No excuse

Priest admits inappropriate behavior with Foley.

Rep Foley has stated that he was abused by a priest at age 12-13. He named that priest recently and, apparently, the priest in question admits to some inappropriate behavior with Foley, specifically: skinny dipping with him in Lake Worth, massaging Foley in the nude and taking nude saunas with him. He denies having sex with Foley, but admits that there was an incident that he doesn’t clearly remember because he was in a drug-induced stupor.

First of all, this is no excuse for Foley. I firmly believe that each individual is responsible for his own actions regardless of their past. Having mean parents or a difficult childhood does not excuse illegal or inappropriate behavior, does not diminish the severity of that behavior and should not diminish the punishment for that behavior. I am sympathetic towards Foley, but it doesn’t change what he did. I stand by what I said before: If he broke the law and molested a minor, then he needs to go to jail for a long time.

As for the priest, he should be prosecuted. Regardless of what he thinks, giving a 13 year-old a nude massage, or taking a nude sauna or skinny dipping is not okay. In fact, it’s probably criminal. His being a priest doesn’t make it any less criminal and his "problems" that he speaks of are no excuse either. If he molested Foley – regardless of his drug induced stupor – he should also go to jail for a long time. I don’t care if he is 80 years old. I’m a little fed up with society turning a blind eye to the abuse of our children and I want it to stop. This should not be tolerated in any culture or society. We’re not talking about a mental illness or a psychiatric condition here…we’re talking about a crime and a serious one at that.

In short, Foley was wrong and so was this priest, they should both pay dearly for what they did. They have no one to blame but themselves and their behavior should have dire consequences.