Vatican Struggle for Power Amidst Benedict’s Growing Senility

The Bogias - Pope Alexander VI, his mistresses and bastard children

Life imitates Art.  The Borgias (Alexander VI) against the Della Roveres (Julius II) are two camps fighting for power in the current Showtime Historic Drama (Soap Opera).  It is hard to identify which groups or how many exist in the present struggle vying for power and the power to sign checks as Benedict XVI’s reign wanes into extreme old age and senility. 

The microcosm of America with siblings struggling to get hold of mom or dad’s unearned equity before the parent croaks is being mirrored on the macrocosm of the world stage and the struggle for power and wealth within the present leaderless Vatican.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/28/us-vatican-butler-idUSBRE84R0B520120528

The scandal exploded last week when within a few days the pope's butler was arrested for leaking documents, the head of the Vatican's own bank was abruptly dismissed and a book was published alleging conspiracies among the cardinals or "princes of the Church".

Newspapers, quoting insiders who had themselves leaked documents, said the arrested butler was merely a scapegoat doing the bidding of more powerful figures in the scandal, which has been dubbed "Vatileaks".

Documents passed to Italian journalists accuse Vatican insiders of cronyism and corruption in contracts with Italian companies. La Stampa daily quoted one of the alleged leakers as saying the goal was to help the pope root out corruption.

On Saturday, Paolo Gabriele, 46, Pope Benedict's personal butler, was formally charged with stealing confidential papal documents. But leakers quoted by La Stampa, La Repubblica and other media said the leaking plot went much wider.

"There are leakers among the cardinals but the Secretariat of State could not say that, so they arrested the servant, Paolo, who was only delivering letters on behalf of others," La Repubblica quoted one alleged whistleblower as saying.

The Secretariat of State is run by Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the pope's powerful right-hand man, and the scandal appears to involve a power struggle between his allies and enemies, reminiscent of Renaissance conspiracies in the Vatican.

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Arizona is a Toxic Place to more than just Women

The toxic work environment of Arizona many times parallels and reflects a very harsh natural environment. The toxic work environment of not wanting to pay minimum age, let alone health care benefits, to employees is reflected in many of these anti-female, anti-immigrant legislative bills sponsored by low paying women’s jobs of $24,000 per year as with these female state legislators.

That women get low wages is a fact of life in America.  That many times, and from my own experience of having lived and worked in Arizona, it is the female spouse who is the primary bread winner in many Arizona households.  That and being the primary providers of Health Care coverage as well for the family.

The Arizona state legislature is far from a part time enterprise but for the time involved and the wages paid, I often wonder when I hear of anti-female laws passed or proposed by Kimberly Yee or Debbie Lesko, what is their real day job to supplement the minimum wage and per diem paid by the state to pass these draconian laws against women.

Being an anemic economic entity whereby big corporations come and go from Arizona as soon as tax breaks disappear is only part of the reason for these corporations leaving.  Cronyism is quite rampant in a thin economy.  Right to work is a means to eliminate union competition to get your son or brother in law on the payroll of whatever company happens to pull into Phoenix and Tucson for an average of two years.

That corporations see wages as less than half of what they are paying elsewhere and executives see the golf courses and the game is on.  Half the wages and one third the productivity from the average Arizona worker becomes rapidly evident and the company leaves town when the tax break runs out.  Some stay for whatever reasons, mostly poor management, or tax losses.  

The productivity issue is I think related to education issues and the inability of the state to maintain modern training or staying, building long term economic growth other than handouts from Washington that are rapidly divvied up by the McCain/Kyl Country Club crowd.

So, when I hear that a female employer or her husband holding the primary health plan has to ask permission to get Birth Control, the only thing I thought was that competition is tough and females needing Birth Control can be eliminated from the payroll in favor of your sister-in-law to get that job who is past child bearing years or a son who gets his healthcare on his spouse’s dime. 

Things are tough in Arizona.  It is more than the coyotes that eat their young there.