The normblog profile 32: Andrew Sullivan

Andrew Sullivan writes a column for Time, the New Republic, the Sunday Times of London and the Advocate. He is the editor of the up-coming Same-sex Marriage: Pro and Con - A Reader (2004). He blogs at andrewsullivan.com.

Why do you blog? > It's fun to think out loud.

What has been your best blogging experience? > The relationship with my readers.

What has been your worst blogging experience? > Having to defend my private life in public.

What are your favourite blogs? > Glenn, Mickey, Volokh.

Who are your intellectual heroes? > Michael Oakeshott, Thomas Hobbes, Friedrich Hayek, George Orwell.

What are you reading at the moment? > Father Joe - a memoir by Tony Hendra (not yet published).

What is the best novel you've ever read? > Madame Bovary.

What is your favourite poem? > 'Faith Healing', by Philip Larkin.

What is your favourite song? > 'Left to My Own Devices' - The Pet Shop Boys.

Who is your favourite composer? > Olivier Messiaen.

Can you name a major moral, political or intellectual issue on which you've ever changed your mind? > Abortion. I've gone from being resolutely pro-life to being reluctantly pro-choice in the first trimester.

What philosophical thesis do you think it most important to disseminate? > Individual liberty.

What philosophical thesis do you think it most important to combat? > Post-modernism.

Who are your political heroes? > Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln, Margaret Thatcher.

What is your favourite piece of political wisdom? > Never surrender.

If you could effect one major policy change in the governing of your country, what would it be? > A flat tax.

If you could choose anyone, from any walk of life, to be President, who would you choose? > Arnold.

What do you consider to be the main threat to the future peace and security of the world? > Islamist terrorism.

What would be your most important piece of advice about life? > Try to believe that you are worthy of God's love.

Do you think you could ever be married to, or in a long-term relationship with, someone with radically different political views from your own? > Of course. The sex would be great.

What do you consider the most important personal quality? > Generosity of spirit.

What personal fault do you most dislike? > Cruelty.

In what circumstances would you be willing to lie? > Answering questionnaires.

Do you have any prejudices you're willing to acknowledge? > Built-in bias against Anglicans.

What commonly enjoyed activities do you regard as a waste of time? > Skiing.

What, if anything, do you worry about? > Catching planes on time.

If you were to relive your life to this point, is there anything you'd do differently? > I'd try not to get HIV. I did try, of course. But obviously not hard enough.

What would your ideal holiday be? > A sunny day in the distant dunes on Herring Cove beach in Provincetown with nothing to do.

What is your most treasured possession? > My friends.

What talent would you most like to have? > To play a musical instrument.

Who is your favourite comedian or humorist? > South Park; the Simpsons; Abfab; Alan Bennett; Monty Python.

If you could have one (more or less realistic) wish come true, what would you wish for? > The ability to be invisible.

What animal would you most like to be? > A beagle.

[The normblog profile is a weekly Friday morning feature. A list of previous profiles, and the links to them, can be found here.]