The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, January 18, 1995 “5 S— yi Ld - - MM john W. Johnson ii , SEX—SEX—SeX—SeX—SeX "Got your attention, right? “And that was done as a lead-in 1 saying that censorship has no ‘place in a free society. “Let me repeat that for those of : ' you who were busy writing your ' “checks to the likes of Jerry Falwell ior Pat Robertson...you, and our ‘elected officials have no right to “tell me, or anyone else, what we can read, hear or see. ‘Seems simple enough, doesn't "it? Yet every so often, a horrific and extreme example comes along - to test that most basic premise |, guaranteed by the First Amend- ment. +,-| Justsuch an example was “The Perfect Moment,” a photographic _.exhibit by Robert Mapplethorpe, which toured the U.S. in the early . 90's. And it's not bad enough that ‘Mapplethorpe was an aggressive homosexual who died of AIDS several years before the tour of his work, but what he chose to photo- graphi is offensive to almost every- one, i.e., a crucifix in a urinal. Finished with your check writ- [ing yet? Probably so because I i can almost hear some of you saying: ++; “I'm sick of hearing that the i First Amendment should be used ‘to protect every perversion in our saclety. And the reason it was . written was to protect political _ speech, not protect every Adam % ‘and Steve who comes along and ‘wants to photograph his lover's (Loinals And I'm sure that our refathers are turning over in "their graves knowing how the First Amendment was being twisted.” * + Do you mean the same found- “iihg fathers, many of whom were ‘avowed atheists; at best, Thomas , «Jefferson was agnostic? er { D 3 ) Is censorship necessary? that nearly all of us find Mapple- thorpe’s photography offensive. But should he be permitted to take the photographs? And should they then be permitted to be dis- played? And what would happen if someone wanted to hold such an exhibit right here in, say, Luzerne County? The Borough of Honesdale in Wayne County dealt with thatvery question in 1984 with passage of Borough Ordinance Number 486. It was then that newly ap- pointed Councilman James LaPoint asked his new colleagues what could be done about the prohibition and/or control of adult book stores in the borough. Borough solicitor Alfred Howell explained that the subject had surfaced in March, 1982, follow- ing an appeal by then Wayne County District Attorney Nick Barna. Barna had expressed his concern that local government should provide some sort of regu- latory framework before adult bookstores or similar operations attempted making in-roads in Wayne County. Solicitor Howell advised that precedent law and U.S. Supreme Court guidelines say banning such operations and materials is un- constitutional. Howell further advised that the court has said a community can define what it believes to be pornographic and then regulate the sale or distribu- tion of such material, but that a community cannot prohibit such material. Council looked at proposed ordinances in 1982, but took no action. with LaPoint’s raising of the issue again in 1984, Council reviewed updated ordinances and finally adopted Ordinance 486. That ordinance defines pornogra- phy, addresses adult book stores and also deals with massage par- lors and art studios. Ironically, the discussion then was that the required legal publi- cation of the proposed ordinance could possibly itself be construed as a distribution of pornography because the ordinance had to be explicit for it to be enforced. Reading the ordinance this Geisinger Foundation names Henry to board § It goes without saying (I hope) & The Celine Foundation Board of Directors has elected Back Mountain resident Frank ‘M, Henry as its chairman. ‘ Henry is president of Frank Martz Coach Co. in Wilkes-Barre and is chairman of the board of Gray Line Worldwide, and direc- tor and past chairman of the boards of American Bus Associa- | tion and Trailways National Bus System. He is director of First Fidelity Bancorporation and C-TEC Corp., and is a trustee and past chair- man of the boards of Wilkes Uni- versity and Wyoming Seminary. The Henrys were the principal supporters of the Frank and Dorothea Henry Cancer Center at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medi- cal Center, which opened in 1992. Henry succeeds Sigfried Weis as chairman of the Geisinger Board. week, I can assure you that it is, indeed, explicit. And even to dis- cuss this subject, one had toapply a value judgement. Many Americans would agree that pornography is bad. The disagreement comes about in defining what exactly is porno- graphic. And how does defining something as pornographic be- come reconciled with First Amend- ment guarantees? The Supreme Court has sought to do so by saying that while you might disagree with the contents of a book, play, movie, or photo- graphic exhibit, and might find the contents of same to be offen- sive, immoral or whatever, the U.S. Constititution does not give you, as a citizen, or a borough council as a group of elected rep- resentatives, the right to decide the beliefs and habits of others. Lete me put it another way for the check writers: Would an atheist be wrong in seeking to prohibit Christian bookstores, stores that the athe- ist would find offensive? The atheist would say no. The Christian would say yes. The constitution says both have a right to their beliefs and that laws exist to provide for a peaceful coexistence. This constitutional tenet is of paramount importance. It is, in fact, the basic tenet upon which our forefathers founded this na- tion; the tenet upheld by the Supreme Court, and the tenet correctly noted in 1984 by solici- tor Howell. What does all this have to do with Mapplethorpe? It is through the protection of his kind of idiocy that any kind of sanity prevails. We, in fact, define, cherish and promote the middle by protecting - the extremes. There is a legitimate argument about whether or not public monies should be used to finance persons such as Mapplethorpe. And the