Catholic Church forced to pay

And high time, I might add. Pharyngula has an excellent analysis here, and I agree with every word.

"These evil clowns in their funny suits are clearly out of touch. When you've defined yourself as a moral authority (often, the sole moral authority) you don't get to back away from the consequences of your actions because time has passed or because the consequences are severe. Perhaps they ought to look at this expression of tangible outrage by a community as a not-so-subtle signal that they have not and are not supporting the actual behaviors that community considers important, and regards as part of the church's trust."

A year or so ago, I received a letter from the Diocese of Dubuque, IA, under whose large shadow I grew up. I expected it to be some BS fund-raiser, but no. It was a letter basically saying, "If you were ever abused by a priest or church official, and you wanna piece of the class-action lawsuit, you have to file your claim by this date. Oh, and it's part of bankruptcy litigation."

I was never abused by any such creepy clergy, but I would have filed if I'd thought I could get away with it. The church stole enough of my family's money over the years with its false promises and outright lies about doing god's work, and it took an awfully impressionable kid like me and scared him for too many years. And now that my mother is in a Catholic nursing home, it grates on me that they're still getting money from us. I hate the Catholic Church.