Quittin' Time

I have always admired Pope John Paul II, and am relieved to hear that his surgery went well, but given the frail condition that he was in to begin with, and the added burden of recovering from surgery so shortly after recovering from the flu, I have serious doubts about his ability to carry on as Pope.

I know I'm going to sound like a bit of a vulture here, and for all I know the little fink (Had to get one shot in, I'm supposed to be a Protestant after all.) might surprise me and a lot of other people by living another decade, but odds are the man has, at most, a few months left in this world. His supporters will argue that the best way for him to spend those months is carrying on, best as he can, as Pope. I believe his last days would be better spent in other ways. By stepping down, he could still exercise some influence behind the scenes in the selection of his successor -- maybe the most important decision the Catholic Church has to face. The rest of his time he could simply rest. He's earned that.