These are dark days for traditional Americans, folks who believe that the Judeo-Christian principles of right and wrong should be considered when making public policy. The other day, former "Focus on the Family" founder James Dobson actually told his crew that the culture war was being lost in America. And it is hard to argue with Dobson's opinion.
All over the USA, secular progressives are on the move promoting gay marriage, legalized drugs and unfettered abortion, and attacking almost all judgments on personal behavior. And nowhere is the movement more intense than in the nation's most liberal state: Vermont.
The legislature in the Green Mountain State recently voted to legalize gay marriage, overriding the veto of Gov. Jim Douglas. Vermont is the first state to actually legislate in favor of homosexual nuptials, as Massachusetts, Connecticut and Iowa all had gay marriage imposed on the citizenry by judges.
It is worth noting that Vermont is one of the few states that voted down "Jessica's Law," the tough mandatory-prison-sentence legislation against child sexual predators. An investigation into Vermont's criminal justice apparatus reveals the state embraces "restorative justice," whereby criminals often receive "holistic" treatment as part of their sentence for even heinous crimes like child rape. The goal is not so much to punish the offender, but to "restore" him or her to their rightful place in society. That is a secular-progressive hallmark.
While Vermont is coddling child predators, it is also sending a message to kids: Hey, you can do pretty much whatever you want.
Somewhat incredibly, the Vermont senate has passed a bill decriminalizing consensual "sexting." That is the process where children send sexual pictures of themselves to other children using cell phones or computers. The proposed Vermont law says that children ages 13 to 18 will be allowed to do that, but not to distribute the photos to more than one person or to an adult.
Supporters of the sexting law say it's necessary so that teenagers will not be prosecuted as sexual offenders and have their lives ruined. There is some validity to that as dopey kids do dopey things. However, the sane solution would be to categorize sexting as a misdemeanor breach of the peace, thus sending a message that it is unacceptable for kids to send other kids sexual images.
But secular progressives are loath to make that judgment. Remember, these are the same people who believe a girl has the right to an abortion without telling her parents. So if a kid can undergo a major life-altering operation (especially for the fetus), why should it be a big deal to do a little sexting?
With a liberal federal government and media, there is little opposition being voiced to what is happening in Vermont and other secular-progressive enclaves. Culture war issues have been forced to the back room by the awful economy, and the S-Ps are taking full advantage. If American children are legally allowed to send explicit pictures of themselves to other kids, then say goodbye to traditional boundaries of behavior.
The slippery slope is here.
Veteran TV news anchor Bill O'Reilly is host of the Fox News show "The O'Reilly Factor" and author of the book "Who's Looking Out For You?" To find out more about Bill O'Reilly, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com. This column originates on the Web site www.billoreilly.com.
COPYRIGHT 2009 BillOReilly.com.
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3 Comments | Post Comment
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Oh really?
Mandatory minimum laws like Jessica's Law create situations where plea bargains are invalidated, without which the criminal justice system will find it far more difficult to convict the guilty while increasing the chances of the innocent caught in this legal nightmare. Of course, on the flip side, the MORE COMMON side, we'll have teens going away for 25 years for consensual teen sex with their peers, and be labeled sexual predators the rest of their lives. They have already been adding teens to the registry for consensual sx, and we label kids as young as age 4 as sexual deviants.
http://www.oncefallen.com/CriminalizingTeenSex.html
The slippery slope began with Predator Panic brought on by high-profile, rare cases, celebrity advocates lke John Walsh, media hounds like O'Reilly seeking attention, and politicos seeking votes. The day care abuse scandal and the high profile cases like Adam Walsh, Megan Kanka, and Jacob Wetterling propagated the slippery slope of increasingly degrading laws beginning with public registries and spreading to a point we force those labeled sex offenders to live under bridges. And in that panic we suck in those who didn't rape or molest people, such as teens who had consensual sex with other teens.
And if this country TRULY was basing laws on "Judeo-Christian Values," they'd try to help their fellow man instead of oppressing them. O'Reilly would be supporting rehabilitation efforts. After all, Jesus didn't go around supporting laws that further oppressed sinful man, He wanted them to go sin no more. It seems hypocritical for people to preach Christianity when they wish to hurt their fellow man.
Comment: #1
Posted by: O'Really
Sat Apr 18, 2009 9:34 AM
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Hey O'Reilly, remember what all those Catholic priests were doing to little boys? Remember how the Catholic churches were all trying to wiggle out of liability for all of that Christian behavior run amuck? There are bad people everywhere, and you are not going to find them by asking who is not a Christian.
Comment: #2
Posted by: Masako
Sun Apr 19, 2009 2:27 PM
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Sir;...Judeo principals of right and wrong nailed Jesus on a Cross...It is not principals of right and wrong become policy that actually determines right or wrong as a practical matter, but good and evil in people lives, which people always see as effects of good behavior or evil behavior... And that is how most rational people judge right and wrong... Now, maybe we should go by the ten commandments; or would you rather go by the whole Jewish law??? If we did go by the ten we would find it impossible to enforce since so many of those rules relate to the psychology of sin... That is one reason the Jews disregarded them... They wanted a form of behavior rather than the moral feeling, or the moral philosophy that first corrects the sinner, and only then deals with his behavior... You want principals... What are principals??? They are Ideals, and ideals are forms... We need more than forms... We need that moral feeling, the way most of us feel toward our families, and the way all of us should feel toward our nation, and toward humanity, our true nation... Folks like you; Narrow Minded Bigots, just want to make rules for others to live by that you have no intention to live by.. And that is the problem, and as one of these readers has remarked; the institution that should guide people are preying upon them... And yet, our children are preyed upon to, by their own desires for freedom and love... They want to believe in the medicinal quality of love, and too often find that used wrongly, it is poison... But, you do not help, and all those people who look for an excuse to control everyone do not help..There is a culture war...That is true...It is the culture of capitalism against the culture of equality and justice for all....You all are the reason every parent must be working, and no one ever has enough time, or money to spend with their children... Our children are born abandoned...Our children are raised by the television, to want, to desire, to lust, and to envy... It would be one thing to have a few moral feelings, but if no parent has the authority to correct their child, or to protect them from bad people, then what is the sense of principals??? I wish my kids did not have to be sold all kinds of trash to watch t.v....Where is the principal that to make a buck no one could be preyed upon???Well say good bye to your millions, and get a real job... The fact is that while people on the right throw up the moral smoke screen; true morality is the last thing they want in this world, because if they had it, no unjust profit could be made, and no one would be led into temptation... People know the ten commandments... Thou shall not covet...There would be no capitalism without covet, so your principals that you preach so loudly are just a means of pushing the people deeper into slavery... They have nothing to do with morality, but everything to do with the appearance of morality... We need more than that...We have had enough of appearance... We need the real deal, and those children laying with their neighbors have a lot more of it than most of you folks, who are tall on talk and short on reality... Thanks...Sweeney
Comment: #3
Posted by: James A, Sweeney
Mon Apr 20, 2009 8:04 PM
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