...I had no clue at the time why it seemed like nearly every defense contractor under the sun was shelling out money to a gay rights group. (As of today, confirmed sponsors for the 2013 HRC dinner, still six months away, already include Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin.)
Were these death peddlers that committed to equality? Were these corporations so harmed by Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell? After I grew up a bit in covering gay politics over the next few years, I realized that there is no such thing as "gay politics," only "money politics"—and there’s no money in America like military money.
For war profiteers, the issues of marriage equality and gay discrimination in the armed forces were, at best, third in line among their priorities. First, they were paying for access. Since there are so many homos in positions of power on congressional staffs, buying a seat at their gay table was a solid financial investment. If a legislative chief of staff is a power bottom, a quick way for a lobbyist to get access to his boss is to lube him up by schmoozing him at a fundraising gala for his favorite cause.
Second, there was the longer-term investment in buying off LGBT political activists (known to be politically volatile and even, once upon a time, radical) outside the Beltway. It would take time to herd these unpredictable gay cats, who might have some unpatriotic pacifist leanings. And so these donors were, in a sophisticated and calculated fashion, grooming a class of Professional Homosexuals: mercenaries who spend their entire careers in a revolving door between gay organizations like HRC and GLADD, leadership positions at gay "community centers," the Democratic party, the Obama White House, K Street lobbying shops, “public relations” consulting firms, and the military-industrial complex. (more...)Source:
H/T to English Manif
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