Alcohol in America

by Sarah F. Ward (Indiana)

Address given during Speakers Forum of the IAP National Conference, July 8, 2000, Salt Lake City, Utah.  Ms. Ward is President of the national Woman's Christian Temperance Union.

Thank you for the privilege to address you about shared concerns we have for the future of our nation. I firmly believe that a significant strength of our country lies in concerted efforts by organized citizens throughout the land. I believe we can make a difference!

And I'm indebted to Lee McKenzie [introducer] for making you aware of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union and for obtaining me this opportunity to speak with you. And I realize I'm a fish out of water, because we are non-partisan and the most political thing I ever did was run for the school board.

I think it maybe appropriate to say here -- I learned in those eight years in a little -- and I mean little -- school district and a little bit of money -- I saw graft and corruption that I wouldn't have believed was possible. And from that, I thought, well if that can go on here. I can't even fathom what goes on up.

The day after I was elected, on a campaign that we will save the old building and use our money for educational purposes, the man I defeated came to my house, sat on my couch, and said, "Won't you please reconsider and let us build that school?" And I said, "Bob, I gave my word throughout this community." And he said, "So What?"

The only way he ever got back in -- they kept appointing him when there was a vacancy, but he never ran against me again. Shoot. [laughter] Anyway, so much for him.

WCTU History

I want to briefly tell you a little bit about who we are, because, again, you are not too aware of us being around. In 1873 -- 127 years ago, no doubt after months and perhaps years of praying, women were aroused to action against the saloon and in protection of their homes. A Boston physician named Dr. Dio Lewis was speaking throughout the country. And he came to Fredonia, New York, then to Jamestown, New York; went on down to Hillsboro, Ohio and Washington court house in that same state.

And its really from Hillsboro that we get a very graphic picture of what happened. These women decided that they would march against the saloons. They met in the church and prayed. Men stayed -- and I've always been interested in just what this scenario means. The men stayed in the safety of the church and prayed -- which is important. And the women marched down the streets.

Yes, they had on their long skirts with their Bibles. And remember, at that time, no women went into a saloon. We wouldn't have that same effect today. But then no women went into saloons. And they marched to the first saloon, and they knocked on the door, and said, "We'd like to come in," Bibles in hand. And some of the saloon keepers were so embarrassed, they refused to let them come in. And so they knelt out in the streets in the snow, and prayed and read scripture and said "Won't you close?".

You know, there was no welfare. There was no way to take care of them. And they couldn't feed their families, because their husbands and their sons were drinking up their money. And so these saloon keepers were pricked in their hearts, and they did close.

A few of those saloon keepers were a little more brazen, and they said, "Yes, you can come in." And the women went in -- and I can't imagine what it must have been like for them to look around and see what they saw and smell what they smelled. They laid their Bibles on the bars, and they prayed again and read scriptures, and said "Won't you close?" And the saloon keepers closed.

And it was a wonderful time. This spread across what was then the United States. And city after city, as the word came, had the same kind of effect. And they closed, and they closed, and they closed. And there was a time of great help and wealth in a sense, because that money was there to buy the things they should be buying.

And then after a few months, the saloon keepers said, "Hmmm, out of money. Got to go back to work. That's the easiest way I know to make money." And they opened the saloons. And the women said, "Oh, no. They're at it again." And so they marched again. And they closed. And finally, in the Summer of 1874, a Shitock institution in New York, when they had their first time to train Sunday school teachers. Some of the women there talked about temperance, and they said we've got to get organized. That should sound familiar to you.

And so in Cleveland, in 1874, they organized. And we've been around ever since. I missed the first couple of years, I'll be very honest. [laughter] The "white bow" is our symbol. We are "Woman's [Christian Temperance Union]," and I know it usually comes out "Women's" -- and that's part of our problem, that we don't get that straight. But its each individual "woman" belongs.

