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It's refreshing to read the words of a man who comes from a specific group normally associated with liberals, that refuses to be cowed into 'group thinking'. He speaks to his his own beliefs, not others. And, from everything i've read, he's a real patriot and true American- even though he was born in Britain. He's a good conservative as well, broadly speaking. Not only does he hue to the wisdom of lower taxes and smaller government, he also embraces most aspects of social conservatism and traditional values. In fact, the thing that I like most about him is his defense of religion in the face of the church's opposition to sodomy and gay marriage. He still holds firm on his faith in god and family. I'd venture to say that most conservatives, as myself, don't find as much opposition to homosexuals as has often been insinuated by liberals. Most of us believe that marriage should remain an institution for traditional marriage, uniting a man and a woman. And, we also tend to believe that children should be adopted out to traditional married couples. These positions comes from our religious and moral views. But, other than that, most of the positions we're accused of expressing hate with, have nothing to do with our feelings about homosexuality. An issue like hate crimes is a perfact example. We don't oppose hate crimes because of homosexuals, but because of our opposition to big, intrusive government; as well as the inequality before law that would result as a consequence of differing standards of justice. We also oppose non-discrimination acts because we don't believe the government should be allowed to tell the private sector how to run it's buisness. And, our opposition to quotas doesn't need an explanation. I see no problem with someone having a private life that's different than mine, so long as we're talking about consenting adults here. Who know's for certain whether homosexuality is an abominable sin. It's certainly abnormal, unusual and generally uncomfortable. But, it doesn,t seem the equivalent of say, murder. So, we conservatives, have almost always made an honest attempt to simultaneous air on the side of tradition, as well as to show tolerance. And, ultimately, it's God's judgement to make. So, Andrew Sullivan is a great guy and a good American (as well as a good conservative)! David Talbot, however, hasn't got the intillectual capability to think for himself. He simply recites old arguments and lame excuses. He practices group think and condemnation of anyone who dares to dissent. It is he who practices the real philosophical jihad. So much for the theory that the Taliban exists only in Afghanistan- it would appear that some of it's members are taking up residence right here in our own backyard!