Richard Dawkins defends “mild pedophilia,” says it does not cause “lasting harm”

by chrisuk 320 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse

  • Magnum
    Magnum

    DJS & DesirousOfChange -

    I agree wholeheartedly with both of you. Very well said.

    DesirousOfChange: Personally, I don't see where Dawkins is defending or approving of "mild pedophilia", only that he is saying that he does not feel that he suffered any "lasting harm" from being groped or fondled as a boy by this teacher.

    I feel the same way.

  • chrisuk
    chrisuk

    Just to be clear: If I felt I'd said anything that deserved an apology, I would do so straight away. I don't feel that I have said anything to warrent such an action, and, as I've already pointed out; I stand by everything I've said.

  • chrisuk
    chrisuk

    As somone ponied out, if the WTS used the term mild pedophilia there would be outrage on this site.

  • Witness My Fury
    Witness My Fury

    FFS what is this hang up on mild pedophilia?!

    Is touching a teenage girls bum the same as abducting a child to have as a sex slave in a dungeon? You seem to be suggesting it is!

    There IS a spectrum of offending, to suggest otherwise is just fucking dumb.

  • cofty
    cofty

    Vindictivegirl as good as called everybody who pointed out her error, pedophiles.

    Simon told her to apologise. I PM'd her this morning politely asking her to publicly apologise. She replied with an insult.

    She has plumbed the depths of intellectual dishonesty. Why are so many christians so unpleasant?

    Chrisuk clearly suggested that Bohm is a pedophile. He has refused to apologise. Shame on him.

    Focus - You have a rich fantasy life...

  • Magnum
    Magnum

    chrisuk: As somone ponied out, if the WTS used the term mild pedophilia there would be outrage on this site.

    Yeah, probably so - by you and the ones on this site who jump to conclusions without a fair, reasonable, and level-headed analysis... the ones who go on witch hunts and hang without a fair trial.

    Maybe Dawkins should have said "milder pedophilia", to indicate that he thought that some forms were less serious than others, but that none are really mild. But he was being interviewed and probably none us exress things exactly the way we want when speaking off the cuff.

    And without putting much thought into it, I don't see why it would be outrageous to think that some forms of pedophilia are more serious than others.

    1) A man very lightlly and momentarily touches a young girl's breast deliberately and in the wrong way and feels remorse over it.

    2) A man brutally sodomizes a young girl with no concern for the effect on her.

    Is it wrong to think that #2 is more serious than #1, but that both are wrong?

    EDIT: Witness My Fury, I hadn't seen your post when I wrote the above. I agree with you.

  • DJS
    DJS

    Is a 19 year old dating and having relations with a 17 year old or a 16 year old pedophilia? Depending on the state and other activities (taking pictures, sending texts, etc.) it most certainly can be. It doesn't matter if they are in love and getting married with both families' blessings. Should such an individual be prosecuted, deemed an offender and placed on the pedo list for the rest of their lives?

    And a few generations ago this was how everyone got married - young to very young girls/women with older men. This practice still occurs in many areas of the planet; it is accepted. We may not like it and wish that they could 'evolve' as we have, but many practices that we condemn and place pejorative adjectives on are still considered normal and acceptable in many areas. That, IMHO, is what Dawkins is referring to. Having these types of discussions can be valuable, but not if those like Chrisuk and VG are hysterical reactionaries painting with broad brushes and making very awful accusations.

    And Chrisuk, please don't call me an idiot like VG does. I am 100% spot on and accurate. I hate pedophiles, probably more than you, but I love justice and fair-mindedness more.

  • Simon
    Simon

    Creating degrees of something like pedophilia is a slippery slope, just as creating degrees of slavery and racism.

    The problem with that argument is that there are clearly degrees of both slavery and racism.

    A lynchmob and someone clutching their purse more tightly when a member of another race approaches are both manifestations of racism.

    I would suggest that one is a more "mild" form and one is not.

  • Simon
    Simon

    C'mon people - this is always going to be an amotive topic but lets not get nesty with each other.

    A discussion is supposed to be an exchange of ideas an opinions, they are not always going to agree but at least they can be put in a civil manner.

    Accusing people of a serioud crime goes beyond insults and into the land of committing a crime that is actionable under law in most jurisdictions.

  • cofty
    cofty

    When Lord McApline was wrongly accused of being a pedophile he set his lawyers the task of tracking down every single person who accused him in social media and dragged them into court for libel. Even the poor ones with no assets and even the ones who used cowardly language and only hinted at the accusation.

    Take heed vindictivegirl and chrisuk.

    The days when you could attack somebody behind a keyboard with impunity are gone.

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