published the results. Mr. Agca, you may remember, offered his opinion about Benedict's predecessor in a much more forceful way nearly 30 years ago. He was recently released from prison and is currently, according to his own words, a messenger from God.

Now I'm waiting for the AP to tell me what that guy with three hats who used to wander around Norman thinks about the economic crisis in Greece.