State Rep. Patricia Todd touched off a ruckus on her Facebook page. Perhaps you heard about it in the news.

"It is time to drag these folks out of the closet and let them know that we will no longer allow someone to say hateful things about us while they go home to their girlfriend!" Todd wrote.

Only that's not what the Birmingham Democrat wrote this week after a federal judge struck down Alabama's same-sex marriage ban. Instead, it is what Todd wrote last May, after other Alabama politicians starting fussing about the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on the Defense of Marriage Act.

Then, Todd got backlash, even from her supporters, and she backtracked somewhat.

This week, she seems to be standing her ground, and she's added straight officials who have, shall we say, strayed from home to her list of potential targets.

I talked to Todd Monday about it. She told me that she's sick of lawmakers and other elected officials who tout family values during the day but turn into homewreckers at night. She's putting them on notice. If you're a hypocrite about conservative family values, she will expose you if she can.

Todd isn't the only one ready to drag the private matters of public officials into the open. Last week, the Jefferson County Commission went further, asking a federal judge to investigate whether a receiver he appointed over the county's human resources department had non-professional relationships with county employees.

But when is it OK to out someone as gay? Or to expose infidelity?

On the second question, I have a confession to make.

During the most recent state elections last year, like a lot of other state political reporters, I got leaked some court documents. Those documents, which have since been sealed, included sworn testimony regarding an extramarital relationship that involved a public official.

That isn't just gossip. That isn't seeing a frumpy old lawmaker having a candlelit dinner with an attractive lobbyist to whom he (or she) is not married. There wasn't any is-they-or-ain't-they. That's as close as it comes to, as we say, having the story cold.

But I stuck it away because, quite frankly, I didn't know where the line was. I'm still not sure.

Let me make myself clear. I'm not looking for a pat on the back here, because I don't know if I made the right decision or not. Many folks consider marital fidelity important when assessing a public official's character. Others think it doesn't matter and it's none of anyone's business. I'm still going back and forth.

I could use your help answering the question.

I want to know what you think about it, so I'm putting up the poll here for you to take. I know that often your opinions don't fit neatly among the choices in these polls, so I'll be in the comments thread below to talk about it.