an abject apology from a former war supporter

[Hamlette]

My response to the documentary? (The Liberace of Baghdad) Renewed, indelible shame that I had supported an administration so manifestly unwilling or unable to do the right thing. I should have known better. I was far too naive, and too caught up in the desire to fight back against Islamist evil to recognize the callower, casual evil I was enabling in the Bush administration. When I hear of the thousands of innocents who have been killed, tortured and maimed in the Rumsfeld-created vortex, my rage at what this president did is overwhelmed by my shame at having done whatever I did to enable and even cheerlead it, before the blinders were ripped from my eyes. This war has destroyed the political integrity of Iraq. But it has also done profound damage to the moral integrity of America.

http://time.blogs.com/daily_dish/

It's Andrew Sullivan and I know he's not well liked here. I disagree with him still but at least he's not doing the old "I was lied to" now.

[illinoisprogressive]

1. I don't mind Sullivan. I find him a person willing to evolve and grow

Unlike so many on both sides, he is willing to admit to mistakes and hubris, ect. He is a person who is openly evolving and growing and let's us watch the sometimes painful doubts and mistakes that all human beings make.

[Hamlette]

3. I don't mind him either but it seems some here are unwilling to forgive

or forget. I spent a couple of hours a few months ago going through his archives trying to figure out what the tipping point was for him. He was still bad mouthing dems, although rarely, until the 2004 GOP convention. He posted the pic of the woman wearing the purple heart band-aid and went ballistic. He was disgusted. Compared Bush's "war record" to Kerry's and the general hatred of the GOP.

I didn't see him make any cheap shots at dems after that.

I'm curious as to why anyone would be a republican now. I just don't get how any human being could be anything BUT a democrat...we're for the little guy for hell's sake! How can you openly support RICH people?

My dad was a republican until Reagan. And as you might imagine I loved him dearly before and after. I guess maybe that's why I have an interest in watching people change and am more willing to forgive.

[gratuitous]

2. I'm all in favor of turning away from one's past sins

It's a small, unimaginative and ultimately lost person who can't acknowledge past mistakes and turn away from those errors. But to really follow through and demonstrate repentance, it will be necessary to ameliorate as far as possible the bad consequences of prior misdeeds. What is Sullivan planning to do to atone for the profound damage done to America (and Iraq)?

[Hamlette]

4. he supported Kerry in 2004. And he blogs against the evil ones daily.

I'm glad to have him in our corner. He speaks out against what he calls Christianists and trashes those who still support Bush at every opportunity pointing out the flaws in their "reasoning".