Don Tate's letter "Opposing X-Mart makes little sense" (Aug. 9) suggests that because you can find pornography on the Internet, we should openly accept pornographic stores in our community.

Sex is combustive and powerful but needs boundaries. All real men struggle with sexual temptation. Augusta allowing an X-Mart would speak acceptance of smut to our youth. The teen years are difficult enough without adults demanding that smut stores be accepted. Teens have enough pressure. Get off their backs.

The recent fall of a prominent politician over an affair suggests that moral standards continue to be an important measure of trust in the United States. What happens when your own daughter finally gets a career break only to have someone bring forward a video of her college depravity? She will be labeled untrustworthy and her dreams will be destroyed.

The Bible is trying to keep our children and us from hurting ourselves. As a physician, I get to see the results of genital sexuality without responsibility: the look of horror that genital warts aren't easily treated; the cervical warts causing misery and sometimes cancer; the positive HIV test that burdens both the person and the society. I get to deal with the depression, the destroyed marriages and the suicide attempts after abortion. Do you have any idea how badly genital herpes hurts?

I'm hardly a prude, but there is no satisfying relationship with pixels.

As a prominent Atlanta pastor has written: "Forget the social club. This is war!" It is time for Augusta's spiritual leaders to plan mass marches against X-Mart's existence. The Lion of Judah is our leader, not the man who would sell his city for a few silver coins.