What's up with "Time Magazine" and out Senior Writer John Cloud?

With less than a week to go before election day — an election that includes a hugely momentous vote in California on Proposition 8 over the rights of gays and lesbians to marry — now certainly seems an appropriate time for an interesting article on gay issues in politics. Perhaps something about how Karl Rove and his Republican strategists have so successfully used gay rights as a wedge issue. Or how Mormons and other conservative religious groups from outside California have poured millions into that state, turning what had been a likely defeat of the anti-gay initiative into a neck and neck race.

Well, Time Magazine does have a new story on gays and politics, but it's called "The Gay Mafia That's Redefining Politics", an article describing a "secretive" and "clandestine" group of wealthy gay benefactors so powerful that they are supposedly literally redefining politics in the United States.

What's next, an article about the cabal of Jews who control America's banks? Seriously. An article this inflammatory now, a week before gays might lose the right to marry in California and prejudice and bigotry are running sky-high? 

The Yes on Prop 8 ad practically writes itself.

Photo Credit: Getty Images/Justin Sullivan/David McNew

The article, written by Senior Writer and gay gadfly John Cloud, is one in an unfortunately long line of gay hit pieces by the journalist (but more on that later). Cloud's "Mafia" article goes on to describe a "web of connections" used by "secretive" wealthy gay men to advance their "liberal" agenda. For no apparent reason, Cloud finds it necessary to reassure readers that there is apparently nothing illegal about the group's actions, but he then bizarrely introduces the name of Clement Stone, a contributor to Richard Nixon who used fake Nixon-created groups to funnel money into Nixon's campaign. Why Cloud does this I have no idea, except to somehow tarnish these gay men through some sort of guilt-by-association. 

Honestly, for a while I thought I was reading the latest screed by the American Family Assocation, not a news article in Time Magazine. 

It's probably no surprise that Cloud is someone who has previously earned the ire of many gays. First there was his cover story on Ann Coulter which more than one reader found to be overly kind to the rightwing rabblerouser (Cloud said Coulter's work was "mostly accurate"). But it was Cloud's article earlier this year on the Lawrence King murder that really incurred the wrath of many in the gay community.

The very first sentence in Cloud's piece on the murdered teen found it necessary to note that King sometimes "wore make-up and nail polish" before Cloud went on to say things are mostly hunky-dory for GLBT youth, citing statistics from the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network (GLSEN ). Many objected to Cloud's interpretation of GLSEN's statistics including GLSEN who forced Time to amend the article and add a notation they felt Cloud was twisting their statistics.

Among other facts from GLSEN's study, Cloud cited the fact that "only" 18% of GLBT youth reported being assaulted that year and that while 66% had heard anti-gay remarks, 62% of students also reported sexist remarks ... so, see? Things really aren't that bad for gay kids — the occasional gay-bashing and murder notwithstanding.

Without even pointing out how many GLBT kids simply drop out of school, Cloud's interpretation of the facts were frankly mindboggling. Safety of gay students isn't really an issue when 22% of gay kids don't feel safe at school?

In the piece, Cloud also asserts that anti-discrimination laws protecting GLBT citizens really amount to little more than "thought police" and are detrimental to the gay rights movement. (It probably won't be much of a surprise to learn Cloud is a Libertarian.)

King's murder was hardly the only time Cloud has, um, looked at facts differently than do most folks. In early October of this year, Cloud penned "For Gay Marriage, Time to Go Beyond the Courts", an opinion piece deriding the Connecticut Supreme Court for ruling in favor of same-sex marriage. Cloud's beef with Connecticut? The Justice's 85 page ruling talked too much about gays being "victimized" and pointed out that when it comes to politics the number of elected gay officials "reflect their status as a small and insular minority."

Not true! says Cloud, citing statistics from the Gay and Lesbian Leadership Institute that there are 398 elected out gay or lesbian officials in the U.S. Of course, what Cloud fails to mention is that according to America.gov, there are 8,500 National and State level elected officials and 500,000 locally elected officials (including mayors, sheriffs, city council members). Just using the 8,500 figure, that means  gays and lesbians hold fewer than 5% of all elected positions (and in all likelihood most of those are concentrated in the bluest of the blue states).

Really, John? That gives us a powerful voice? (Cloud also cites the fact that there are wealthy gay donors as if that offsets the Wal-Marts and Mormon churches of the world).

Cloud also rails against the Connecticut's description of gays as a weak, vulnerable minority as if it is directed at him personally. He's also glad that in all the U.S. states, only the Iowa Supreme Court has a ruling pending on the issue of same-sex marriage. From Cloud's point of view, the court rulings have been disastrous, incurring a huge backlash, and the only way forward is politically, winning marriage equality legislatively. Or as Cloud puts it "without our having to beg for equality from judges who take pity on how glum our lives are."

Beg? Is that what he thinks of Brown vs the Board of Education was? How about Bowers vs Hardwick? Begging? Goodness, we might as well do away with that whole silly Supreme Court business pronto!

First, the judicial system is a perfectly valid way for minority groups to advance their rights. Second, Cloud is ignoring recent history, some of it right in front of his face. California twice — twice! — passed same-sex marriage in the legislature only to have that state's Republican governor veto it. And now gay groups are having to fight off an anti-gay initiative (no doubt with money from some of those "secretive" rich gays!) after having won the right to marry just in the way Cloud wants.

After the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled for same-sex marriage, their state legislature twice voted to protect it and Massachusetts' voters now strongly support same-sex marriage.

In other words, no matter what tactic we take, there is going to be a backlash and it takes a wide range of thoughtful opinions, voices, and tactics to contribute to the debate and move things forward.

Please note I said "thoughtful" opinions. Frankly, I can't see what Cloud contributes except to stand on the sidelines lobbing rhetorical bombs and playing the smug, disingenuous contrarian.

Frankly, I don't think it's a coincidence that our corporate media tend to pick and promote gay voices such as Cloud's, voices that tend to blame gay people for their own victimization. But that's the subject of a different post.