Political Correctness- revisited

OK so you know where I stand with political correctness but my attention has been brought to this: the case of the Rev Alan Barrett, vicar of Tamworth, Staffordshire who kissed a girl on her cheek for doing well in maths during a school assembly. There was a police enquiry and he was asked to stand down as governor of the school. The diocesan spokesman said: "The conclusion that Mr Barrett had acted inappropriately is not a finding of guilt or negligence, but recognition that in today's climate, previously acceptable innocent behaviour is now subject to misunderstanding and suspicion.
As the complaint and subsequent police investigation demonstrates, the simple act of a kiss on the cheek - a common greeting throughout the world - has potentially damaging consequences."

How very sad. BUT he ought to have known better. As someone on a Christian forum says

It was uninvited and untoward. Adults should keep their hands and lips to themselves when dealing with unrelated minor children. Anyone who works around children knows this.

I'm sure some of you have strong opinions on this...

Also I was unaware that this had happened too.
Russian President Vladimir Putin kissed a boy on the stomach in what he describes as a spontaneous gesture of affection.
Mr Putin came across Nikita, five, in the Kremlin last week, lifted up his T-shirt and suddenly kissed him.
"He seemed very independent and serious... I wanted to cuddle him like a kitten and it came out in this gesture. He seemed so nice," he said. Apparantly Nikita has had no lasting trauma from the incident, infact he is refusing to wash the area and wants to be president himself one day.

Wouldn't it be nice if we could all respond with small gestures in this way without the taint of suspicion? That would be a step closer to heaven...