Regarding the “apology” Viewpoint submitted by Adam Hill in reference to Bill Thoma, I would have hoped that Mr. Hill (who was graciously allowed space in a newspaper to “seemingly” send his regrets to a man he had venomously attacked), might have tried using the words, “I’m sorry.”

Unless I missed something in his lengthy attempt to do damage control, I counted more than several versions of the word “apology,” but saw not a single “I’m sorry,” which is the much-preferred, authentic way of expressing true remorse for one’s actions.

“I’m sorry” and “I apologize” are not interchangeable terms that carry equal, heartfelt weight. The former reflects a personal level of understanding. The latter? It’s a means of retaining empathetic distance when repentance is expected, but the level of contrition is questionable.

I’d like to think that Mr. Hill was unclear as to which terminology would have reflected a better spirit of sincere repentance, but my sense of him via his public persona is that he’s very bright and chose his words quite carefully. If I am mistaken, however, I apologize.