answer to that question should be a very firm, “no!” But in protecting Mapple- thorpe's vision, however perverted it might be, we are preserving for ourselves the right to be wrong; indeed, theright tobe heard atall. FRANK M. HENRY | hae, Use the coupon on page 2 to subscribe A nice holiday surprise Mr. and Mrs. Edwin L. Smith Jr., who moved in August to Davenport Street in Dallas Township, recieved a surprise Christmas visit from Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus. Santa and his wife arrived while the Smiths were entertaining their daughter and son-in-law Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Mengering- hausen and their two children, Gretchen and Egan. The Smith's granddaughter, Gretchen greets the Clauses (Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Denmon), neighbors of the Smiths. Help available for glasses, eye exams Low income workers who need eye care but can't afford it may be eligible for a free eye examination and eyewear through VISION USA: The Pennsylvania Project, a na- tional charity eye care program, sponsored in Pennsylvania by the Pennsylvania Vision Conservation Institute and the Pennsylvania Optometric Association. Participating doctors of optome- try will donate their services to help those in need during Save Your Vision Week in March. The program provides basic eye health and vision care services, without charge to working indi- viduals and their families who meet the following VISION USA criteria: have a job or live in a house- hold where there is one working member; » are ineligible to receive Medi- cal Assistance Benefits; have no health insurance which covers eye care; : e have had no eye An within the past two years; and e have an income below an established level based on house- hold size. : Those who think they might qualify should contact their local chapter of the Salvation Army or local member agency of the Asso- ciaton for the Blind between Janu- ary 2 and February 10, to com- plete the eligibility screening poe ess. Qualified applicants will receive comprehensive eye examinations in the optometrists; offices March 6-11, during Save Your Vision Week. Library news Children's Story Hours still have openings By NANCY KOZEMCHAK The Back Mountain Memorial Library held registration for story hours from January 9 through the 14th. The Toddler Story time for 2 year olds will be held on Tuesday from 10:30 to 11 and a second hour from 11 to 11:30. Two year old story hours will begin January 31 and conclude on April 4. There are still some openings available for the toddler hours. The three to five year old story hours will be held Wednesdays from 9:30 to 10:30 and the sec- ond hour from 10:45 to 11:45. These will begin on February 1 and conclude April 5. The three to five year olds are almost full, but children can be put on a waiting list. Story hours take place in the children’s room at the library. Many of the library patrons are asking for large print books and the Dallas Lions Club has been giving the library $500 each year strictly for large prints. We are pleased to announce that another organization of the Back Moun- tain has contributed $500 for the purchase of large print books. Our patrons will be pleased with these additional books. New books at the library: “The Paperboy” by Pete Dexter is the story of Ward James, a reclusive, obsessed young reporter, half ofa famous investigtive team in Mi- ami, the son of a newspaper fam- ily... His younger. brother, Jack, expelled from the University of Florida's swimming team and then from the university itself, drives a delivery truck for their father's paper in northern Florida. The story is terrifying and graphically precise. “Eyes of a Child” by Richard North Paterson is a multifaceted story; about the often shocking complexities of family life, the undeniable psychological heritage of an individual's past, and about the volatile legal and emotional atmosphere of the courtroom. It is a story that pierces the public drama of a sensational murder trial to probe the inner lives of the men and women at its heart. This is a novel of extraordinary fasci- nation and suspense. “Kiss the Girls” by James Pat- terson begins when a brilliant medical intern named Kate McTi- ernandisappears in a picturesque college town. A Los Angeles Times investigative reporter is murdered in her home. Two chillingly clever “killers are operatin g—maybe even cooperating. One calls himself Casanova. He collects women off college campuses. The other, the Gentleman Caller, is terrorizing with unspeakable, unpredictable murders. *Self Defense” by Jonathan Kellerman is a merge of the sei- ence of psychology and the art of fiction which creates a gripping suspense that penetrates to the heart of evil. The detective awak- ens to a grim awareness: some- times a dream is just a dream. 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After completing his general surgical internship and residency at Cornell Medical Center of The New York Hospital, Dr. Paull served for five years at University of North Carolina Memorial Hospital, where he was the recipient of several Fellowships, including a Visiting Fellowship at the Brompton Hospital and Cardiothoracic Institute He later served as Chief, Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, at Keesler Air Force Base Medical Center, and most recently maintained a private practice in Massachusetts. Dr. Paull is a widely published author whose articles have appeared in such journals as American Surgeon, Annals of Thoracic Surgery and Current Surgery. He is board-certified by the National Board of Medical Examiners, the American College of Surgeons and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, and is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor New patients may make appointments by An affiliate of WyoMING VALLEY HEALTH CARE SYSTEM Surgical Special of Wyoming Valley Peter L. 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Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers