Like many others who've been around the blogosphere a while, I remember all too well the days when Andrew Sullivan would have called himself a fifth columnist for penning words like these (scroll to Quote of the Day II); still, they're tough and smart and true, so I'm passing them along.

We are in a critical war for world opinion. A critical part of our message is that this is not a war against Islam as such, but against Islamo-fascism and terror. And yet we see the religious right co-opting air force academies, and we hear of incidents like the alleged toilet-flush of the Koran. Since no one is ever held responsible for anything in the Bush administration, we can be sure this incident will be lied about, covered up or blamed on some poor military grunt who can be easily scapegoated. But at some point, we will have to confront the severe damage this administration has done to American prestige and credibility in a critical global battle of ideas because of its interrogation policies. These are self-inflicted wounds.

Yes, they are. And, for the life of me, I can't understand why President Bush doesn't grasp this. He is not, as so many would have it, an ignoramus. Far from it, in fact. He's just . . . unwilling to know certain things. And the dreadfully dear price that we as a nation are ultimately going to have to pay for that character defect (for make no mistake, that's what it is) will have one, and only one, upside. It will finally force us all, Democrat and Republican, Reform and Independent, to see the very messy, very human failings of Mr. Bush's predecessor for precisely what they were -- small beer, indeed. And then, perhaps, when all the spurious partisan energies have at last expended themselves, we can set this strange and angry period aside, and get back to what we as Americans do best: conducting our nation's business at home and abroad with that curious mix of rapaciousness and fundamental decency which amuses our friends and confounds our enemies.

UPDATE: Here.