realitycheck(dot)ie

Irish doctor with too many thoughts, too little time and a blog that's supposed to check in on reality.

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Norris - paragon of liberal tolerance?

I think not.
From yesterday's Independent (I tried posting this yesterday but blogger just posted it to the archive and not the main page)....

Referring to statements from Rome, especially by Pope Benedict, Senator Norris said that "he would not take moral instructions from a man with a swastika on his arms," a reference to the Pope's membership of the Hitler Youth Movement in 1940s Germany.

Last night, Senator Norris told the Irish Independent that he knew some of his remarks against the Pope caused offence, but he felt it was his duty to continue to criticise attitudes against gays which were against the common good of society

Part of the common good of society is not to make knee jerk, offensive and bigoted comments against those who disagree with you.

Senator Norris has been granted immortal sainthood by the so-called "liberal establishment" (I sound like a conspiracy theorist now!?!) but remarks like this are not going to advance any cause, especially one that Norris will describe, as based in human rights, equality and dignity.

It's very easy for Norris to call the Pope a Nazi. It's an easy way out - he doesn't actually have to deal his exact issues with the Church's position on natural law. He doesn't have to engage anything - he simply gets away with name calling.

I'm sick of Norris's anti-Catholic bigotry which he masquerades as crusading righteousness.
Especially when such tall stories are long proven to be a little more than Norris claims -

He spent his adolescent years in Traunstein, near the Austrian border, when the Nazi regime of Adolf Hitler controlled Germany.

In his memoirs, Ratzinger wrote that school officials enrolled him in the Hitler Youth movement against his will when he was 14 in 1941.

Membership was compulsory and the officials enrolled his entire class, acting on orders from the Nazi regime, Allen said. Ratzinger said he was soon let out because of his studies for the priesthood.

According to Allen, his family was quietly strongly anti-Nazi, and his father took a series of less significant jobs to stay away from what was happening in Nazi Germany.

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5 Comments:

Blogger Kevin Breathnach said...

Surely someone has to make the comparison with McDowell and the media's reaction? I'd blog it, but I really have no time.

March 28, 2006 1:02 p.m.  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Doesn't Senator Norris get an awful lot of airtime. He seems to be on everything.

March 29, 2006 7:48 p.m.  
Blogger Eagle said...

Yes, Sen. Norris is always on. He even hosts a radio program on Newstalk occassionally.

March 30, 2006 10:27 a.m.  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ahh its asking an awful lot to expect the media to comapre Norris with McDowell. After all when you offend Richard Brutal, you offend the whole Fine Gael party, the one party which never had any link with quasi-fascist thugs or wannabe military dictators. (Oh wait..hang on...)

When you have a go at the Pope, it's only the spiritual leader of the religion which at least 50 per cent of people here still practice. It's a no brainer.

March 30, 2006 5:18 p.m.  
Blogger Auds said...

Oh Toddyunct, how I've missed your fabulously dismissive "nexts".

I don't miss how they're applied to me though!

March 30, 2006 10:26 p.m.  

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