The “hit piece” titled “Fractured Vatican revealed in pope’s leaked documents,” which was given the grace to appear in Stars and Stripes’ Jan. 18 editions, is replete with hearsay, innuendo and suppositions. The reporter does not have facts, portraying what his imagination dictates is going on with jaundiced disregard for any real input.

If he is so sure of himself, where are the names and dates of the sources of his projected tapestry of intrigue? There’s not one bit of source information upon which to base a judgment of the facts because, in this piece, there are no facts. Where are the documents in the title of this story?

Not one quote or documentary rendition exists here. The real story behind Pope Benedict XVI’s near unique choice to leave is only his to tell, and reams of speculative blubbering bring readers no closer to knowing that. The tabloids The Inquirer or The Star should be interested in such “reporting” It’s amazing to see it surface here — well, maybe not so amazing, given your devotion to mainstream output.