IN a very lame attempt to sugar a very bitter pill for Catholics – Obama’s victory – RC blogger Patti Maguire Armstrong made the horrible mistake of putting up a link to the writings of a crackpot “gay cure” therapist George Alan Rekers.

Rekers was exposed in 2010 as a self-loathing, hypocritical closet queen after he secured the services of a gay escort for ten days of man-on-man frolics in a hotel in Europe.

Rekers likes ’em slim, young and hung … allegedly

IN a very lame attempt to sugar a very bitter pill for Catholics – Obama’s victory – RC blogger Patti Maguire Armstrong made the horrible mistake of putting up a link to the writings of a crackpot “gay cure” therapist George Alan Rekers.

Rekers was exposed in 2010 as a self-loathing, hypocritical closet queen after he secured the services of a gay escort for ten days of man-on-man frolics in a hotel in Europe.

Maguire, in a piece entitled Ten Reasons to Celebrate Post Election, declared in Reason No 5:

Same-sex marriage advocates like to paint Catholic values as hateful and homophobic.  It’s an area many shy away from discussing since it’s a more complicated argument. The value of marriage has been minimized in our culture due to no-fault divorce and the acceptance of sex outside of marriage but like all non-negotiables, the teaching is consistent and Catholic resources are abundant.

She then added a link to Rekers’ bullshit.

That link quickly vanished after I posted the following comment on her blog:

I am truly amazed that you have included a link to Alan Rekers, who was exposed as a closet gay hypocrite in 2010 when he was found to be using the services of a male escort.

Maguire instantly responded:

Rekers is the founder of the Family Research Council, author of many pro-family articles and books and an international speaker on the topic. I was not aware of the rumors surrounding him until you just alerted me to it. However, the link you gave me with the accusation, belongs to an atheist/pro-homosexual site, so I would not consider that an accurate source.

I looked further and found this, [ironically to a GAY site] which gives a more balanced account, pointing out that the rumor came from a source that seeks to destroy his reputation. Still, I am in no position to say whether the rumor is true or not. It would seem the facts and research regarding the importance of traditional families are true and I cannot speak to the validity of the accusations being made against Rekers. However, it is good to know about this, so to be on the safe side, I will look for a replacement article.

Here it is: Ten reasons why homosexual marriage is harmful and must be opposed.

I immediately responded by saying:

I am pleased that you removed the Rekers link. You, of course, have every right to harbour strong antipathy towards gay people, just as I, as a gay man, an atheist and editor of the Freethinker – which you rightly identify as an “atheist/pro-homosexual site” – have to strongly oppose your views.

Choosing a link to Rekers’ article was an understandable error, given that you were (surprisingly) unaware of the scandal that engulfed him. To this day the allegations against him have never been credibly refuted.

You are perhaps also unaware of the fact the Rekers was a menace who later stood accused of almost driving a young man to suicide with his crackpot anti-gay therapies.