WCTU Today

We have always stood for total abstinence and protection of the home. For us, any use is abuse. As early as 1876, we tallied off the dangers of tobacco. And as other drugs -- illegal drugs -- have come into vogue, we have been there to point out the dangers of them. We are a non-partisan and non-denominational group of Christian women. And certainly, we believe we would not still be here if it was not for our emphasis upon our Christianity. It is be God's might. We are simply his instruments.

As an organization, we embrace the entire family. We begin with pre-school children where the parents take the pledge that they will teach their children the value of total abstinence. And they tie the white bow. And they become White Women recruits. And then when the children enter school, we begin our more formal training through the Loyal Temperance Legion. And then in junior high and high school -- the Youth Temperance Council. And yes, we allow men to affiliate as honorary members. All sign that same pledge.

And, as I'm going to be saying in our national convention in a month -- It's a wonderful thing. We never come to a convention and start arguing "do we accept moderation?" or "how much drinking will we allow?" We come with that basis we are "total abstinence." Period. And we can spend all of our time and our energy in how we are going to try to get that message out. We believe in prevention. Its better to have a fence at the top of the cliff, than an ambulance at the bottom.

Let me mention our web site. Its a real hard one: www.wctu.org. And you'll find some of our history, some of the issues we're facing today, some of the membership requirements, and some things for children. So, take a look.

Alcohol and other drugs have always been our main focus and our rallying point. But because of our resolve to protect the home throughout the years, we have also given attention to other concerns. Presently, we are giving some focus to factors involved in gambling, pornography, and homosexuality. And its been such a -- you know, we do like to know that someone else is with us. And I have heard more rhetoric opposing homosexuality, since I've been here in the last day, than I've heard for an entire year. So, Hurrah. There is someone else out there. [applause]

And that's why its so important that we come together on these issues. Because none of us -- lets face it -- none of us want to be Elijah, and think were the only who hasn't bowed on our knees. But sometimes we think that. And we aren't. And that's a wonderful, wonderful thing.

Legislation Wish List

So let me get to my topic -- I really like the topic I was assigned: "The WCTU's Wish List of Legislation in America." Well, my secretary saw that and said, maybe you'd like to come out. And I thought, Mmm, doesn't that sound good. Because I usually ask people to give me a topic. Because if they don't, I say, Ahh, I don't know where to start or what to do. So I really liked this one, and I began to scratch little notes. And I thought, well I'll add this, and I'll put that in, and so on.

I am certainly aware of the cries for personal liberty. And I won't even mention those groups who are systematically trying to strip us of our freedoms. I wonder how far we will go before, finally we can yell, "Wait a minute. What about my liberty?" We all heard that saying, "Your liberty ends where my nose begins." But I think maybe we need to remind people again. I also realize that the Supreme Court is playing an ever-increasing role in determining what legislation can be enacted. But I hope to present some ideas for your consideration, and with a few asides, point out what I think can be rational for pursuing these goals.

First of all, alcohol and tobacco should be placed under the Food and Drug Administration. You are all aware of what its under? The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Now, alcohol has been called "firewater." I don't know how -- well I do know how those three got together. But, that's not where they belong. My good friends, alcohol is a drug. Period. It is a depressant. It is illegal for those under the age of 21.

Conference on Alcohol

I think you need to hear this. Casso, which is the center on addiction and substance abuse at Columbia University, sponsored a conference this last February at the Reagan Library. And I had the opportunity to go out, so I thought, Oh, boy, with all these preventionists and education, we are really going to get some good information.

And it wasn't long until the second day came, and here was this fancy little engraved invitation for each of us to the cocktail party. Now I didn't think, because I had been warned that these things happen. And I had never experienced this before, but it did happen. And here we were, as leaders across the country, from many different groups, who were supposedly here to find a solution to drug problem in this country. And we could no doubt do it better if we've had a couple of drinks, right? [laughter]

And so, out they came. So I came in to observe. I saw more drinking that evening than I had seen in my entire life. I don't come from a family that ever did drink. I'm not invited to parties, normally, where there is drinking. And so I went to observe. And I observed. White wine -- this is significant, I believe. They also had some water in glasses almost the same.

