Last Post: 3:55:27am, 07/21/2007
You know, this topic makes me think.
In
our society, there's no question that pedophilia is disgusting and
harmful to the child... but perhaps, in some way, that's because it's
considered so.
Er, let me try and explain where I'm coming from.
There's
a tribe in Africa whose name is eluding me at the moment but I'm pretty
sure starts with "Ma." Their custom is such that in their culture, a
boy cannot be considered a man until he recieves an offering of semen
from an older male in the tribe. It's certainly what we Westerners
would consider an act of sexual contact between a child and an adult
man... but in the context of that culture, I don't know if you could
call it harmful. It's something to take pride in there, not a source of
shame, not a relationship between a victim and an opressor.
In
much the same way, in ancient Greek culture, young men were encouraged
to have sexual relationships with older men, as young women were
encouraged to do with older women, as a sort of introduction to the
world of adulthood. Those relationships weren't harmful because they
weren't done in a context that would make them harmful.
This is, of course, just getting to the whole "objective morality" thing. You know, "Is Rape A Sin in Andromeda?" sort of thing.
It's
also moot when related to the subject at hand, because in the modern
Western world, a sexual relationship between child and adult isn't
about coming of age, it isn't a thing of pride--it IS a relationship
between victim and victimizer, it is harmful, and it's a horrible,
disgusting thing.
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Jayne [Shadow Syndicate]: Level 60 Troll Mage, Mug'Thol
Level 3X Gnome Warrior, Skullcrusher