The Dominoes Of Decency

April 14, 2002

by Brian W. Peterson

Throughout the history of Western civilization, morality has been one of the cornerstones of its existence. Specific to America, our first president expressed a similar belief in his farewell address to the nation.

Unfortunately, our society has deteriorated to the point that dissent against norms has degenerated to asking “whose morality” should be followed, as if these dissenters are ignorant of history and the fate of societies which veered from their moral foundations.

Child molestation is now rearing its ugly head in the name of breaking the chains of normalcy and decency. In two recent developments, advocates of child molestation are being treated with seriousness - as if the advocacy of molestation is an academic endeavor.

Next month’s release by the University of Minnesota Press of journalist Judith Levine’s new book defending pedophilia marks a low point in academics and in the moral health of our country.

Last month an advocate of pedophilia was the keynote speaker at a Penn State University women’s health conference. To even begin to describe what Penn State has previously hosted in the name of free speech and academic freedom is not possible in a family newspaper.

In 1999, the American Psychological Association published a study which claimed that “adult-child sex” is often positive for a child. While the APA later passed a resolution rejecting such a view, they lacked the moral foundation to oppose the publication of this radical perversion in their own journal.

Perversion was advanced by the APA as a serious effort at science and academic freedom. The promulgation of perversion is equivalent to the endorsement of perversion.

In 1973, the APA declassified homosexuality as a mental illness. In doing so, it opened the door to the promulgation of perversion that goes far beyond mere same-sex activities.

Intellectually, to accept homosexuality is to accept bestiality, polygamy, and child molestation, among other perversions.

This is not to say that just because a person engages in homosexual behavior he has a propensity to engage in other such perversions. Rather, once formerly unacceptable behavior becomes acceptable, other behaviors that were once considered repulsive must also be considered in light of the changing standards.

When the APA changed its stance on homosexual behavior, the acceptance of child molestation was not imaginable. Now that those who favor “adult-child sex” are gaining a platform, what unimaginable acts will be advocated as “normal” thirty years hence?

Another example of such degradation as the result of lowered standards revolves around the extension of marriage benefits to those who are not married.

In the past, certain rights and benefits were only extended to married couples due to the importance of the institution of marriage. People had the wisdom to understand that marriage is essential to the survival of civilized societies.

Now that the meaning of marriage has been further diluted, benefits formerly reserved for marriage are accessible without the legal commitment of marriage.

If two people, outside the confines of marriage, can access the benefits of marriage, why cannot three people access those same benefits? Why not four? Six?

Polygamy was outlawed in days of old because it was viewed as a perversion of one of the cornerstones of Western civilization. In light of our current moral climate, how can such an argument be effectively advanced today?

Indeed, the acceptance of one moral perversion knocks down barriers for other perversions. To give the APA the benefit of the doubt, they likely did not imagine that they were knocking down a pivotal domino in 1973.

Nonetheless, the domino has fallen and others are about to fall. Without immediate resolve by our society to reverse past degradations of morality, perversions such as “adult-child sex” will be largely accepted in 30 to 40 years.

The survival of Western civilization depends upon the defense of morality. Presently, we are failing civilization itself.

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Brian W. Peterson writes a political column for the Antelope Valley Press (circulation approximately 60,000) in Palmdale, California. He is a graduate of Oral Roberts University, where he majored in TV/Film. Brian’s weekly commentary and newspaper columns can be found at www.LifeAndLiberty.com.

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