A request...

[Meremortal]

Guys and gals,

There is something that has been really bothering me for the last few months that I thought I should point out. I have become increasingly annoyed at the insistence of the media to relegate the rape and torture of children by the priests into one non-specific, easy little word: "abuse".

My request is simple: stop calling abuse! This was not abuse it was: "the systemic and institutionalised rape and torture of children". The more we challenge this disgusting obscurantism, the more pressure these evil perpetrators will feel.

[bipedalhumanoid]

I agree. Something else also bothers me. Why is it that reporting of this 'abuse' is always deferred to the 'Religious and social affairs correspondant'? Why not the crime correspondant.

It is a crime to cover up abuse. It is also a failure of duty of care. People are asking why bishops are not resigning. Why is nobody asking why bishops are not being arrested?

[Globi]

This was not abuse it was: "the systemic and institutionalised rape and torture of children".

Well put.

[HylandPaddy]

This was not abuse it was: "the systemic and institutionalised rape and torture of children".

- which was methodically suppressed and covered-up by various ranks of the church hierarchy

[bipedalhumanoid]

This was not abuse it was: "the systemic and institutionalised rape and torture of children".

- which was methodically suppressed and covered-up by various ranks of the church hierarchy

- including the current 'infalible' pope

[deferm]

Why do we dumb down child rape, and call it child abuse.

If an adult woman is raped (or male), it isn't reported on the news that a woman was abused on her way home from a nightclub. It is reported as it is, RAPE.

Why are children not afforded the same decency, when the vile crime of rape is commited against them. I certainly think when child abuse, is mentioned, some people when watching the news, assoicate this with slapping, or less serious violence. But if it is rape, why isn't it called rape?

[deferm]

Guys and gals,

There is something that has been really bothering me for the last few months that I thought I should point out. I have become increasingly annoyed at the insistence of the media to relegate the rape and torture of children by the priests into one non-specific, easy little word: "abuse".

My request is simple: stop calling abuse! This was not abuse it was: "the systemic and institutionalised rape and torture of children". The more we challenge this disgusting obscurantism, the more pressure these evil perpetrators will feel.

Sorry, I just posted another topic exact same as this, as hadn't read your topic (becuase of the title).
It is some great PR from the church to have rape of children, downgraded to abuse. If I didn't know better, I'd think they have a miracle worker in RTE.

[dugges]

Well it did include beatings too, so I think abuse is just an umbrella term in this case. But I agree with your principal

[Dev]

Well it did include beatings too, so I think abuse is just an umbrella term in this case. But I agree with your principal

I'm with dugges on this. The reports did include beatings and cruel sadistic punishments. It would be unfair to exclusively refer to the ones who were raped as the victims. Using the term rape to describe all cases would be simply hyperbole. When the English language doesn't have an exact word to describe such a scenario that we have to shoehorn umbrella terms you know things have gotten fucked up.

[Dev]

Is that not feeding into Ratzi's anti-gay bullshit? Also it's a term usually used in reference to the gay victims of the holocaust.

No but then any word is open to different interpretations depending on how you read in to it including pedophile (lover of children). It was simply a pet term I found to be humorous that reflected that a great deal of the abuses were of a same sex nature.

I wasn't aware the term was taken.