I’ve said this in a thread below, but shall repeat it:

For the RC Church, which is very slow and deliberate in its communications, this letter of apology is very fast indeed.
It also ought to be applauded that Pope Benedict XVI acknowledged his error, acknowledged that he could have known better had he used modern technology, apologised, and said he’d learn from this.

Now name me any living politician who has done such a thing as acknowledging current mistakes and apologising for them! Current mistakes, that is - not something which happend decades before they were even a twinkle in their grandparents’ eyes!