Content gay men living life to the fullest vs. Closeted gay hypocrites living lies to the fullest

Leonard Pitts, Jr. has a great column this week in which talks about two gay men : Neil Patrick Harris aka Doogie Howser, M.D. and Ted Haggard aka Pastor Ted:

Today's topic: flaunting homosexuality.

Exhibit A: Doogie.

Meaning Neil Patrick Harris who, in another life, was the title character in "Doogie Howser, M.D.,'' the tale of a boy genius who becomes a doctor. Recently, Harris was outed on a gossip Web site. His response in a statement to people.com said in part:

"I am happy to dispel any rumors or misconceptions and am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest.''

That was it. No muss, no fuss. The world continued spinning, the seas did not boil and the clouds did not bleed.

And then there is:

Exhibit B: Pastor Ted.

Until earlier this month, he was senior pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs and president of the National Association of Evangelicals, an influential preacher who had George Bush's ear. Neither the church nor the NAE has been known for its friendliness toward gay people. So there was quite an uproar when Mike Jones, a gay prostitute, dropped the bombshell allegation that he'd had a three-year sexual relationship with the preacher. Haggard initially denied even knowing Jones but then recanted, admitting that, on at least one occasion, he sought a massage and bought meth from the gay hooker.

On Nov. 2, Haggard stepped down from the NAE presidency. Two days later, his church fired him. He has confessed to "sexual immorality'' and will spend the next three to five years in "restoration,'' a process that reportedly involves confrontation, counsel and - you can't make this stuff up - rebuke from "godly men.''

Pitts then goes on to list others in the same category as Pastor Ted who lived life as closeted gays until being exposed. These men include the late gay-bashing former Spokane mayor: James West, Michael Bussee and Gary Cooper, leaders in the "curing homosexuality'' movement until they fell in love with one another and of course others too numerous to list.

And he asks 2 questions:

1)

Can't we now safely assume any conservative who rants about the homosexual agenda is a lying hypocrite gayer than a Castro Street bar? (emphasis mine)

2)

Wouldn't you much rather be Neil Patrick Harris than Ted Haggard just now? In other words, wouldn't you rather be a content gay man living life to the fullest, than a closeted gay hypocrite living lies to the fullest? Especially since lies are so frequently found out.

He finishes his column up by making the same point anyone with an ounce of common sense already knows:

In a culture that allows gay people room to be gay people, there is no need of lies. In a culture that does not - i.e., theirs [social conservatism] - lies are rampant. And that's unfortunate, not simply for the person in question, but for all the people in his or her life.

And here, I'm thinking of Gayle Alcorn. She and Haggard have five children. They've been married 28 years. That's a long time to sleep next to a lie.

I bet she wishes he had "flaunted'' his homosexuality a long time ago.

How many broken families are casualties of the Dobson Family Advocacy Crowd? What a tragedy that these Snake Oil Hucksters (gayer than a Castro Street bar?) still have such a strong voice after wreaking so much damage and destruction on the very entities they claim to advocate for?