LogFAQs > #891705808

Revelation34 posted...

adjl posted...

Zeus posted...

Again, not what a pedophile is.

Colloquially, it is. "Ephebophilia" is only ever used by people who are trying to avoid having to believe that somebody they like is a pedo, and cling to even the most pedantic alternative they can find to that. "Pedophilia" is broadly used as a blanket term for attraction to minors.

Except it's flat out wrong to use it as a blanket term like that.

Do you have a better option for a blanket term? "Creepy weirdo that sleeps with minors" is a concept that does come up often enough that it could stand to have a convenient single term. "Pedophile" being the best-known term that falls under that umbrella, it's pretty understandable that it's been adopted for that broader purpose. If you've got a better option, by all means, present it and start promoting it, but until then, you should probably accept how the vernacular language is evolving.

Zeus posted...

And if you think that the difference between a 5 y/o and a 16 y/o is merely "pedantic" then there's something very wrong with you.

Is that not how the distinction is used? "This guy's a pedophile! What a creep!" "Technically it's ephebophilia if the victim's a teenager, and I'm going to hope that nitpicking about this is enough to deflect from the fact that I'm not commenting on whether or not the dude's a creep." There are certainly differences, which are reflected in that statutory rape and child rape are distinct charges, but those who use the word "ephebophilia" generally aren't as interested in that distinction as they are in trying to use a label that has no vernacular negative connotations (because nobody else ever uses it).

Let's demonstrate: Should the allegations against him prove true, would you consider Roy Moore to be a creep?
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