Pat Boone Denies His Homophobia, Then Links Gays to Pedophiles

76-year old Pat Boone, the moth-eaten movie star/treacly warbler whose born-again fervor compels him to dehumanize LGBT Americans at every opportunity, has written one of the most disingenuous commentaries I've had the misfortune to read this year.  He's a frequent contributor on World Net Daily, where homophobic opinion pieces are as common as gay slurs in Uganda.  Some WND writers, like Boone, bash queers in the name "Christian love."  Others take the low road, portraying gays and lesbians as child-molesters, disease-ridden deviants, and fecal matter aficionados.  I actually prefer the latter approach since it lays bear the depraved, sex-obsessed minds of these bigots. But Pious Pat is a more artful homo hater - or at least he thinks he is.

As Christian extremists are wont to do, Boone starts his piece by bragging about his gay friends.  He mentions two, both victims of AIDS, who are no longer around to confirm or deny Pat's self-proclaimed "affection" for them.  About Rock Hudson the creaky crooner writes:  A major, iconic movie star, he too was homosexual. But the world didn't know that, until he was famously revealed to be dying of HIV/AIDS. He, and those close to him, knew well that if his sexual proclivities were known, he could never have been the superstar ladies' man... So he and those who profited from his stardom kept it quiet until almost the end. (Yes, Hudson was forced  to cower in the closet because of organized religion, the Hays Code, and people like Pat Boone.)  My wife, three friends and I were with him the night before he died...  He couldn't speak, and his emaciated body bore no resemblance to the one millions of women had dreamed of. But his eyes shone as our little group gathered by his bed to pray with, and for him. Obeying the admonition in James 5 in the New Testament, I poured a little oil on his bare chest and rubbed it in with my hand, praying for him to be healed and restored.  (If Boone obeyed Jesus' admonitions to "Do unto others" and "Judge not" he would have ended his article at this point.  But no such luck.) I relate the above to make it extremely clear I'm no homophobe. Far from it. I've flourished in the entertainment business for over 50 years now and I've always had good friends who were, and are, homosexual.

Like homophobes everywhere, Pat Boone is reluctant to use the word "gay."  By repeating homosexual, homosexual, homosexual, homosexual, homosexual he defines our humanity by a libidinous act.  And here the mask of Christian kindness slips away:  Based solely on what they do to please each other sexually, they demand special rights, privileges and entitlements. By their own pronouncements, they are no different in any other way from other Americans – the only things that set them apart from the other two men I describe are the things that satisfy them sexually.  (No mention of the profound love gays and lesbians feel for their life partners and children, or the selfless acts they perform for others.  To fundies like Pat, it's all about carnal gratification.  That is his focus, not ours.)

After dwelling on the sheer "wickedness" of marriage equality, Boone throws his prayerful support behind the military's discriminatory Don't Ask Don't Tell policy.  Pat rejects Admiral Mike Mullen's recently stated reason for overturning the ban, which is "because it forces gay troops to compromise their integrity by lying." Boon-dawg never served a day in the armed forces, yet he thinks he knows better than Mullen, General Colin Powell, and other military leaders who currently oppose DADT: The obvious, expressed purpose of the policy is that the subject never come up or be discussed. Sexual proclivity, if not violent or a menace to someone else, should be a private matter. If a soldier has a "foot fetish," is attracted to young boys or feels compelled to masturbate frequently, should he volunteer – or be required – to confess those urges, for "integrity's" sake? 

Wow, it sure didn't take long for this non-homophobic "family values" guy with his dead "homosexual friends" to link sexual orientation - a natural biological variance - with pedophilia and fetishism.  Mr. Boone, like most of the columnists on World Net Daily, is a relic from a bygone era where wives were treated like chattel and small children were beaten with leather belts.  He is a cultural curiosity, a grim exhibit appropriate for display in the Creation Museum, alongside the fake velociraptor and that mannequin of a young girl merrily grinding her wheat. 

Pat Boone is singularly unqualified to discuss LGBT issues, regardless of how many closet cases he encountered during his blessedly brief career in Hollywood. His knowledge of gays and lesbians is as deficient as his empathy for others, his Christian compassion as phony as a plastic Jesus wobbling on the dashboard of a Buick.  Did I mention that he starred in a 2005 documentary called "Fuck?"  Peddle your make-believe tolerance elsewhere, old man.

Comments

[Trent]

P Boone is like some old southern white guy saying "I'm not a racist, look at all my negro friends." Words matter. If Boone had any friends who were gay, he'd call them gay and not homosexual. His Xstian compassion is a joke.

[2cents]

He was cute when he was younger, now he's just a hateful old bible beater... one day they'll all die off and the world will be a better place.

[Bee Girl]

Smug asshole. My grandmother has some of his records. Listening to him sing makes my teeth hurt.

[Nick]

Who the hell is Pat Boone anyway? The man made a living in his younger years singing covers of songs that were originally done by blacks (such as his awful rendition of "Tutti Frutti" by Little Richard). He was fake then, and he continues to be fake now with his disingenuous "compassion" for gays.

[Steve]

Never trust anyone that wears a US flag shirt... they are the biggest hypocrites.

[Andrea]

He may profess his friendship for his gay "friends," but notice that the only image he gives of them is their deaths ... implicitly, "the wages of sin." In his imagery, they are weakened and dying, he is hale and hearty ... putting him in the dominant position. I would believe his protestations of friendship for members of the LGBT community if he referenced current healthy gay friends. As it stands, likely he had no idea for most of his "friendship." Can it be a friendship if one party has to keep quiet around the other?

[Terry C]

This is the schmuck who was on PTL (Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker) and declared that girls who became pregnant as a result of incest and rape should be made to carry that pregnancy to term.

No matter how young they were.

And this creep has five daughters.

His fifteen minutes were up about four decades ago; I wish he would go away.

[Evan]

Pat Boone was decent in thr 50s and 60s. Then he turned into a male versionn of Anita Bryant. I feel sorry for his children.

[Tom Boone]

Pat Boone does not deserve to have my last name, and I am a descendant of Daniel Boone too. Except I am a gay American. And I believe in God every bit as much as Pat Boone claims to -- I just think that Pat Boone is extremely out of touch with god's true spirit, On a more down-to-earth note, the U.S. Senate answered Pat Boone and those who espouse his hateful and bigoted opinions today by voting overwhelmingly to repeal DADT. DADT has been a heinous law requiring young men and women to lie about their true sexual nature in order to serve their country. Clearly in violation of due process and the 14th Amendment. Clearly contrary to common sense. Clearly in the face of public policy. Requiring people to lie. What kind of Christian American thing is that? Huh? And forget about the rest of the world -- Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, and so on, all have no place in the world of Pat Boone. I am deeply embarrassed that Pat Boone has my last name and that he also claims descent from Daniel Boone. His attitudes deeply shame me and, knowing the true history of Daniel Boone, methinks that the kind of bigoted, narrow minded comments Pat Boone makes these days has Daniel turning over in his grave. At least, we can celebrate the repeal of DADT and today we can openly and honestly honor with great pride our very heroic young gay and bi soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan -- to all of the very many of you, I at least extend my very sincere thanks. May God be with you -- I am sure he is. Sincerely yours, Tom Boone