St. Thomas commencement speaker apologizes. Called women "selfish" for

[Beausoir]

using birth control.

........................
A University of St. Thomas honors graduate who scolded his fellow seniors at Saturday's commencement ceremony for being "selfish" apologized Monday for offending people during his politically charged speech.

Ben Kessler, an academic All-America football player who plans to become a priest, chastised students for using birth control, criticized them for a recent food fight and upheld the St. Paul university's controversial policy against allowing unmarried faculty and staff members in romantic relationships to room together on school trips that involve students.

"Then he got into other failures of society, and one of my classmates next to me stood up and left," said Daphne Ho, a graduating senior whose family traveled from Hong Kong for the celebration.


http://www.startribune.com/462/story/448725.html

[TahitiNut]

1. Mr. Kessler seems to have some deep-seated 'personal' issues.

:shrug:

[havocmom]

2. That the po-lite way of sayin he has his head up his ass?

;)

[itzamirakul]

4. Or perhaps his ding-dong in his hands...

Anyone who raves on and on about such topics should probably reassess his "call to the ministry" and realize that he needs to be in some kind of sexual relationship.

[TahitiNut]

9. I have to wonder at the motives underlying his choice: a "life of service"

At one time, I had nothing but respect and awe for those who chose a career/calling that was a "life of service" - whether it be the clergy, teaching, the military, or whatever. Perhaps naive, I saw people who recognized in others their innate worth and were, in choosing a life of service, not imposing their own values upon others, but were placing their own preferences secondary to serving the needs - spiritual, economic, educational - of others as an empowering choice.

That was 30-40 years ago. Today, I see altogether too many people calling their 'mission' one of making choices for others, substituting their own preferences for those of others and failing to recognize the role of conscience in every person. It's almost like "Doctor Laura" has become some model - a massively codependent monstrosity who feeds upon a perversion of parentalism and wallows in mutually destructive judgmentalism.

[havocmom]

11. Control freaks... lots of control freaks

You and I have similar views about service to humanity. Some really do it. Some just use the concept as a beard for entirely different activities.

What worries me is more and more people seem OK with handing the keys of their lives to some other person. THAT scares the shit outta me. If they so cherish their God, why do they disdain his greatest gift: free will? Seems the worst blasphemy to me, throwing God's gifts back at him.

[TahitiNut]

12. Indeed we do, mom. Free-will and conscience are the key, imho.

It seems to me as well to be the 'worst blasphemy' to deny free-will - and to demonstrate an absence of faith in God's infinte wisdom. This is a core tenet of Buddhism (all schools) - that every person is equipped to choose their own path, and no other person can presume to impose their choices upon the other. If there's a dogma in Buddhism, that's it. I see that faith represented (and ignored) in all major world religions. "God created man in His own image" seems to sum it up for me, vis-a-vis Christianity. I sure as hell don't think that's some anatomical characterization - a laughable interpretation.

Even in the most perverted of cases where individuals repeatedly demonstrate a virtual absence of conscience, empathy, and compassion (e.g. Smirk), we can only care for that person by locking them safely away in a padded cell - neither exploiting nor controlling their perversions - merely limiting their undoubted danger to themselves and others.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

6. Located in his jock-strap.

[Union Thug]

3. What a piece of work. Next time you get pregnant, mr. all 'merca,

come back and talk. But until then, keep your mouth shut and go hide yourself away in some fantasy religious world populated by talking snakes and talking shrubbery. Moron.

[sinkingfeeling]

5. Opus Dei?

[Fierce]

7. What an ass.

Way to ruin it for everybody.

[DS1]

8. ARGH! Even the NEWS is doing the HIGH ANGLE MYSPACE SHOTS!

:banghead:

[rug]

10. He's going to Rome.

http://www.vianney.net/content.asp?id=24

[Bluebear]

18. From his bio: "I came in as a man who did not know how to pray"

(And left as a sanctimonious busybody.)

[yellowcanine]

13. He sounds as if he will make a wonderful priest. Non judgemental and

all that. Maybe he can be a chaplain at the Air Force Academy as balance for all of those evangelical chaplains.

[Arugula Latte]

14. We'll probably read about him again after he's molested a few altar boys.

I'll give him a few years ...

x(

[Hong Kong Cavalier]

15. He's from St. Thomas? I'm not surprised.

Typical St. Thomas holier-than-thou graduates.
I've got a friend who has a much better rant than I could ever put together about St. Thomas people in the Twin Cities.
I'll see if I can find it.

[Southsideirish]

16. He's way too young and knows too little of the world to be lecturing

people on their conduct. Hopefully he will read his words in 40 or 50 yrs and be embarrassed at his arrogance.

[Jed Dilligan]

17. "When I put down my crack pipe long enough to stop and think,

I think, man, if I go to the effort of fucking some bitch, I want the bitch to give me a kid to sell."