The Pope isn't progressive. He's a Catholic show pony.

[trotsky]

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/rendezview/the-pope-isnt-progressive-hes-a-catholic-show-pony/news-story/704276eaca0be986dc0ad730e7d20d5f

From the number of times I’ve fielded this line, you’d think Pope Francis was some sort of rainbow-loving, uber progressive who pawned all his worldly possessions to raise money for LGBT crisis centres in the Bible Belt.

In reality he’s made some vague comments about tolerance and compassion. He’s given the Church a much-needed facelift with his social media savvy and admittedly epic selfie game. He’s shown the bare minimum of human decency.

And it’s questionable whether he’s even done that. Because make no mistake: though he’s often touted as the 21st century’s answer to the pope, his views on everything from women’s reproductive rights to marriage equality are still very much, well, biblical.

...

In a broader sense, it’s time to stop rewarding straight, white males in positions of power for being slightly less awful than usual. Being so eager to accept this illusion of a “woke” pope only cheapens the actual work allies and activists do and it says something about our self-worth that we’re prepared to give out ally cookies so easily.

[niyad]

1. that is the reason many of us call him pope photo op

[trotsky]

2. Got that right.

And as many have pointed out, he directs his most "progressive" statements at things over which he has absolutely no control.

On all things over which he DOES have control - including many he could instantly change if he so desired - he remains committed to the status quo. Reproductive rights, LGBT equality, etc. He'll lecture everyone else about helping the poor, but refuses to even consider the effect access to affordable birth control has on poverty, for instance.

[niyad]

18. and I notice that he doesn't volunteer to empty the vatican treasury, or sell off some of the

gold and jewels to help the poor, either.

[guillaumeb]

3. Another right wing source for nuanced information?

No, just a typical right wing source.

Owned by The Barclay Brothers via The Telegraph Media Group
‘The Telegraph Media Group (previously the Telegraph Group) is the proprietor of The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph. It is a subsidiary of Press Holdings. David and Frederick Barclay acquired the group in July 2004, after months of intense bidding and lawsuits, from Hollinger Inc. of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the newspaper group controlled by the Canadian-born British businessman Conrad Black.’

http://www.albionmill.org.uk/?p=1476

You might also be able to find something from Breitbart.

[trotsky]

4. If that's the angle you want to attack, go for it.

I can understand why you'd rather not address the points the AUTHOR of the piece made.

[rug]

6. This author?

Seb Starcevic is a freelance journo who writes stories because he never could figure out haikus. If you hadn't noticed, he likes referring to himself in the third-person because it makes him feel special. Oh, and he has a little book out, called UNTOUCHABLE.

Find him on his blog. You'll like it there. Promise.

You can also follow him on Twitter @BookshelfOfDoom.

https://independentaustralia.net/profile-on/seb-starcevic,497

Does posting this half-digested crap make you also feel special?

[AtheistCrusader]

9. Flag on the play.

Attack the argument, not the person who made it. (The author)

Arguments generally stand or fall on their merits.

[rug]

11. You assume an argument was made.

A clown juggling bananas is not argument.

Pointing out a clown is juggling bananas is not the ad hominem fallacy.

[AtheistCrusader]

12. I'd say one was. Not surprised you'll duck on this one instead of addressing it.

In a broader sense, it’s time to stop rewarding straight, white males in positions of power for being slightly less awful than usual. Being so eager to accept this illusion of a “woke” pope only cheapens the actual work allies and activists do and it says something about our self-worth that we’re prepared to give out ally cookies so easily.

Francis is slightly less awful than Ratzinger, and people fawn all over him, where they recoiled in horror from Ratzinger.
Materially they differ in little more than presentation.

[rug]

13. Now that is an ad hominem. Classic.

[AtheistCrusader]

14. But you ARE ducking the argument.

Keep it up. I can do this all day.

[rug]

15. There is nothing to duck.

And I'm sure you can. I can do this all day.

In fact, what I'm doing now has a marked similarity.

[AtheistCrusader]

16. Never change, rug. Never change.

[rug]

5. Not only that, it's a rightwing source with a paywall.

[guillaumeb]

7. But it is a right wing source with a narrative that makes it, and the author,

attractive to some single-issue people.

A the enemy of my enemy is my friend type of thing I suspect. Note that this is simply a suspicion, not an accusation.

[AtheistCrusader]

10. Second flag on the play.

[guillaumeb]

17. No, we have a comment on a possible motivation.

No conclusion was reached or called for.

[AtheistCrusader]

20. Author's single-issue position is not typical of right-wing ideology.

I feel my criticism stands.

If it happened to align to one or more elements of right-wing/conservative ideology, I wouldn't have said anything.

[guillaumeb]

21. But there has been a history of anti-Catholic bias among the right in the US.

When Kennedy ran for President, it was asked if his loyalties would lie with the country or the Pope.

And for further reading, if you so choose,

Historian John Higham once referred to anti-Catholicism as “by far the oldest, and the most powerful of anti-foreign traditions” in North American intellectual and cultural history.

http://americanhistory.oxfordre.com/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.001.0001/acrefore-9780199329175-e-316

[AtheistCrusader]

22. I find evangelicals seem to like the pope these days.

Protestants perhaps not as much. Not sure. They don't talk much about it. But I see evangelicals making generally positive noises about Francis all the time.

Maybe chalk this one up to 'your mileage may vary'.

[AtheistCrusader]

8. Wojtyła, Ratzinger, and Bergoglio essentially have the same policies.

Ratzinger swung to the right in presentation/vocal focus. Bergoglio has returned to Wojtyła's mode of more humble delivery.

That's about it. Talks a good game about the importance of women in the church, but rules out ordination, etc.

Whatever. He's a incredibly wealthy figurehead riding on top of the wealthiest private organization on the planet, but soooooper duper concerned about poverty. Yup.

[trotsky]

19. Well he's super duper concerned with telling everyone else to be concerned about poverty, at least.

Swell guy.