The Pope's "apology": just another slam

Pope Benedict XVI has finally responded to Muslim calls for an apology following his inflammatory remarks about Islam, but like so many other public figures' recent "apologies," the Pope's rang completely false. "I am deeply sorry for the reactions in some countries to a few passages of my address," he said. So he's sorry for the REACTIONS to his comments - not for the comments themselves. Which might be honest and truthful (hey, he is the Pope), but it's no apology.

Not satisfied with having just one foot in his mouth, the Pope blundered forth and inserted yet another: "These were in fact quotations from a medieval text, which do not in any way express my personal thought."

Again, the Pope is just being honest here: the quotations themselves - which expressed the dark side of ancient Islam - do not express his "personal thought." In fact, that was his original point - that the dark side of Islam runs counter to his own thinking.

So what is the Pope's "apology" really saying? "I stand by my original offensive remarks, and if you were offended that's your problem."

Let the holy wars begin!

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/17/world/europe/17cnd-pope.html