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When it's personal, the right veers left
Nancy Reagan supports stem-cell research after her Ronnie gets sick.

Dick Cheney opposes the gay-marriage ban after his daughter comes out.

Rush Limbaugh is suddenly an advocate of treatment - not prison - for people addicted to narcotics. Oh, I almost forgot: The epiphany comes while Rush is being investigated for drugs.

The list goes on and on: prominent conservative figures, forced to question some sweeping social principle, after being rudely interrupted by the messy realities of life.

Ain't personal experience just the worst?

There used to be a joke about liberals.

Q: What's a conservative?

A: A liberal who's been mugged.

Well, somebody probably ought to dream up a corollary or two.

Q: What's a liberal on stem-cell research?

A: A conservative with a family member who is ill.

Q: What's a liberal on homosexual rights?

A: A conservative with a gay kid.

There's no end to the potential variations. I could easily give you a hundred more. Instead, I'll introduce you to the Rev. Norman Kansfield, age 64, who has just been ousted as president of the New Brunswick Theological Seminary in New Jersey.

He too came face-to-face with life....