“If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a village to abuse a child.”

“This chilling statement is made by a lawyer who represented many victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests in Boston in the 2015 movie “Spotlight.” Child abuse persisted because abusive priests were re-assigned, victims were silent or agreed not to speak publicly about the abuse, and others collaborated to keep the problem hidden from authorities and the public for years. Pervasive child abuse had been covered up in many other locations as well.” – It Takes a Village to Maintain a Dangerous Financial System

All of us bear some responsibility for what happened to that young girl, by what we have done and by what we have failed to do. No one is born a criminal. And no one should be abused by another. Were the perpetrators at risk as children for criminality? Were the victims at risk for abuse? Who was paying attention? Is it by our lack of attention and concern that the leaders in our homes, schools, churches, workplaces, hospitals and government have become enablers of this form of criminality and abuse? Have our leaders become role models of dysfunctional, disorderly behaviour and lifestyles by undermining the integrity of society by their inauthenticity and total lack of and disregard of accountability and transparency in thoughts, words and deeds? Have they provided the template to be followed by our youth?

I am sick and tired of us boasting about budget surplus, economic growth and the amount of money that is devoted to national security, with a total disregard to diagnosing and solving the cause of our social deficits, the degrading trends in our physical, mental, social and environmental wellbeing, and our prioritizing money value over life value.