Someone (St. Fintan O’Toole of D’Olier Street?) recently pointed out that the paradox of Pope John Paul II’s reign was that he was a fierce anti-Communist who kept control over his organization with a grip that would put General Jaruzelski to shame*.To flog the slightly divisive comparison, I wonder if, with the election of Pope Benedict XVI, we got the Church’s answer to Andropov when everyone was hoping for a Gorbachev? Then again, since most Russians blame Gorby for the ruination of their country, perhaps the conclave was thinking about the havoc reformers can wreak. *Five minutes later, I found the relevant quote (via Slugger O’Toole):”Above all, he despised and crushed internal dissent. Though the language he used was different, his alarm at deviationism and his insistence on adherence to the party line mirrored the Stalinist culture in which he operated for so long. His mixture of idealism and authoritarianism would have made him a brilliant boss of the Polish CP.”