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As Old Slick himself might say, “Define morality.”Everyone on the planet has his or her own set of values, moral code, or definition of what is right and wrong. How does each person develop this “rudder” to steer their personal conduct? As for me and, almost without exception, all my acquaintances, my standards for behavior are a function of Judeo-Christian teachings. Beginning with the Ten Commandments, and supplemented with numerous other guideposts for life, our American culture has historically reflected these principles. Despite our president's claims, America is still largely a Christian nation.
The face and personality of America began to change dramatically in the 1960s. The Immigration Reform Act of 1965 opened our borders to a flood of immigrants quite different from the stereotype of earlier Americans. In addition to this new onslaught of foreign culture, attitudes of all Americans were beginning to change with the Hippie movement and the unpopular Vietnam War.
It was about this time that Hollywood and the elitist media began to have a more powerful role in our lives. Grounded in the fundamental rights granted by the First Amendment, content on television and on the big screen became more permissive in what was allowed to be shown. Time magazine in the 1970s would have been considered pornographic a generation earlier. This devolution to lower moral standards led to a change in the way individuals viewed personal responsibility. Many adopted an attitude of no responsibility to anything other than oneself. In recent decades we seem to have refined this narcissistic and self-serving attitude to a fine science.
In a recent USA Weekend supplement to the Democrat, an article in the “Who’s News” section made me nauseous. Listed in the “Who’s Hot in Hollywood” column, Joel Kinnaman was named as the super cool dude of the hour. Being ever so humble, he stated, “I think I’ve earned some of my dad’s courage and lust for adventure.” As it turns out, his dad was a Vietnam deserter who fled to Laos and eventually made it to Sweden where his son was born with dual citizenship, U.S. and Swedish. To me, his dad’s “courage” could best be described as being a cowardly traitor during time of war. He should have been extradited to the U.S., court martialed, stripped of citizenship, and executed by firing squad.
There was a time in our history when Hollywood pitched in to support our national interests. During World War II, countless stars of the silver screen volunteered and served with distinction — the list is lengthy. Why am I having such a hard time coming up with any TV or movie stars serving in Vietnam? Dennis Franz (NYPD Blue and Hill Street Blues) is the only one I can recall.
Americans, blessed with enormous rights and freedoms through sacrifice of others, have generously granted these liberties to others, irrespective of their entitlement. As a result, there are many in our midst who use these liberties to destroy us. We Americans must quickly come to the realization that much of the world does not share our convictions. As we continue to lose our own moral code, the contempt of our amoral behavior by other cultures will remain assured. Can we file Chapter 11 for immorality and start all over?
Larry M. Jones is a retired Navy Commander and aviator who raises cattle and hay in the Brock/Lazy Bend part of Parker County. Comments may be directed to nowhearthis@pwhome.com.
Viewpoints
COLUMN: Filing for moral bankruptcy
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NOTES FROM THE JOURNEY: Survivors are heroes, too
Recently, we attended the production of two one-act plays at Weatherford College, both under the excellent direction of Nancy McVean. The first, entitled simply “New York,” was set in a Manhattan psychiatrist’s office shortly after 9-11 as 10 different patients who had either been present at the Twin Towers or had lost loved ones in the disaster came seeking solace. Each survivor struggled with their own grief and internal conflict as the doctor listened and tried to help.
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TISIONE: We worship the triune God
Many Christians recently celebrated the feast of Pentecost, which is sometimes called Whitsunday. Pentecost as you may know was celebrated in the Old Testament. The Bible refers to it as the Feast of Weeks. It was ordained by God to be one of the three mandatory celebrations in Israel along with Passover and the Feast of Booths.
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Honor Flight Fort Worth – the trip of a lifetime
WOW! What an experience! I have done many things, been to many places, but I must say that the Honor Flight ranks right up there with the best of those occasions.
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Letters to the Editor – May 23, 2013
America is being destroyed by voter fraud and the buying of votes by the followers of Karl Marx.
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CNHI EDITORIAL: Seizure of AP phone records an insult to independent press
Distrust of government secrecy has been elevated to an exceptional level with the disclosure the Justice Department covertly examined two months of Associated Press phone records to determine who leaked details to the AP about a foiled terrorist plot.
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NOW HEAR THIS: ‘What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate’
This famous quote addressing communication failure is a classic line from the 1967 movie “Cool Hand Luke,” starring Paul Newman. Strother Martin, who played the role of the warden in a southern prison, would use this phrase every time he gave Luke a good whack with his baton. The concept resonated so well with moviegoers that it was voted No. 11 of the 100 all-time favorite movie quotes according to the American Film Institute.
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Letters to the Editor – May 19, 2013
Do you remember the “MISSION ACCOMPLISHED” sign that the personnel on the USS Abraham Lincoln displayed to greet President Bush when he went out to greet them?
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Guest opinion: Campaign with honor
All politics is local and personal! I hope that you and your family have a wonderful summer, filled with relationship building experiences and times of relaxation. As you do all the things that re-charge us for the next round at work and involvement in community and political activities, let’s reflect on the 2013 local elections for a moment.
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TISCIONE: Woe for calling evil good
You don’t often see “woe” used in an article. It’s a word that has fallen out of usage in our day. But it’s a word that ought to be understood and taken seriously.
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Letters to the Editor – May 17, 2013
As mercury pollution threatens our waterways and carbon pollution-fueled climate change worsens extreme weather, we need someone in Washington who knows how to get things done.
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