When it comes to sex and relationships, there is a general perception that Britain and America have got it right. While they have their issues, these nations are thought to be progressive and sophisticated, the cultural leaders in possession of the keys to sexual and familial freedom and happiness.

This is really quite astounding. Especially when you consider the pile of evidence showing that endemic in both nations is a deeply flawed, catastrophically self-destructive view of sex and family.

Right now the top news stories in both America and Britain revolve around high-profile sex scandals. That makes this an opportune time to investigate the question: Is our cultural view of sex and family correct?

First, some history. The origins of the current view of sex and relationships lie in post-war America, particularly the 1960s sexual revolution. Herbert Armstrong was on the scene during this time and evaluated the emergence of this “new morality.” This term describes the liberal, permissive, boundary-less approach to sex and marriage that was taking off in the ’60s and that underpins British and American culture today.

Right from the start of the sexual revolution, Mr. Armstrong warned that the “new morality”—which, he said, had already “completely ko’d Western civilization”—would ultimately have catastrophic consequences for America and Britain. His warning over the years was consistent: The new morality will destroy America and Britain!

Five decades have passed since Mr. Armstrong’s exposé of the “new morality.” The “new morality” has had 50 years to mature, to produce fruit, and to make good on its promise to lead the world to a better place. And advance it has. Today the “new morality” has moved way beyond demolishing prejudices against promiscuity, infidelity and divorce. Culturally, we’ve come to accept and even embrace virtually every form of sex, homosexuality, bisexuality, transgenderism and even same-sex “marriage.”

The shackles of tradition—sex only in marriage, monogamy, homosexuality is wrong—have been shed. America just elected its first lesbian senator. It already has multiple homosexual congressmen. And last week, for the first time ever, voters approved homosexual “marriage” at the ballot box.

Point is, both nations, for decades now, have embraced—boldly, proudly, wholeheartedly—the new morality.

So, what are the results? Has our embrace of this new liberal view of sex made us, made you—made our marriages, our families, our children, our societies, our governments—healthier, happier, stronger, more stable?

Here in Britain, the top news story for weeks now has revolved around grotesque sex scandals. First came the news that Jimmy Savile, a popular television personality, had been sexually abusing children for decades. Now dead, Saville had as many as 300 victims. The scandal has since engulfed the bbc after it emerged that a report exposing Saville had been buried. Since the story broke and investigations initiated, other high-profile figures have been arrested, suggesting the possible existence of a network of high-profile child abusers.

In addition to the Saville affair, the news over here has been dominated by reports of sexual abuse in nursing homes, in orphanages, in schools. The scandals are consuming the attention of the highest leaders in government. Last week, Prime Minister Cameron was presented on national television with a list of alleged high-profile child abusers and then asked if he was going to chase them down! I’ve been here for two weeks, and every time I’ve turned on the news radio there has been a discussion or announcement about some act of sexual abuse, and often the sexual abuse of children. It’s putrid, putrid stuff.

And it’s everywhere!

Meanwhile, the top story coming out of America over the past week has been an embarrassing and toxic sex scandal involving one of the nation’s top military generals, high-ranking government leaders and critical government agencies. The scandal is taking up the time and attention of America’s president, who, I’m sure we’d all agree, has more than enough other crises to address. There’s also the reports about secret service agents and U.S. congressmen partying with prostitutes.

What is going on? The world is crumbling around us, and America and Britain are consumed with crises precipitated by sexual impropriety!

More importantly, there is a larger lesson in all this that we just aren’t getting. Think about it. The essence of each of these crises is individuals’ rejection of traditional morality and selfishly pursuing personal gratification.

In other words, these crises are the result of men and women living the new morality.

While it’s true that sex scandals have long been a feature of politics, such incidents are more common and pervasive today. Moreover, we have not witnessed the level of cultural acceptance of these acts that we see today. Take the uproar surrounding General Petraeus’s incident. While the political angles of this story are significant, and need to be reported on, so is the act of adultery. Yet, who is condemning this man for his adulterous affair? Very few, because the negative stigma once attached to adultery no longer exists!

That’s the most tragic part of all this: Amid all the debate and politicking, both in America and Britain, have you heard anyone stop and consider that these incidents are the product of a nation with a perverted and wrong view of sex and family? How many have considered what is going on morally and culturally in America and Britain to create the conditions in which these horrible incidents occurred?

We haven’t even explored all the other national crises caused by the “new morality”: the hundreds of thousands of unwanted pregnancies, the staggering abortion rates, the millions of fatherless children and single mothers, the epidemics of sexually transmitted diseases, the pervasive child abuse, the divorce rate, the drug use among children and teens. Consider also, that each of these problems cause other problems, like crime, gangs, violence, depression, unemployment and welfare dependency.

These are the fruits of our cultural embrace of the new morality.

It’s not that people don’t see some of these problems. In fact, many sincere, well-meaning people are working hard (and spending a lot of money) trying to solve many of them. Our nations have all sorts of working groups, government programs, education programs, entitlement programs. But they don’t work—they’re not preventing sex scandals; they’re not stemming the rise of single mothers and fatherless children; nor are they preventing unwanted pregnancies and stds.

Here we are, gripped by sex scandals as our economies crumble and as the world turns against us. We are totally incapable of solving these problems. Why?

Because despite the mountain of evidence, America and Britain have yet to admit that their fundamental view of sex and family is wrong!

It’s astounding, really, the way the failure of the “new morality” parades before us daily, and we just don’t see it.