And I mentioned, I met a fellow from Utah, and I thought, Oh boy, a good chance he's going to be LDS and he's not going to be a drinker. And, lo and behold, the Lord must have brought us together in the lobby, and I said, "Oh, I've been wanting to meet you." So he became my protector. So he stood there completely aghast, and said, "I can't believe this, can you?" And I've said, "I've heard about it."

And so when they would come with the wine, he'd say, "She doesn't want any." He never gave me a chance to say "No," he'd say it for me. [laughter] And I smiled sweetly. And then they came with the water, and he turned to me and said, "You can have this, its water." And I said never mind. I have assured my people, that I wasn't taking any chances that anyone might mistake the water glass for a wine glass. And then report, "Oh, I know a WCT who is a drunk." I've never been shown one that did, and I don't believe that.

So, we then went in for the evening meal. And the wine continued to flow. And then a waiter made a mistake, and out he came with red wine. Immediately, a fellow in charge rushed over to him and said, "We are serving only white wine." And this is why it really hit me, the significance, in case you want people unsure of whether you're drinking water or drinking wine. The waiter said, "Oh, I'm sorry," and he rushed back to the kitchen to get some more white wine.

I wrote Joseph Califono who was in charge of that group, and I said, "I am appalled at what you did at your conference. You talked about alcohol. You had a vice president of Phillip Morris there, who of course owns Miller Beer. And Peter Coors from Coors Beer was there. And they were just so happy to be there, and be with us. And they got off with practically no questions or any problems. And then we served their product." And I said, "And what makes me even more angry is that my registration fee helped to pay for somebody else's wine that I don't believe in."

Someone asked if I heard from him. And I said, "Of course I haven't heard." And its been several months, and I won't hear. But, you know, this comes back to: We need to register our concerns and our convictions. We can't be concerned whether they answer. I don't know if he even saw it. But, I hope he did.

Labeling of Alcohol

Well, efforts have been made to give the FDA the control over these drugs. But you can imagine who has successfully blocked these efforts. But it is a winnable battle. And we need alcohol under Food and Drugs. So that we can get some better rulings on things. They will have the authority to do that.

We are concerned about the labeling on alcoholic beverages. And you may say, well nobody reads the labels anyway. Well, yes, sometimes they do. And then for a while people said, maybe we ought to get the labels off, because when it comes to tobacco, maybe that helps them to win the lawsuits. But that really hasn't turned out to be the case. And so we are asking for consistency -- and here's one of those asides from our government.

Can you remember back when they decided we would have to pull marciano cherries from the market? Some of you can remember that. Because, I think they finally determined if you had eaten a thousand bottles of marciano cherries for a hundred years. You might get something. [laughter] That's when I went through my personal liberty thing. It was about the same time that Johnny Carson said we were going to run out of toilet paper. And I got so aggravated that every time I went to the grocery, I bought a jar of cherries and I bought a big package of toilet paper. I threw the toilet paper in the closet and the marciano cherries on the door of the refrigerator.

And one day, I opened my refrigerator and looked. I didn't even use marciano cherries. And I had a whole drawer full of them. That was my personal liberty. I decided I'd have to have a party to get rid of them. I also opened the close door, and the toilet paper fell down on me. I decided I had enough of that for a while. But here we were -- these little tiny things that my just cause us a problem. What did the government do?, why they immediately pulled it off the shelf for our protection. And yet, what do we do with these substances that we know cause problems? We allow them to remain available for everyone.

Hearings were held this Spring in various locations throughout the country in answer to petitioners -- WCTU included -- who were seeking modifications in the labels to insure that they are more noticeable. You know, they are in fine print, and they put them in a color you can't read. More effective, and that the standards for the warning statement originally set out by Congress are followed. And this is the definition for an effective warning: "One that permits consumers to recall and consider its message spontaneously and consciously at the time a purchasing decision is made." That's a pretty good warning. So we are asking that government warning appear in larger letters at the beginning of the statement.

