In the wake of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico, scientific minds from around the world are coming together to figure out a way to stop the massive catastrophe. Indeed, the U.S. Secretary of Energy, Steven Chu, recently announced a team of elite scientific minds who would be working with the federal government and officials from oil company BP to try and map out a strategy for stopping this spill.

There's just one problem: one of the scientists that the Obama administration has labeled the "best scientific mind" in our country, has a lengthy track record of homophobia. And not just any kind of homophobia, but violent disturbing homophobia that blames gay people for AIDS, and calls homosexuality as evil as theft, adultery and murder.

The scientist in question, Jonathan I. Katz, wrote an article several years back called "In Defense of Homophobia," where he argued that he was a "profound homophobe." Moreover, Katz went on to say that gay people (who he refers to as "sodomites") have blood on their hands for making AIDS an epidemic. As Katz put it in his article, "Guilt for [AIDS] deaths is on the hands of the homosexuals and intravenous drug abusers who poisoned the blood supply. These people died so the sodomites could feel good about themselves."

Holding positions like this gets you promoted to an elite team of scientists, and gets you called "the best scientific mind" in the country by the Secretary of Energy?

Demand that Obama not legitimize the work of a scientist who would blame gay people for AIDS and call homosexuality as evil as murder. We all agree that the oil spill requires urgent attention, and yes, we do need our best scientific minds on the job.

But Jonathan I. Katz is far from our best scientific mind. He calls himself a "proud homophobe." That's no different than calling oneself a proud racist or a proud sexist. Simply put, people like that don't need to have their science held up by the Obama administration.