[Cloud]

I think as a social process it's a good thing, in the long run, for these things to come to light, be talked about, and work their way through the legal process. When people are too afraid to talk about things like this, abuse occurs.

I also think about the perpetrators of these crimes. I wonder if these men, and it's not just priests; there are many lay orders who are involved in teaching, recognized that something was not right in themselves, and approached the church because of this. Maybe they thought that with enough prayer and with the guidance of their god they could make up for it somehow, or be cured.

I could talk about the catholic church, who I think didn't conspire so much as ignore, relying on prayer and secrecy to make the problem go away. I could talk about the victims, some of whom endured horrific abuse; and some of whom are probably milking the litigation system for money and blaming everyone else other than themselves for their problems. But things are changing now.

No one really talked about this stuff, until the 70s in the US when the first lawsuits were being brought. Americans should be proud of this really; that people had the courage to speak up, be forthright and not to tolerate the abuse of authority. Europe has been behind us in all this. But I tell you, with the rest of the world catching up now, the catholic church is going to have a tough row. It may endure, but it will take a long time--centuries perhaps--for it to overcome this stigma.