Vanishing Predators blog

September 19, 2019

By Daniel Carlson

According to Ronald Reagan, the most terrifying words in the English language are: “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.” Many of us, upon hearing that comment, simply shake our heads for experience has taught us that government involvement often involves endless red tape, wholesale ineptitude, legal hurdles, and a thoroughgoing lack of concern on the part of the bureaucracy in question.

With Reagan’s sardonic remark in mind, it comes as no surprise that survivors of clergy abuse find it equally disheartening when Catholic prelates proclaim: “We’re from the Diocese, and we’re here to help.” Much like the ordeal we citizens must endure in the face of overriding governmental indolence, abuse victims have become accustomed to false promises, deception, and rigid stonewalling by Church hierarchy.

Consider, for example, the recent decision by the Diocese of Rochester, New York, to…