Alcohol Blood Levels

There is some good news. In May, the US Department of Agriculture and US Department of Health and Human Services released the latest dietary guidelines for Americans. And it contains a far more objective, comprehensive and specific summary of risks and benefits of consuming alcoholic beverages than was given in the 1995 version. So, some of those complaints along the way must have made some difference.

It catalogs the many and varied risks of drinking above the defined moderate standard. And identifies those who should not drink at all. And there is quite a list. And we, of course, would add the rest of the population. It also stated, that the potential benefit of modest consumption on coronary heart disease is essentially limited to older men and women.

For the first time, specific mention was made that alcohol increases the risk of breast cancer. A concern for women. The ninth report to Congress of the National Toxicology Program now lists alcoholic beverages as known human carcinogens. Didn't make the news, did it? You probably haven't heard it. But its there.

At this time, we are closer to achieving a uniform .08 blood-alcohol level in all 50 states, than ever before. The Senate passed a bill to take effect in 2004 -- I don't know why it takes so long -- that would prevent states from receiving Federal Transportation money if they have not complied the .08 blood-alcohol level. However, the House passed a weaker bill do the Transportation Conference Committee will meet when the legislators reconvene next week. The bill saves lives. It is estimated that 500 to 600 will be saved yearly if all states had a .08.

Now, if we can have a seat-belt requirement, then why can't we do something about alcohol? Nearly all driving-related skill shows an impairment of .07 with the exception of simple reaction time in critical moments. Studies have shown 73% of those tested showed impairment, and divided attention, and vigilance at .039. WCTU years ago talked about .05, and they used to laugh in our face. .08 is not good enough, but its a starting point. At least 24 countries have limits of .08 or lower. And yet, we're supposed to be leading the world.

Alcohol and Tobacco Advertising

Now, advertising. "Deadly Persuasion" is a book written by Jean Kilborn. I would recommend you get it. We are not realizing what's happening to us in advertising. The advertising world has become so subtle in their approach, that we are convinced we are not influenced by ads. And when we stand up and say, ads don't influence me. They have scored big time. They have encouraged us to substitute things for people.

You go home and look at some of those ads. "Their product will never let you down." "But people can't be trusted." Substituting things for people, mirrors the behavior of addicts. This dynamic is very evident in alcohol and tobacco advertising, where advertisers explicitly promote a relationship with an addictive substance. We need truth in advertisement. All alcohol advertising should be banned from television, just as tobacco has been.

A few years ago, there was a very strong effort that suggested, every time a beer commercial comes on, we should be able to run a little byline telling a health factor about alcohol. Could not get that accepted. Then we said, fine. For every time an advertisement appears, there should be an equal time given to a health warning about it. And you know why it hasn't passed, and the kind of money were up against. But we need to change this advertisement. And its not just, as they tell you: "Its just advertisement to get people to change to our product" or "advertising to get you as consumers." And they're advertising to teenagers for whom its illegal to use.

Sponsorships of sporting events by tobacco and alcohol companies should be curtailed. Can you see the irony in a race car driving around 150 miles an hour with the logo of a beer company on it. It happens in the 500 mile race. More is being spent on sponsorships than out-right ads these days. Both tobacco and alcohol products are being heavily advertised in magazines with large teen readerships -- despite the 1998 tobacco settlement.

Budweiser, or other Anheuser-Busch brews have appeared in 40 of the top 100 movies made in 1999. In addition to the 40 million adult viewers, do you supposed any under-aged teens saw these movies? And if you don't go to any more than I, it won't mean anything to you. But I'll give you the names. You may know someone who went. "Mission to Mars," "Big Daddy," "The General's Daughter," and "Message in a Bottle." All with beer ads. A survey of the 25 top-grossing movies from 1988 to 1997, showed 95% of them contained themes portraying tobacco use. Subtle messages.

By the way, in case any of you are concerned that the tobacco companies are about to go under because of all of these settlements, let me reassure you. Phillip Morris is worth about $80 billion. RJ Reynolds, $36 billion. And Brown and Williamson, $22 billion. This may help you get a better perspective of the battle we are raging. As starting points -- the hours when alcohol could be advertised on television -- could be restricted. And teen magazines should be prohibited from accepting ads for products not legal for that age group to use.

The tax on alcohol and tobacco products should be continually raised -- I've heard a lot about taxes [in an earlier speech] here -- but as long as we're still taxing, lets tax where it ought to be. The users should be paying their way. But they're not coming close. You surely realize all of the loss of productivity, and the hospitalizations, and the crime, and all that involves with law enforcement, and more jails, and court costs, and all of that that's related to alcohol.

If you go in and interview people who are in the penitentiary, a high percentage will tell you, "I was drinking. Alcohol was involved in the crime." Our medical costs, lost productivity, and in the case of alcohol consumption -- motor vehicle crashes and fatalities impose a heavy economic burden on our society. It has been shown that higher taxes curtail use as well as force consumers to bear more of the costs.

Alcohol and Tobacco Taxes

Now here's an interesting little survey that has been done: Tobacco taxes have been rising, which has resulted in a 57% increase in the retail cost of cigarettes since 1996. On the other hand, with inflation-adjusted costs, a six-pack of beer has been falling since 1991. And when they got that one raise at the beginning of the 1990s on beer -- it was the first time it had been taxed for years. And immediately, people started saying we've got to lower it.

A representative -- I'll tell you one other thing that happened to me in Indiana -- he's now running for governor on the Republican Party -- and I'm a long-term Republican, and I've been announcing to the WCTU and to anyone else who would listen, "I am not voting for that man." Course I've also learned -- I guess I'm not voting for governor -- because as you know the Constitution Party couldn't get on in Indiana, and I don't have choices.

Anyway, this fellow -- this representative, bright fellow who is a prot‚g‚ of Dan Quayle (Yes I come from Quayle country -- we used to spell tomato with an "e" on it -- so the poor guy. That's our educational system. [laughter]) Anyway, I guess you haven't heard all the Quayle jokes, but I won't burden you with them.)

Anyway, this fellow was signed on with other representatives to reduce the beer tax, after we finally got it raised. And I wrote him. In my first paragraph I said, "You are not my representative. I'm in the next county. However, I would like to point out a few things." He sent this letter back to me and said, "I'm not your representative." He can't even read. I already knew he wasn't. [laughter] And then he gave me all of this gobble-de-gook. I was so disgusted, I wrote him again. And I got some more gobble-de-gook. And so ever since, I've campaigned against him. So now I've got a real chance as he's decided to come home and run for governor. I don't think he's going to make it.

Results from a recent study by two economists have caused them to suggest that beer and cigarettes are complimentary goods. While higher beer prices tend to reduce beer drinking and the number of smokers. Higher cigarette prices seem to induce greater beer consumption. Now the speculation is that higher beer prices stop people from going to places like bars where they can also smoke. But, on the other hand, smokers who are trying to give up smoking, may turn to other substances like alcohol to lessen their withdrawal. The lesson is: We should be raising the tax on each of the products.

An example of local efforts that can expand is what's happening in California. They start in with the smoke-free restaurants. I was out there a few years ago, and they put out leaflets for their various communities, all of these restaurants that were completely smoke-free. And that is growing fast. California has done a wonderful job. When they raised the tax on tobacco, they actually put it into education. And they had these wonderful billboards out there -- all kinds of really eye-catching billboards. And then they had a governor come along, and he decided that was a lot of good money, and he started putting it somewhere else. But I think they are starting to get it back.

