Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Worst. Pope. Ever.
Joseph Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI. Jesus fucking Christ on a bicycle...
Granted, like other non-Catholics out there, I shouldn't give a rat's ass who the Pope is. And I wouldn't, if a person who should strictly be a leader to followers of his own religion just stuck with his own followers and didn't try to meddle in the world. Quoth Atrios:
John Paul II was a consumate meddler, although he sometimes used his powers for goodness instead of evil. Given everything I've read about Ratzinger's theology and beliefs, I can't help but think that the church has just sold themselves to the Dark Side. Not that they weren't half way there already. It's just that Pope Bennie is going to give the big backward push. Don't be surprised if Vatican II goes away, and if you thought there was any hope of the church pulling its head out of its ass on birth control or other issues, well... we'll have to wait for well after the next puff of white smoke for that one. (Makes me wonder just exactly what the Cardinals were smoking when they picked this... um... person.)
On the bright side, the former Cardinal Ratzinger's choice of name leads to pretty easy parodies: Pope Bein-a-dick comes to mind. Or Pope Ratzo has a nice ring to it. And we're going to need those parodies to keep this guy in his place.
Say it with me: unless you're a true-believer, chuch-going, confession' and communionin' Catholic, Pope Ratzo should have no say in your life, no effect over what you can or can't do; his should be a meaningless office. Unfortunately, as noted above, that ain't gonna be the case.
JP II was a wee bit on the conservative side. I'm afraid Ratzo is going to make the late Pope look like Ralph Nader and Ted Kennedy rolled into one.
Granted, like other non-Catholics out there, I shouldn't give a rat's ass who the Pope is. And I wouldn't, if a person who should strictly be a leader to followers of his own religion just stuck with his own followers and didn't try to meddle in the world. Quoth Atrios:
...the church wields great political power in the world and [the Pope] has influence over things that do impact me and things I care about.Trouble is, thanks to that charming time known as the Dark Ages, there's still this misguided belief that the Catholic church is some sort of political entity and should have some sort of political say in the world -- the anachronistic belief that the Pope is some sort of world leader. He isn't. He's a glorified priest.
John Paul II was a consumate meddler, although he sometimes used his powers for goodness instead of evil. Given everything I've read about Ratzinger's theology and beliefs, I can't help but think that the church has just sold themselves to the Dark Side. Not that they weren't half way there already. It's just that Pope Bennie is going to give the big backward push. Don't be surprised if Vatican II goes away, and if you thought there was any hope of the church pulling its head out of its ass on birth control or other issues, well... we'll have to wait for well after the next puff of white smoke for that one. (Makes me wonder just exactly what the Cardinals were smoking when they picked this... um... person.)
On the bright side, the former Cardinal Ratzinger's choice of name leads to pretty easy parodies: Pope Bein-a-dick comes to mind. Or Pope Ratzo has a nice ring to it. And we're going to need those parodies to keep this guy in his place.
Say it with me: unless you're a true-believer, chuch-going, confession' and communionin' Catholic, Pope Ratzo should have no say in your life, no effect over what you can or can't do; his should be a meaningless office. Unfortunately, as noted above, that ain't gonna be the case.
JP II was a wee bit on the conservative side. I'm afraid Ratzo is going to make the late Pope look like Ralph Nader and Ted Kennedy rolled into one.
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