Bush unwittingly chooses pedophile to push tax cuts

Oski: While on the surface it looks bad, awfully bad, we don't know enough about the situation to label the guy a pedophile or condemn him publicly.

I was playing Devil's Advocate to point out some possibilities that might apply in this situation. I didn't or don't say that they are likely. I am just deflecting an opportunistic association of Bush with "sleaze."

You know, it could be true love. It's not impossible at all-- unlikely yes but not impossible.

Did you give your girl a nice tip?

 

Yep. Child molestation pretzels. They taste great with a cold brewski.

 

I demand that no one overlook the fact that Oski brought up Winger.


And that IS a truly disturbing song.

Furthermore, if you can't have a laugh at an unfortunate circumstance for the Prez, at least stop trying to defend a freakin' married youth pastor boinking one of his students. It makes you look like a dirty old man.

 

Personally, I don't see any negative difference between sex offender and a pedophile who 'preys' on 16 and 17 yr olds.

With all these up and coming barely legal sex symbols popping up how many people have failed to recognize that they aren't considered legal adults? Then again, it's hotties like Lindsay Lohan and Hillary Duff who are considered role models for girls their age. How much repressed hypocrisy will there be. Now I don't believe in 16 or 17 yr old sex, but I understand....

I just think the issue of a youth pastor abusing his power should cause a greater reaction than the accusation of pedophilia of that age.

 

I understand the urge to incriminate this guy, but we have no evidence that he "preys" upon young girls (he connected with this one, yes) and we have no evidence that he "abused" his power (which I take means using his perceived power to get his way with the girl-- we don't know that that was even necessary).

 

We have every bit of evidence that he abused his power. When an older person who is an authority begins an affair with a teen, whom he has authority over, there is almost no circumstance in which he didn't in the very least take advantage of his power. Add to that the fact that this is church going teen, and he is a trusted church figure, it makes it even worse.

Using his power, doesn't mean saying he ordered her to do something. It means that he used the extra credibility and magnetism of that power to facilitate the affair. As an authority figure it probably wouldn't be necessary to order someone to do something, when you are trusted. All you have to do is make it sound like a good idea. People who are used to taking the word of an authority figure will often willingly follow along with that 'good idea.'

You are making incredible stretches to defend this person.

 

Honestly giddy, would you defend this guy if he was connected to Democrats instead of Republicans?

 

please.....

 

it speaks for itself, giddyup. if you're in a ministry position, you don't start messing around with kids...particularly when you're a youth minister. his ministry is completely shot.

 

I agree entirely.

Did the girl aggressively come on to him in some way that makes it really hard to rebuke her or did he abuse his power and seduce her in some way? The latter choice is assumed by most here, yet we don't know that that is how it happened. That's all that I'm saying. I know I'm going to some extremes to defend this guy, but all I'm really doing is casting doubt on some of the assumptions made by others here because of the political angle seized.

If this were my daughter, I'm sure I'd be freaking out.

 

Even if she came on to him, that doesn't excuse it. It is still an abuse of his power.

She can come on to him all day long, as a married man with four children who is her YOUTH minister, it is his responsibility to reject those advances.

Plus even if she strongly came on to him, it is because of his position. If she saw him in a Target buying a nail clipper, she wouldn't come on to him. The fact that he has the podium, authority, and can seem oh so smart and good, and caring, talking about bible and life to her and the other youth in his conregation, is what would attract her. Even in your scenario he isn't just having a regular old affair. He's still taking advantage of his power, and her youth.

Again, assuming that she came on to him, wholly unsolicited, his she was a youth. He was an adult. His job as youth minister is to help her make better decisions, not participate in bad decisions.

 

How many? And does that figure also take into consideration lives saved in both Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as those lost?

 

You are completely right. It was his responsibility to reject her advances. Of course, I think it would have been his responsibility to do that if she had been 21 or 29. There's just no excuse for it.

I'm not sure what that has to do with Bush. There are plenty of hypocrites to go around, and I doubt any of us recognize all of them. Besides, the Bush tax cuts may have helped this man's family financially, even while the man himself was ruining his family with his conduct. That has nothing to do with Bush. Hopefully, it gives the wife a few extra dollars in her pocket when she leaves him.

 

I agree. It doesn't really have anything to do with Bush. But the fact that there is a connection is the only thing that really makes it newsworthy.

 

There is a difference between responsibility and civilly litigation-worthy acts. That would seem to be a big consideration given what we know of this story.

I'm not in favor of what this guy did, but I object to the political opportunism that I saw here--- so I poke holes in the devastating criticism.

 

There isn't a difference when you have an authority figure and an underage girl. Male teachers encounter 'crushes' from female students all the time. If they pursued those 'crushes' they are taking advantage of their position, and abusing it.

A Youth minister is doing the same thing, whether he knowingly invited those advances or not.

 

What political opportunism? Has anybody seriously painted this as a negative about Bush? More than anything, as subatomic pointed out, people are looking at this guy and his talk about his moral superiority and the culture war against those evil liberals. Well, that guy can bite me. Who knows how many teens he's preyed upon.

 

UNWITTINGLY

 

She's not underage legally; she's 17, right?