Not as I do
Catholic priest convicted of assaulting altar boy
A Pennsylvania Catholic priest was convicted of molesting an altar boy in the 1990s. The case is similar to a cover-up scandal for which a Catholic official was imprisoned last year. The jury found Charles Engelhardt guilty on several counts, including assault on a minor, but could not come to an agreement on a count of indecent sexual assault. Also, Bernard Shero, a former Catholic teacher, was found guilty of rape and indecent sexual assault. Engelhardt’s conspiracy charge was tied to Edward Avery who was accused of assaulting the same boy, who was 10 years old at the time of abuse. Avery pleaded guilty in March 2012.
Anti-gay activists says gays are to blame for suicides
Family Research Council President Tony Perkins is blaming military suicides on gay and lesbian soldiers. The leader of the Christian group said a recent uptick in active-duty military suicides could only come from gay and lesbian soldiers being allowed to serve openly.
“The stress in our military, when you look how they have used the military for their social experimentation: driving Christianity out, putting homosexuality in, the suicide rate is going through the ceiling,” Perkins said.
Aside from neglecting to cite any sources, studies or research regarding his claims, he fails to mention that gay youth are five times more likely to attempt suicide than their straight counterparts, according to a Journal of Pediatrics study. Perkins has a history of attacking gay groups and causes and the FRC is a registered hate-group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Republican senator selectively opposes disaster relief funding
Republican Sen. John Boozeman demonstrated a lack of foresight when he opposed disaster aid for Hurricane Sandy victims but asked for money to help his Arkansas constituents to cope with winter storm costs. However, shortly after seeking those funds, he voted against the same pot of federal relief money going to cover storm costs in the Northeast. While opposing the relief funds for some areas he said in a letter that if the federal government makes any contributions something else has to be cut — unless that aid is going to Arkansas, apparently.