Pundits critique politics at Catholic social ministry conference

Published: 2006-02-17

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Political pundits Mark Shields and David Brooks regaled a national gathering of Catholic social ministry leaders with jokes and one-liners Feb. 15 as they delivered serious underlying messages on politics and society. The occasion was the closing luncheon of the annual Catholic Social Ministry Gathering, a four-day conference that brought together about 500 experts and leaders of Catholic diocesan and national social ministry organizations. Brooks, a New York Times columnist and political commentator on PBS' "News Hour," looked around the room and said he hadn't seen so many Catholics in one place since his last visit to the U.S. Supreme Court. He also made a case for the view that the basis for success in the United States today is not blood lines or inherited wealth but "inherited meritocracy" -- the raising of children in a framework of attitudes and values that prepare them to succeed in the face of the challenges of contemporary life. Shields, a syndicated columnist, "News Hour" commentator and host of CNN's "Capital Gang," contrasted the individualistic and partisan political atmosphere in Washington today with some of America's finer moments of investing in the future. "It has not always been this mean (in Washington politics). It has not always been this ugly," he said. "And it's important for us to celebrate our successes as well as to look with concern and anger at continuing injustices."

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