Oh,wait. It was a president and CEO of Planned Parenthood. Now, be honest, would you have bothered to look at this post if the headline didn't say that a Catholic bishop was the flasher?
When I Googled the story, I found only seven local stories about the arrest of Tony Ray Thornton, 56, president and CEO of the Planned Parenthood Association of Lubbock, Texas. If it had been a Catholic bishop, it would have been on all the nightly network news show. The anchors would have led the story by saying, "In more alarming news...."
Thornton was accused of exposing his genitals in Mackenzie Park on Monday. Police had no other details immediately, such as whether children were present and whether the park is a place for gay hookups (as one blogger said, without attribution).
Some will protest that flashing by a Planned Parenthood and bishop are not equivalent, that a bishop is a religious leader and Thornton is not. True enough, but if there is a secular religion--with its own passionate disciplines who hold themselves above the rest, especially religious--it would be Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion provider. They deem themselves sufficiently skilled motivated to instruct children in all things sexual. They receive hundreds of millions of taxpayer money. They (their PAC) actively lobbies the government. Seems to me that's enough cause to suggest that the public has an interest in how PP runs itself and who it hires for the job.
As of this writing Thorton has been place on leave and will no longer serve as the affiliate’s chief officer, according to a statement Wednesday from Mariah Sharpe, board chair of the association. That's a start. But will PP review its own procedures to better vet its leaders? Will everyone be held accountable? Or does flashing not a problem for PP?
By the way, Thorton should be considered innocent unless proven innocent, just like Chicago Cardinal Bernardin was when he was falsely accused of sex abuse.
Filed under: abortion, Culture, Gay, Politics, Sex
Tags: Catholic, Lubbock, perversion, Planned Parenthood, Tony Ray Thornton
Bravo!