Role Models

Let me mention just very briefly about the war on drugs. It is not a war -- it never was a war -- you couldn't win a war with the half-hearted effort that has gone into this so-called war on drugs. What we need to learn in this country is: we don't have a quick fix for anything. And you know that. You've already said you're in for the long haul. And its a long haul.

There is a continual life-time effort of teaching prevention and of being role models to get the job done that we're concerned with alcohol and illegal drug use. I've also said, if we were really serious in this country about drugs, we could stop it if adults would bite the bullet. If adults would stop using drugs. And yes, alcohol is a drug, and tobacco is a drug. If adults would stop, we would see a tremendous change. Where do young people get their first drinks? Out of the refrigerator. Where do they get their role models and their examples? Their parents. And don't tell us that role models don't make a difference. And that's something that sets the WCTU apart, we practice what we preach. And there are very few other temperance groups today that can say that. Just as tobacco groups cannot say that.

Marijuana

Now I have one that may surprise you. We need to have some objective, scientific research about marijuana. To even consider legalizing another inherently destructive drug is mind-boggling. Let me give you a few facts. Marinol is a synthetic THC -- and THC is the active principle in marijuana. Marinol has been on the market by prescription since the 1980s. And it can be used now to treat those rare patients who do not respond to more-effective medicine.

Neither the AMA nor any other recognized medical profession in this country has gone on record that smoked marijuana is a useful medicine. Yes, there's a doctor here and a doctor there -- and they're cashing in on marijuana and hoping to make money too. They will tell you its needed for something. But no-one in authority , no-one that is recognized, is going to tell you that. For glaucoma, for all kinds of other problems they have, there are other medicines -- plural -- that are more effective.

The effect of long-term use of today's marijuana -- its not the pot that Viet Nam soldiers came back smoking -- it is about 15% now; it used to be 2 or 3% of THC. And these are what's going to happen to people who continue to use today's pot. Loss of short-term memory. You know why our kids can't learn in school? You teach them today, and they've already forgotten it tomorrow. And you teach it tomorrow, and they've forgotten it the next day. And they don't retain it, because their short-term memory is affected. And if your short-term memory doesn't work, it never kicks in the long-term memory. That's one of our problems in education.

A motivational syndrome -- they lose all their ambition. There's no interest in doing anything. The immune system becomes less effective in fighting off infections. So we want to give marijuana to our AIDs patients? Maybe it is benevolent, because it will probably kill them a little sooner because they are already dying because their immune system isn't working. We can make it even less effective.

Infertility, in both males and females, can be the result of using pot. Impaired driving skills. Some recent tests done in California showed that drivers under the influence of marijuana were more impaired than drivers under the influence of alcohol. The smoke screen being raised by the pro-marijuana crowd is the idea that we should grow hemp again. Hemp was a big product before World War II. We still have some little seeds of it coming up in Iowa and Indiana along the roadside. But they are telling us that we need hemp production based on three myths -- you need to be aware of these: (1) economically sound -- good for our economy, (2) environmentally friendly -- even Mister Gore would like it, and (3) cannot be diverted to pot.

The facts are: Hemp cannot compete with paper products, the clothing industry or fuel. It won't work. It is not economically sound. It is not good for the soil. It takes out, and does not put anything back into the soil. But the clincher is, that to the naked eye, you cannot tell if the plant is high THC marijuana or is hemp. It certainly can be diverted. So if they can convince us that it should be legal to grow hemp, they will go into these fields; they will plant a few hemp plants on the border; and they will load it with their high-THC marijuana.

And the only way the police could do anything about it would be to remove each plant and take it into the lab to test it. And then come back with the ones that are hemp. So be alert to what's going on. The Agriculture Department of the University of Kentucky in Louisville -- now remember this is a tobacco state, they need to find some other product to be raised -- they have conducted two studies about the viability of hemp, and they've come to the same conclusion both times: it is not going to work.

