In response to today’s misguided Supreme Court decision, the Executive Committee of the Constitution Party of West Virginia, in meeting duly assembled, has made the following revisions (as indicated below in bold text) to its platform position on “Community Decency.”
The US Supreme Court was wrong in 1857 in the Dred Scott Case. The same court was wrong in 1893 in Plessy v. Fergusson. And they were wrong in 1973 with Roe v. Wade. They are wrong today. Their word is not the last word, God’s Word is: “Because a sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.” – Ecclesiastes 8:11
Community Decency – revised
John Adams said “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” To which his cousin Sam added, “While the people are virtuous they cannot be subdued; but once they lose their virtue they will be ready to surrender their liberties to the first external or internal invader,” and “if we are universally vicious and debauched in our manners, though the form of our Constitution carries the face of the most exalted freedom, we shall in reality be the most abject slaves.” These sentiments echo those of over a century earlier when John Milton, in his classic novel, Paradise Lost, narrated man’s fall from Grace and subsequent need to be obedient to Gods laws of Holy Scripture. “So many and so various laws are giv’n; So many laws argue so many sins,” said Milton.
What, then, is public virtue? It is clear from the writings of our founders that they intended temperance within the bounds of natural law in the establishment of a republican form of government rather than a theocracy. The most promising method of securing a virtuous and morally stable people is to elect virtuous leaders. As such, the CPWVa maintains that the State and local governments have the right and legitimate authority to restrict and prohibit obscenity and obscene material in any format and local establishments in accordance with community standards of morality and decency. To wit, we specifically address community decency in the areas of pornography, homosexuality, and gambling.
Pornography and homosexuality are a distortion of the true nature of sex created by God for the procreative union between one man and one woman in the holy bonds of matrimony. They are destructive elements of society resulting in significant and real emotional, physical, spiritual and financial costs to individuals, families and communities. Until 1973, the American Psychiatric Association correctly regarded homosexuality as a mental disorder, and thus schools and the military have every right to prohibit persons with this condition from their ranks. The same is true for the gender confused. It is abominable that homosexual radicals, aided and abetted by the corporate media, promote this sinful behavior as normal and harmless through the perversion of our language by calling it “gay” and using the rainbow as their symbol. This is nothing more than deceptive trickery to corrupt the innocent.
We reject the notion that sodomites and sexual offenders are deserving of legal favor or special protection, and affirm the rights of states and localities to proscribe offensive sexual behavior. We oppose all efforts to impose a new sexual legal order through the federal court system. We stand against so-called “sexual orientation” and “hate crime” statutes that attempt to legitimize inappropriate sexual behavior and to stifle public resistance to its expression. We oppose government funding of “partner” benefits for unmarried individuals. We oppose any legal recognition of homosexual unions and seek to prohibit homosexuals from adopting children. Legal marriage is between one man and one woman.
While we fully respect the constitutionally protected right to privacy of consenting adults, all sexually suggestive material must be kept as far away and out of reach from children as possible. This includes the location of men’s clubs, library and store books, and the content of public airwaves. Likewise, while we fully respect the constitutionally protected right to freedom of speech, consideration must be given to undesired exposure to racy public advertising and offensive or suggestive attire and behavior. This includes the appearance of road signs, promiscuous clothing styles and slogans, vehicle decorations, profanity, graffiti, and general blight.
Gambling promotes an increase in crime, destruction of family values, and a decline in the moral fiber of our country. We are opposed to government sponsorship, involvement in, or promotion of gambling in the name of economic development or for any other purpose.