According to Christopher Goodwin, reporting for The Sunday Times from Los Angeles: "America has become addicted to porn. Encouraged by the liberal atmosphere of the Clinton era, adult entertainment has grown into a $10 billion-a-year business. As much as $4.2 billion is generated by videos alone . . . Americans spend more on hard-core porn, telephone sex and strip clubs than they do at the [regular] cinemas."

In a separate report for The Independent on Sunday, John Carlin writes about "a revolution under way in America . . . It's about the birds and the bees. Reading the newspapers these days, watching TV, listening in on conversations in bars, in lifts [elevators], what you get is a steady diet of sex, sex and more sex."

At the same time, some surveys show that nearly 80 percent of Americans still believe adultery is always wrong. Apparently many citizens in this land of liberty and opportunity still believe in biblical standards.

Still, there is no denying that marketing illicit sex is a growth industry. So what we are seeing is an approaching civil war in values. There can be no compromise between these two basic ways of life. Obedience to the Seventh Commandment makes true happiness possible in our families; disobedience leads to suffering and misery.

The United Church of God has published a booklet, The Ten Commandments, that explains why adultery and other forms of illicit sex are always wrong. Be sure to request your free copy. (Sources: The Sunday Times [London], The Independent on Sunday [London], The Washington Times.)