Yes indeed
You are quite right in your assessment. We owe a great deal of understanding and appreciation for accomplishments to sufferers of mental illness. None of us are untouched by this.
Turner's comments might have been better just left alone, with no comment on their validity. To give any credence to Turner's opinions on foreign affairs is not unlike cheering that woman who drowned her children after a speech on parenting or praising Roosevelt for his downhill sking prowess. To even notice is risking unkindness.