The world of agents and clerics

On the back page of yesterday's Irish Independent there is a story at the top of the page about how a cardinal tells a victim to 'stay quiet'. Further down the page there is the story of the death of Gareth Williams the MI5 agent.

Both reports are tragic stories about the lives of people. Both stories are about organisations, which take the oxygen of their existence from silence.

The cardinal tells the victim, "I don't think you'd do yourself or him a favour by shouting this from the rooftops".

The MI5 operative "had few close friends and been willing to confide little about his work or private life".

So many lives destroyed and for what? Organisations and agencies that have a madness for secrecy at their core.

And the underlining arrogant self-righteousness of such organisations. They always know best. It's custom and practice and precedence too.