Recently we have seen a tremendous fall from grace. One of the most iconic American entertainers of my generation is involved in a scandal involving drugs and sex. The scandal is sensational because of the numerous allegations that drugs were given to women to take advantage of them sexually. The fall from grace was probably the most severe in recent history. Destroyed overnight were decades of good work, community service, and a reputation for decency and respect.
Unfortunately, Bill Cosby is not the first incredibly talented and successful individual to fall from grace because of his addiction to sex, drugs, or alcohol. Dozens of other extremely talented well-known personalities throughout history have literally risked and lost it all because of an inability to control their sexuality and the combination of sex and alcohol or drugs. One can go back all the way to King David who, because of his obsession with one of his officers’ wives, went so far as to have the man sent to the front lines to suffer certain death to secure for his own pleasures the man’s wife.
In our most recent history, we have had many notable and extremely talented major figures who have been involved in scandals involving sexuality. The list includes presidents like Clinton, Kennedy, Eisenhower, Harding, and others as well as entertainers and sports figures such as Gibson and Woods and even extremely principled military figures like General Petraeus. Some have even gone so far as to say that Americans enjoy watching the great fall. That may be true for some, but most Americans find such occasions tragic and sad. And what we find so tragic about it is that it is so common, so avoidable, and so unnecessary.
Several months ago, there was an online discussion about the use of the term “fire porn.” Fire porn is a commonly used term in the fire service to represent fireground footage that is compelling and has value often in training and education. The term also indicates that it is extremely alluring and enticing to firefighters because of its graphic nature. The loose association with the word “porn” is not in any way meant to be supportive or dismissive of pornography. It has been said that one man’s pornography is another man’s art, but leaving it at that, that would be disingenuous. Pornography may be art to some people, and it may not cause problems for everyone, but it does for some. For many, becoming involved with pornography has consequences-consequences for the participants, the consumers, and potentially the consumers’ family and friends.
Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying, “It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods or no god. It neither picks my pocket, nor breaks my leg.” Many have used this quote out of context or in part. It has been often interpreted to mean that Jefferson felt that regardless of what someone was doing, as long as it did not directly impact another he was fine with it. I don’t believe that was exactly what the good president meant. I believe Jefferson meant that activities that were consequential to the participant and that had no outside direct impact on others were acceptable. Therefore, one’s participation in viewing porn without taking any other activity into account according to that Jeffersonian interpretation would be without fault.
Recently, I received a letter from a retired fire chief. He explained that he had had a long and illustrious career. The chief had achieved much, had done a great deal of good, and was enjoying a wonderfully rewarding postretirement career. The chief had never engaged in any untoward act, nor had he in any way ever intentionally set about to injure anyone-most assuredly, not his family and friends.
The chief also explained that he had had a long-standing interest in viewing pornography. He explained in his letter that he also routinely drank while viewing the pornography and occasionally engaged in chat room discussions with other adults who likewise enjoyed viewing online pornography and sharing one another’s thoughts.
The chief was involved in viewing online pornography and became engaged at some point with law enforcement who were monitoring activity on various sites and who may have been gauging activity to discern whether involvement with underage participants was occurring. According to the chief’s letter, without his knowledge, a pornographic photograph of an underage individual came into his possession on his computer. While returning to the United States from a business trip, the chief was arrested and his computer was seized and used as evidence.
The letter I received was written from a federal penitentiary in Atlanta; the chief is serving a multiple-year sentence for possession of underage pornography. The chief let me know that he is not the only firefighter in this prison for pornography. Along with the chief, four or five other firefighters are serving their sentences, convicted of the same offense. The chief will serve out his sentence and then be released into society, where he must register for the rest of his life as a convicted sex offender.
The chief asked that I share his story; he asked that we be extremely vigilant in our activities. We should be forewarned that words matter, and referring to fire images that are compelling and of interest to us is fine, but associating them with pornography is dangerous. Addictions, alcohol, sexuality-all are often related to falls from grace. We thank the chief for his warning and willingness to share.
Sacred Obligation, Failure Is Unacceptable
The Heroic Dream
Transgressions and Forgiveness
