The poet William Stafford set himself the task of writing a poem a day. When someone asked him what he would do when his poem-of-the-day wasn't very good, he replied "I simply lower my standards." In order to increase output, the bar here is set at a low level - the point of this is to have some fun with current events and politics. I welcome contributions and comments. Now you can also follow Doggerelo on Twitter (@doggerelo). Because of continuing medical problems, I'm no longer able to post a poem-a-day. I'll continue to post poems, but at a reduced frequency, so please stay tuned.

Monday, March 19, 2012

The Bishops Get Tough

The Catholic Church, after a period in which it admitted it was wrong in covering up the actions of pedophilic priests, has now decided to get tough.  The Survivor’s Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, has been the target of legal actions by the Church to disclose any documents that, during the past 23 years (!), might contain any information that could be relevant to a legal case in Kansas City. William Donahue, President of a church advocacy group in New York has said that “SNAP is a menace to the Catholic Church….[The bishops] had better toughen up and go out and buy some good lawyers to get tough. We don’t need altar boys.”  For a previous post on a related issue, see Bishop Finn.

The Church is really scared it seems
That SNAP could threaten its existence
So they demand, with great persistence,
That SNAP disclose to what extremes

Its emails show that it conspired
With others to destroy the Church.
And so they launch a mammoth search
To see just what may have transpired.

But SNAP’s allied with those whom priests
Have raped and sodomized so long
Ago, and though the Church is strong
Its perils, it fears, might have increased.

“We’ll not let weakness and remorse,
Nor feelings for the victims’ plights
Persuade us to give up our rights -
Defend the Church’s the proper course”

Now SNAP’s the David in this fight
Against Goliath of our modern day - 
With lots of lawyers in his pay -
But David’s still the one who’s right.

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