Should pedophiles be put to death?

[jeffrey]

Acctually what would be the problem?

Would you have a problem falling asleep next to your sister/brother?

If my 11 year old son had fantasies about sleeping with my 8 year old daughter, and I was aware of it, I would not let them sleep together.

 

[Pardus]

I'm not sure where you're going with this. Please explain...

It means i maybe attracted to females, but that doesn't mean i'll sleep with my sister.

There are nuances between making a judgement call based on safety and being judgemental, you are now coming across as making a judgement call based on safety, but i still have the feeling it's heavily based on being judgemental by your tone.

But i'm distracting from the point of the thread.

 

[standing_alone]

I see little difference between allowing a pedophile unsupervised time alone with children in a classroom and unsupervised time alone with a child in bed

Funny, I remember when I was in school, the principal and other teachers frequently would come in the room. And if not, there sure were some big windows giving an easy view into the room to anyone in the hallway. Plus, it would be a big risk to abuse a child in a school, for one, there's so many children that could tell and with other teachers around do you think they wouldn't notice if something was a little suspicious about the first grade teacher Mr. Feeley? If there is no crime being committed (and no crime was ever committed) there is no reason to discriminate against someone. AND I still don't know how we know if someone is a pedophile without them being convicted of a crime? How many pedophiles are going to go out in public and say, "I'm a non-practicing pedophile."?

 

[Faint]

It means i maybe attracted to females, but that doesn't mean i'll sleep with my sister.

Actually, there's an evolutionary reason for this, and why siblings (in most cases) are not sexually attracted to each other. It has nothing to do with the topic.

There are nuances between making a judgement call based on safety and being judgemental, you are now coming across as making a judgement call based on safety, but i still have the feeling it's heavily based on being judgemental by your tone.

Of course I'm being judgemental! I (me) judge them (pedophiles) to be unfit to be left unsupervised and alone in the presence of children. So are you now saying that it's wrong to judge people or scenarios? Do you not judge anyone? Do you not have prejudices?

 

[Pardus]

How many pedophiles are going to go out in public and say, "I'm a non-practicing pedophile."?

Which gives me a chance to bring up again the reason to treat it as rape and not something different, they are more likely to seek help on ways of dealing with the issue if people are more accepting of their situation.

 

[Pardus]

Of course I'm being judgemental! I (me) judge them (pedophiles) to be unfit to be left unsupervised and alone in the presence of children. So are you now saying that it's wrong to judge people or scenarios? Do you not judge anyone? Do you not have prejudices?

Judge the scenario, not the person.

 

[Faint]

AND I still don't know how we know if someone is a pedophile without them being convicted of a crime? How many pedophiles are going to go out in public and say, "I'm a non-practicing pedophile."?

I don't know--telephone survey? You tell me, after all you're the one who said, "we don't believe in discriminating against a pedophile that hasn't committed a crime" which implies that those in the position to discriminate are AWARE of the difference (between a pedophile and a non-pedophile). If we don't know who they are, how could we discriminate against them?

 

[Flappycat]

I'm telling you people, molestation is probably due more to social dysfunction than pedophilia alone. Again, a lot of people suffer from sexual attraction to children, and I think that it is a very different problem that actually causes molestation. I think that there should be a distinction between pedophiles who are likely to molest and those who are not likely to molest, the latter being the sort who would consciously avoid being put into a position of trust with children.

 

[Faint]

Judge the scenario, not the person.

Why? What's wrong with judging people? You do it all the time.

 

[Pardus]

Yup i do, but my judgements avoid causing damage.

 

[Beck63Don]

I'm telling you people, molestation is probably due more to social dysfunction than pedophilia alone. Again, a lot of people suffer from sexual attraction to children, and I think that it is a very different problem that actually causes molestation. I think that there should be a distinction between pedophiles who are likely to molest and those who are not likely to molest, the latter being the sort who would consciously avoid being put into a position of trust with children.

That's what I think! :clap Just because someone is born a pedophile doesn't mean they are going to molest anyone.

I get real tired of bigotry against pedophiles. Bigotry is bigotry whether it's against pedophiles or against homosexuals or against blacks or against anyone else. My brother is attracted to children, but he's never molested a child and never will. Just because he's attracted to children, some scummy people would make him an outcaste. That's bigotry.

 

[Pardus]

One step at a time LM, tolerating it aslong as no rape occurs is something you may be able to convince society of, getting it accepted as natural is another ballpark in another country, possibly on another planet.

 

[Fluffy]

We shouldn't discriminate against them? Are you kidding? So what, we should allow known pedophiles to work with children, maybe be elementary school teachers and the like? There's this new word spelled p-r-e-v-e-n-t-i-o-n that you should look up.

If you enact the law, the pedophile will simply not tell the authorities that he is a pedophile and go and get the job anyway. It doesn't solve anything.

Not gay, but if I was going to rape someone, and I'm not gay, why would I rape a man? Is this a prison thing? Even then I would say those prisoners who rape other prisoners already have homosexual feelings. Rapists target the people they are already attracted to.

I really don't think you understand where I am coming from on this. The majority of people who rape and molest children do so even though they have no sexual interest in the children because they are children. They do it for sexual pleasure which they attain independent of the age of their victim. They gain other sorts of pleasure, especially from the role of power. It is also easier because they are more likely to frighten a child into keeping quiet.

