"Diseased nature oftentimes breaks forth in strange eruptions . . ."The announcement of the $660-million settlement between the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and 500 victims of sexual abuse got me thinking again about a topic that has confused me for a long time. Why do people of a certain profession feel a need to protect the absolute worst of their coworkers? In this case, why would the religious establishment ignore the blatant, violent sins and crimes of these pedophile priests? Their actions have created a potentially irreparable breach of trust between the clergy and the congregation.
--William Shakespeare
To be sure, it is a phenomenon seen in many professions. And it confuses me just as much in those cases as it does here. For example, if you are an honest police officer, why would you go out of your way to potentially protect a dirty coworker? Not only does the clean cop not get anything tangible from his obstructions, he threatens his own credibility and that of the entire force.
Similarly, in professional sports, players' associations fought for years against policies of random drug testing. If I were a clean athlete, I would demand an aggressive steroid testing policy.
This list could go on nearly forever. What is it about human nature that leads us to protect slackers, sinners, cheaters, and criminals-just because we happen to be in the same line of work?
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