In the news...

I'm confused.

Brits use tanks to blow apart Basra jail, rescue pair
British soldiers used tanks to break down the walls of the central jail in the southern Iraq city of Basra late Monday and freed two Britons who had been arrested on charges of shooting two Iraqi policemen.
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Here's my questions:
1. What were undercover British commandos (if they were indeed such) doing shooting at Iraqi policemen?
2. Why didn't the British army just go up to the Iraqi police, explain the situation, and ask for the men back?
Aren't the Iraqi police supposed to be allies? WTF?!?

Here's another that baffles me.

Canadian priest admits to more sexual abuse - in France
A Canadian priest with a criminal record for sexually abusing minors confessed Monday to charges of raping a young member of his Normandy parish. Rev. Denis Vadeboncoeur had moved to France in 1988 after serving a prison term in Quebec.
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I had talked with my dad (who is Roman Catholic) about this sort of stuff a while back... about why the priests were allowed to continue being priests even after they committed horrible acts. My dad said that Catholics believe in forgiveness, and privacy of what is admitted in the confessional. Thus, the priest confesses his "sins", says his hail Mary's, and continues on his merry way. (Those are my words, not my dad's.) I don't understand this whole "say a few hail Mary's as punishment" thing. Yes, it is good that people feel bad about their sins, but that doesn't stop them from doing these things again! In fact, if all their punishment is just saying a few hail Mary's, and they know that, why *wouldn't* they continue their evil ways? Yes, they know it's bad, but that didn't stop them the previous time. If people are incapable of making correct judgements, and end up harming others as a result, their right to make their own judgements should be taken away from them. There's nothing preventing them from saying their hail Mary's from a prison cell. And once they've served their time, don't try to hide their past... you're only making it easier for them to reoffend! Sheesh. Yes, people should be given a chance to straighten themselves out and start over, but putting them in a position of trust? Um, do banks hire known thieves? Do day care centers hire known pedophiles? I sure hope not! If these idiots want to go back to the church, put them in some secluded monistary somewhere where they don't have access to people they can hurt.

Just my two cents for Tuesday.