I, too, have no problem when anyone I know decides to declare who they are.  If that makes them happy, who am I to judge?  That said, they're real people.  Bobby Drake isn't.  He's what authors make him.  He's never been someone who has gone through what closeted people have gone through.  Ever.  He's never had to hide himself, pretend to be someone that he wasn't or feel ashamed that he's not "normal" other than having the powers that he does.  That's exactly why I think this and any other retcon in the same fashion is the job of a hack.  Take superficial "clues" written in fanfic and discussed on fan message boards and incorporate it into a canonical story without having to do the work of actually exploring that character, setting them up to feel the headache and pain.  Just state that Drake is coming out and that's enough?  Maybe a couple of issues where it's a subplot but no exploration?  

You live in SF and so you say that makes you more open to LGBT issues.  I've lived in major cities, work in the entertainment industry and got my Masters in Acting.  I know a thing or two about LGBT.  I'm certainly wide open to the concept myself and have been cool with it my entire life.  That said?  The rest of the country hasn't caught up.  There's still a long way to go.  So I think it a terrible disservice to not only a longstanding character like Bobby Drake but the LGBT community at large to slap on a coat of "gay paint" and call it a day.