[Diamond]

The pope is not naive. The “naivete” is [your] assumption that the pope - who has long worked in a bureaucracy - does not understand the pitfalls of bureaucracy.

If the pope is not naive and understand the 'pitfalls' of bureaucracy, why then does he want more of it?

And that was never a redistribution of wealth to the poor of Russia. They were the ones robbed of land (that’s wealth!) in the first place!

Uh, like socialists have not always operated that way?

Cordially,

[vladimir998]

You wrote:

“If the pope is not naive and understand the ‘pitfalls’ of bureaucracy, why then does he want more of it?”

He doesn’t. Where does he call for more bureaucracy? Nowhere. The problem is that there are always downsides to almost any idea - even really good ones. And one downside to what the pope has discussed may be more bureaucracy. That’s exactly why the pope is also stressing the need for subsidiarity. Subsidiarity cuts down on bureaucracy or at least some of the worst aspects of it.

“Uh, like socialists have not always operated that way?”

I have never disputed how socialists and communists act. Your mistake was what you said not how I characterized how socialists work.

[wmfights]

If the pope is not naive and understand the 'pitfalls' of bureaucracy, why then does he want more of it?

Thanks for the ping. Great question.

It's ironic, where the socialism that the RCC desires has occurred church attendance has declined and birth rates have fallen dramatically.

[TheRiverNile]

If the pope is not naive and understand the 'pitfalls' of bureaucracy, why then does he want more of it?

Diamond,
Therein lies the rub of the whole thing. The most important thing that we can ascertain in this thread is the pope's motive. Understandably, the Catholics in this thread have primarily assumed purity of motive and are assuming that the pope is either:
a) Misunderstood
b) Misguided, or
c) Misinformed

Now, many of the non-Catholics in this thread think that the passage in question is too concrete for option A and too smart for option B.

Now, I'm sure you'll agree that the important thing, above all else, is the truth.

The only difference is that the non-Catholics have offered up a fourth terrible option.

At this time, I tend to believe that the pope is too close to the situation to be able to see clearly and that it is a combination of B and C. If that is true, then the pope is being kept in a bubble and is effectively captured. I do not wish to think about option D, but, unfortunately, the ultimate effect could be the same.

In any case, we will know in good time. Until then, watch carefully all that comes from Rome. Also, for the record, I watch the clergy in my own church with great care as well.

[WashingtonSource]

I wish the Pope better understood such things as the credit derivatives market that blow up the financial markets and trashed the global economy. There is a fundamental immorality in these marets that lack transparency and are too complex. See story on the attack on these secretive markets by Christopher Whalen in testimony last month at this link: http://mindovermarket.blogspot.com/2009/07/credit-derivatives-largest-source-of.html

It would not take a central authority to deal with this central problem to the global financial system.