This is simply not the same thing as being a pedophile. You can be a child molester and a pedophile but they are in the minority. Most of these people are one or the other.

I see little difference between allowing a pedophile unsupervised time alone with children in a classroom and unsupervised time alone with a child in bed. It's all just location, and inviting the wolves to dine among the sheep.

I can't tell if you are being serious here or not :S. By that logic, you should allow your child's teacher to spend time with your child in his bed.

What I don't understand is why drunk drivers are arrested when they have hurt no one by driving drunk, sure they have decreased reaction time and are more likely to crash but by driving drunk they have harmed no one. And IMO if you haven’t harmed any one then you have not committed a crime. Oh and I do not believe pedophiles should be put to death no one should, the government should not get to decide who gets to live and die. Sorry again about the off topicness.

Relating it back to the topic, a drunk driver who has not yet harmed anybody but is still in the process of driving and fully intends to drunk drive again is like a pedophile going out looking for likely targets. I feel that both kinds of behaviour should be prevented because both greatly increase the risk of harm coming to another.


Here is a question. If you got to know a person quite well and then one day they told you they were a pedophile with no intention whatsoever to do anything with children and never had sexual urges, how would that change the way you feel about them? Would the fact that they are a pedophile make you feel more negative about them or would it have as much effect as if they told you that they were heterosexual?

 

[Faint]

I get real tired of bigotry against pedophiles. Bigotry is bigotry whether it's against pedophiles or against homosexuals or against blacks or against anyone else. My brother is attracted to children, but he's never molested a child and never will. Just because he's attracted to children, some scummy people would make him an outcaste. That's bigotry.

I think pedophiles should be outcasts--we don't want this to become a socially acceptable "condition". I can't imagine hanging-out with a pedophile. It would be like, "hey wanna go to a bar?" "nah, let's go hang-out at a playground instead" or the two of us might be at a mall while I'm checking out the legal babes, he's scoping the prepubescents. That would just be weird. Plus, what would you talk about with someone like that--"hey what's up? Seen any cute children lately?" Seriously. I don't see why we need to try so hard to get these people to fit in. Tolerating their existence is enough (until they cross the line, that is). We shouldn't also be expected to treat them as normal.

 

[standing_alone]

I don't know--telephone survey? You tell me, after all you're the one who said, "we don't believe in discriminating against a pedophile that hasn't committed a crime" which implies that those in the position to discriminate are AWARE of the difference (between a pedophile and a non-pedophile). If we don't know who they are, how could we discriminate against them?

Hence, you can't know who is a pedophile or not until they have committed a crime. Perhaps I didn't word that the greatest. Let me rephrase it: "We don't believe in discriminating against somebody who didn't commit a crime." You seem to feel that you can tell, hence you asking about being teachers. So, then how do you know who is a pedophile to bar them from teaching if they haven't committed a crime? Are we to discriminate based on suspicion?

 

[Beck63Don]

I think pedophiles should be outcasts--we don't want this to become a socially acceptable "condition". I can't imagine hanging-out with a pedophile. It would be like, "hey wanna go to a bar?" "nah, let's go hang-out at a playground instead" or the two of us might be at a mall while I'm checking out the legal babes, he's scoping the prepubescents. That would just be weird. Plus, what would you talk about with someone like that--"hey what's up? Seen any cute children lately?" Seriously. I don't see why we need to try so hard to get these people to fit in. Tolerating their existence is enough (until they cross the line, that is). We shouldn't also be expected to treat them as normal.

You're a real fascist. You know that? You don't know who you're hurting with your bigotted, prejudiced attitude towards people. I told you: My brother isn't going to molest anyone. Why should someone who has never committed a crime and never will commit a crime be made an outcaste? I think you're just scared and ignorant. That's a dangerous combination. It makes you think in all sorts of stupid ways.

 

[Mathematician]

But guys, we know that all pedophiles are evil. Just like how all homosexuals carry AIDs, and all blacks are evil and want to rape your wife. :tsk:

 

[Fluffy]

You're a real fascist. You know that? You don't know who you're hurting with your bigotted, prejudiced attitude towards people. I told you: My brother isn't going to molest anyone. Why should someone who has never committed a crime and never will commit a crime be made an outcaste? I think you're just scared and ignorant. That's a dangerous combination. It makes you think in all sorts of stupid ways.

I appreciate your feelings towards intolerance. It can make me very angry as well. But if you unlease that anger at someone it will only turn them against you and your argument and that is doing yourself a diservice. Besides which it is against the forum rules and all it will do is turn you into the bad guy.

 

[Faint]

You're a real fascist. You know that? You don't know who you're hurting with your bigotted, prejudiced attitude towards people. I told you: My brother isn't going to molest anyone. Why should someone who has never committed a crime and never will commit a crime be made an outcaste? I think you're just scared and ignorant. That's a dangerous combination. It makes you think in all sorts of stupid ways.

Sticks and stones love...but at least my "attitude" is the kind that will help keep the children safe--even your own children if/when you choose to have any. What's that old saying--better a little caution than a great regret?

 

[jeffrey]

Excellent, Faint!