GET HIGH ON LIFE

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, January 26, 2000

Harold Keller / L’Observateur / January 26, 2000

Mike Longman, an investigative reporter with WVUE-TV, was arrested last week and booked with alleged sexual activity and cocaine use with a juvenile, age 15. The young boy was a resident of a local group home forabused teen-agers. He related the relationship with Longman to a socialworker during a therapy session.

As required by law, the incident was reported to the police. According toreports, before the arrest was made, the police raided Longman’s home and seized 22 videotapes showing males engaged in sexual activity. The reportalso said 50 teens are shown on the tapes having sex with each other and, allegedly, Longman. On several of the tapes, Longman was allegedly shownusing cocaine in conjunction with the sex act.

Most people will agree this is very sick behavior, to say the least. To thesex pervert, however, this is normal behavior.

Let’s look at Longman’s statement, described as brief and subdued, made in his attorney’s office before he turned himself in, and I quote: “I can tell you that I’ve never knowingly harmed or hurt anyone. And I’m going totrust in the process, and I think it will work its course.”I realize a person is innocent until proven guilty, but I couldn’t serve on the jury that would try Mike Longman. Why? If all of the police reports areaccurate, Mike Longman’s guilty. Longman said he will plead not guilty, butadmits he has an alcohol problem (no mention of cocaine). He also says nomatter what happens in the legal process, he wants to enter a treatment center and start working on his life. If he’s not guilty, why does he have towork on his life? If he is guilty, as I believe, and goes to a treatment center, he’ll hear what he wants to hear. He will be told that alcoholism is a disease. What willthat mean to a pervert? He’ll think it’s not his fault and he has a sickness.

I agree he has a sickness. It’s a spiritual sickness that’s called sin. Ofcourse, we don’t hear much of sin these days. In fact, society will make usbelieve that all sin is either a disease, or blame it on our upbringing, or genes.

Last Saturday, I was discussing Mike Longman’s arrest and charges with a few men at breakfast. Most of them have children. I warned them of astatistic I heard 10 years ago that one out of four girls and one out of five boys would be sexually abused before the age of 12. Some of them seemedsurprised and maybe even unwilling to accept this statistic.

Years ago, former President Reagan’s commission on sexual abuse of children reported an average sex offender will abuse 267 children before he is caught. If Longman has 50 kids on tape, he most probably is aboveaverage. Chances are that all of the young boys Longman allegedly abusedwere strangers.

Parents must be on guard and protect their children from all impurities.

Keep in mind, contrary to Mike Longman’s case, most sexual abuse of children is not committed by a stranger, but by family members, friends, coaches, teachers, spiritual leaders, or people that we know.

Some perverts will actually think that Longman’s actions were good therapy. I believe what Jesus says about an adult that would harm a youngperson. He says it would be better for a millstone to be tied around thatperson’s neck and thrown into the sea.

Sounds rough! Keep in mind that Jesus said it, not me.

HAROLD KELLER is affiliated with the Get High on Life religious motivational group.

Copyright © 1998, Wick Communications, Inc.

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