Perhaps the problem is less with Malone, & how you are framing the terms of the debate? "Patriarchal sanctioned subservience" doesn't exactly sound like a fair characterization of what I read there.

And yes, I have been reading America for a long time, including the series of articles between Cardinals Ratzinger & Kasper on the primacy of the universal Church. Here again, however, your framing of the issue as regards Ratzinger's motivation is highly-suspect. Seeing as how Ratzinger kept Kasper on after his election hardly seems to strike me as someone who doesn't like being challenged. Regardless, I heartily applaud many of the changes Malone has made. Contrary to your statement above, I think America is a much more interesting read now that it has previously been.