Smallville! because a little ranting gets the blood moving

I haven't seen the last couple eps of SV, am building up strength with the delight of new Who to be able to bear them. I have, however, read ep commentaries, so there may be spoilers in this post, and do not worry about spoiling me. I can't be spoiled for this show; the writers already spoiled it seasons ago. This isn't really about the latest canon events, though; this is to finally articulate a long-standing argument, concerning the entire run of the show.

I've seen the following opinion expressed many times in this fandom, often when questioning Lex's s1-3 Room o' Clark or the Lex-apologist view that if Clark had been a bit more honest much disaster may have been averted:

I've always wondered why so many thought that Clark owes Lex his secret. Lex was a new friend, someone he was just getting to know, what entitled him to know Clark's secret when friends he had since childhood didn't know it?

Only as I see it - Clark's childhood friends had a right to know, too. It drives me up a wall how the show justifies all manners of lies and trickery and worse for the sake protecting Clark's secret. Because the thing is - it's not Clark's secret.

( On the responsibilities of secret-keeping. Lex-apologist, but not anti-Clark, because I am a firm believer that every character has been shafted by the writing of this show. )