Child Abuse - plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.

ShotgunPaddy

The idea that the secular state can provide a safe environment for vulnerable children seems to be fiction. The news from OZ is as bad as if not worse than pre 90s Ireland and the leftie pollies who think that all society's ills are derived from morally conservative cultures are completely delusional. See links for more.

http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,20262061-948,00.html

http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,20294627-948,00.html

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20315111-601,00.html

toomevara

Child abuse on this scale occurs as a result of an institutional, infrastructural failure. Whether that institution is secular or religious really is irrelevant. This is particularly true for those who are abused. I wouldnt use the issue as a vehicle for political point scoring re: the merits or demerits of left/right leaning societies or secular/religious institutions though. It is, to my mind at least, just a tad distasteful.

Victor

Eh, this is the country that gave you the Aboriginal Genocide.

John R

People who want to abuse children gravitate towards situations where they have access to vulnerable children, this will happen regardless of the ideology of the social services.

An open society has a much better chance of being able to find and catch these people than a closed one, that it still happens does not mean that we should go back to the church based monarchy that controled large parts of Irish society.

Such crimes can only be completely stopped when the vulnerable in society are deemed worthwhile enough for enough resources to be provided to ensure their safety.

sceptre

ShotgunPaddy wrote:

The idea that the secular state can provide a safe environment for vulnerable children seems to be fiction.

No it doesn't seem to be anything of the sort. Just like the idea that a non-secular state can't provide a safe environment for children. Picking a particular series of cases from a particular country (Ireland, Australia, Pitcairn, the UK, <random country of choice>) doesn't demonstrate anything resembling a presentable pattern as anyone with Leaving Cert maths could demonstrate.

I don't know what a "leftie pollie" is, I assume it's some sort of general insult towards a particular subset of liberals. Some righties appear to take joy in insulting the lefties, some lefties appear to take joy in insulting the righties and I guess that's a joy that the blinkered and myopic need to retain some sense of purpose. However anyone who thinks that all society's ills are derived from morally conservative cultures or morally liberal cultures is, in my opinion, a certifiable idiot.

It's not a non-story. However, as toomevara said, political point scoring from this is rather distasteful, as John R said, resources need to be provided to ensure this type of crime doesn't happen and I'd be a little concerned by anyone who didn't agree with both of these things.

ShotgunPaddy

toomevara wrote:

Child abuse on this scale occurs as a result of an institutional, infrastructural failure. Whether that institution is secular or religious really is irrelevant.

Agreed. But try telling that to the Labour party.

Diogenes

Posting on a message board based in a country that has had the damning ferns report on the state of religious "care" institutions, and the staggering level of abuse? Then claiming secular institutions cannot take care of children, you are having a laugh. I'm not saying non secular institutions haven't had their damning accusations leveled aganist them, but trying to claim that religious institutions take best care of societies most vunerable to a country where the last Magdeline Laundry closed less then two decades ago is just taking the fecking piss.