Mike Jones Needs To Leave The Stage

Mike Jones needs to go away. Fifteen minutes ago.
Has there been a more shameless grab for fame than the aging prostitute/masseur/drug liaison's ongoing effort to parlay his exposure of now-disgraced evangelist Ted Haggard for his own aggrandizement?
Jones has been on an ongoing campaign of self-promotion designed to paint himself as some kind of a hero/victim, when he could just as easily be seen as nothing but a hooker with a heart for gold.
Jones made the news three times just last week: First for appearing with sleaze-talker Montel Williams, then for auctioning the massage table on e-Bay that he used to oil up Haggard. Then for e-Bay's decision to yank the auction from its site.
To me, Haggard is the worst kind of religious hypocrite. The former head of a 14,000-strong Colorado Springs megachurch and president of the 30 million-member National Association of Evangelicals was a staunch opponent of the statewide referendum that would have provided basic legal rights for same-sex couples.
But Jones sent Haggard - and any chance of Referendum I's passage - down the toilet by accusing Haggard just six days before the election with paying him for three years of meth-fueled sex. (Haggard admits only to massages and buying drugs from Jones.)
Pro-I Mayor John Hickenlooper's election message of "It's not marriage, it's fairness" had been carefully tailored to emphasize equal legal rights and responsibilities, mostly to benefit long-term, monogamous, same-sex couples.
Jones thought shining a light under Haggard's bushel so close to the election would bolster I's chances, but it more likely torpedoed it: His tawdry tale introduced stereotypical images into voters' minds intertwining homosexuality with drugs and prostitution and seedy, back-alley sex. Goodbye, I. But at least Haggard had the decency to go away.
Jones hired a publicist.
I am not making this up: In December, I was pitched the chance to sit with Jones through a performance of Boulder's Dinner Theatre's "Crazy for You." Seriously: Offering up Jones to a theater critic is scraping the bottom of the barrel.
Then last month I was invited to a screening of the documentary "Conviction" at the Skylark Lounge. It tells the story of three Dominican nuns who staged a peaceful protest against the Iraq war and served federal prison sentences of up to four years.
"As an amusing bonus," the press release said, "Pastor Ted Haggard is featured throughout the film to explain why supporting war is the genuine Christian choice. Of course, nobody knew what the future held for him when the film was made."
And so who did they line up to host the screening and lead the discussion afterward? Mike Jones, described in the press release as "Ted Haggard's former 'business associate."'
That turned my stomach.
This film was the story of three courageous people imprisoned for acting on their beliefs - hosted by a man whose entire life had been conducted in opposition to the teachings of any church.
It's not that Jones is evil - he's just offensive. And icky.
This sordid affair has left a trail of victims, starting with Haggard's family and all those who put their faith in a flawed, tormented man.
The only decent thing Jones can do now is take a cue from Haggard and go away - before he proves to be the bigger hypocrite.
from The Denver Post / John Moore