I would give you a thumb's up but the button doesn't work. I wish you well on your journey. It is a continuing process with many ups and downs. My only advice is to try and develop a better sense of humor as it makes the journey a little smoother. I look forward to reading about your journey.

I don't know if I could be more proud to be called your friend, Shawn. It will be a fun time finding out, though, I suspect! I have always held you in very high esteem, mainly because of your intelligence, humor, and open mind. And now is no different- You are simply my friend, Shawn, and have been he since the day I made the decision to initiate contact with you, with the express purpose of creating, sharing and experiencing moments of my life which could and should be attached to moments of yours. It would take you doing something truly heinous or an equally catastrophic alteration to the person I know to have me even consider for a moment that perhaps I should rethink my choice.So, yeah, you're stuck with me, bro.
I'm sure you've noticed that I have been quite silent on my own views and held back on giving any sermons/stories concerning what I consider to be your private journey, but I do have a few pieces of advice which I'd like to share with you now, if you don't mind, because I have taken note of some specific questions you've posted that they may help you to find answers to, and because I am concerned with what conclusions you may stumble on, if I stay quiet.
First, I hope you know that a truly open mind doesn't have to be relinquished in favor of conservatism when sobriety becomes your chosen path! I've seen this mistake made time and again with friends who have gone through recovery. Most I know have refused to be as broadly open to all things that once were taken on with relish- all for various reasons of their own, naturally.I won't go into why this can happen, but just take it on faith that I have seen what I have seen, and come away grieved and relieved- sometimes even simultaneously, even.That said, I may not be an expert, but I'm plenty experienced from this side of the recovery coin. No matter- take it as you will, but please, as long as you take what I offer now. I don't care what you choose to do with it as long as you do that for me.
I've advised a few friends I've known over the years who have struggled as you have to look at the problem of reclassification to be more like a curio filing cabinet than a moral sorting table, so rather than denying to hear/see/feel/think of new or otherwise once confusing or even settled information because of perceived or real conflict with your new morality, your new mode of thought, it's my belief that this new way of being should allow for you to be comfortable with enough of a lateral shift to allow you to reposition whatever troubling old information that you now find is improperly stored to a more compatible file name, and to stow new information according to the new filing system you create without much dithering with old classifications. I'd also suggest that you refuse to allow negative titles creep their way into that system, because that tends to act as a poison that can spread throughout, before you know it. And THAT is when your sense of humor will have died, and then I'd have to mourn my friend's passing- because losing one's sense of humor is even worse than losing one's identity, health, or happiness. You'll have lost your soul.
On second thought, I am only posting what I've written so far instead of a few pieces of advice- because this one bit of advice is probably more than enough for one day. Questions of comments of a personal nature can and should be made privately, but I welcome what you may be comfortable saying in response, my dearest formerly bourbon-soaked-Shawn-shaped- mass of dark humor and pot stickers, whom I have also bestowed, quite some time ago, with the honorific of Master of Some Assembly Required. I luv ya, you big lug.

Well done my friend. Over 20yrs clean myself.
Your perspective certainly changes and so does your morality etc (in my opinion).
I also became a Christian around the same time and have also spent time in the US studying which further sharpened my political views etc.
Dont quit sir. One day at a time.

The new level of scrutiny is very, very valid. Of myself and others.

Perhaps what's happening is really happening is that your thinking is clearly more precise and the old "truths" you knew as fact

Aren't standing up to your new level of scrutiny

BTW, sobriety is a good thing that just gets better.

Good man keep it up.