Other Vices

Gambling. Not an issue in Utah. Congratulations. But stay alert. You know, that's where they're looking. They want to get it everyplace. And it certainly is a vice that's impacting our country in numerous negative ways. Let me just mention a few. Legalized gambling causes adverse social and economic effects. It is a regressive form a taxation, making the poorer even poorer. Gambling has a corruptive influence on local and state governments. The number of problem and pathological gamblers has been steadily rising, including a high addiction rate among teenagers.

Costs associated with gambling, regulation, law enforcement, social, economic, environmental -- far exceed the revenue that is raised. Crime increases as a result of gambling. Small businesses suffer because of income lost to the gambling establishment. Any government that seeks to finance its programs through exploitation of its citizens is an immoral government. We have not really mentioned the suffering of families, the destruction of homes, and the ruin of individual lives brought on by gambling. Gamblers Anonymous and gambling addictive treatment centers are mushrooming in our population.

Homosexual agenda is a concern for those who believe in the admonitions contained in the Bible. God clearly calls homosexuality -- sin. That's a lost word in our vocabulary. This past April, the WCTU launched the first "Truth Without Interruption Day." Now its so clever, we've been having trouble getting people to catch on. The first Wednesday of April, many college campuses across this country -- students who are homosexual designated the day, and they've been doing this for several years -- first Wednesday in April. And they refuse to speak between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM. And they are trying to get across the message: look at the contribution you will lose if you don't treat us right. And, so our public relations director said what a great opportunity. A whole day speak to the truth, in love, about homosexuality -- and we can't be interrupted. Its a wonderful opportunity that we have. And it is to be in love, but with the facts. And that's what they need.

Pornography. I know there is extensive material on your web page. I know I'm out of time, and I'm going to finish this. We are indebted to the American Family Association. The LDS Church has also been working with the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families. And I see also you are connected with one of the anti-gambling groups too, and I'm happy to hear that. Material which is illegal to possess refers to child pornography. Material which is illegal is distribute is a lot of hard-core pornography. But at least it stays with the adults. And material that is illegal to distribute to minors.

One of our national projects for the WCTU in this upcoming year is going to be asking public and school libraries to provide children's software to block selected sites. If you go in and talk about selected sites, this is not a freedom-of-speech issues, but its these sites that have the pornographic material -- and we would like to get it off all the Internet stations where minors have accessibility.

Children do not have a Constitutional right to access and view Internet pornography in our local libraries. And our libraries are public, and we are the public. So we need to get busy. The ALA, American Library Association, does not have any legal authority over libraries. But that's what you will be told the very first thing. "Oh, the ALA said we can't do this. The ALA." They are involved with training librarians; and they have power in the job market. But the libraries belong to the local citizens. And the ALA does not have any authority. We need to take back our libraries.

In conclusion -- wonderful words to hear when someone's speaking [laughter] -- is this food for thought item: In a newspaper commentary recently, George Will suggested we should be talking about "virtue" rather than the popular buzz word "value." Since I've arrived here, I've been given a copy of the book "Standing for Something" by your [LDS Church] President Hinckley. And would you know, right on the cover, it says "Ten Neglected Virtues." So, Hurrah. Here's the difference, its made in the news, but I think you can do something with it. Everyone has values -- including Adolph Hitler. He had a whole bunch of values.

In this broad-minded, non-judgmental, and seemingly godless age, which we find ourselves: Just choose your values and be on your way. Values reflect beliefs and attitudes, but values are relative, and there are no absolute standards. On the other hand, virtue represents moral excellence, worth, sexual purity, and the practice of duty. Our young people and our adults need to be turned toward what is elevating. They need to be pointed to heroics in thoughts and action, in politics and literature, in science and in faith. In contrast to the values cafeteria being offered in many educational circles today. It is the study of virtue that makes a nation excellent.

To reclaim the greatness of our nation, we need to follow a truth recognized by George Washington: "The favorable smile of heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which heaven itself has ordained." [applause].