Have We Lost Our Virtue?

• Author: KREYCHE, GERALD F.
• Position: Brief Article

IN EARLIER TIMES, when a single woman had intercourse, she was referred to as "having lost her virtue." These were delicate matters, and euphemisms attempted to so portray them. Divorced women were called "grass widows," and society was told to watch out for these destroyers of social values.

Our times still try to hide behind legalisms and euphemisms, but what they cover up are more serious matters than ever. For an example of a legalism, one can refer to Pres. Clinton's affirmation, "I did not have sex with that woman!" Other legalisms that have become commonplace obfuscations are phrases such as "At this point in time, I cannot recall that incident." Shades of Watergate and Whitewater! More than likely in persons of high position and excellent memory, this is a plain, old-fashioned lie. It's time to call a spade a spade. Yet, to do so is to risk a libel suit, ironically based on defamation of character. People can't even be honest with themselves or the public when, after being caught in flagrante delicto, the most they will admit to is that their behavior was "inappropriate."

If inappropriate is too highfalutin a word for some such as heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson, who broke his parole, his lawyers could advise him simply to say, "I made a mistake." A mistake is a good description of an error such as saying two plus two are five. We all make these and they in no way reflect on our moral character. There's a big difference, though, between a simple mistake and a moral error. I fear we have lost our critical faculties to confuse one with the other. Or is it that we no longer care?

Perhaps the latter is the case, as argued in William Bennett's book, The Death of Outrage. We are totally blast about moral fault today. Who cares as long as we aren't directly affected? Rev. Henry Lyons, former head of the National Baptist Convention, embezzled and squandered about $4,000,000 and finally was sentenced to jail for his offenses. However, in the early stages of the criminal investigation, his peers told him he shouldn't resign his post as we all make mistakes.

The Federal government is now after Lyons to pay taxes on the money he took, which brings up an interesting observation. Since private morality has all but gone down the tube, the government is enforcing its own kind of public morality. One recalls that gangster Al Capone, who was responsible for all sorts of killings, finally was indicted and convicted not for murder, but for income tax...