Posted on Jan 12, 2022
USA Today Defends Pedophiles in Lengthy Twitter Thread
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Posted 3 y ago
Responses: 1
False conflation.
"And if pedophiles attempt or manage to abuse children—as the club forming over at CNN has done—they should be punished accordingly."
Absolutely. No one - I repeat, NO ONE - is arguing this.
But you are conflating an attraction with acting on it. You are creating ANOTHER category of thought crime. No longer does it matter what you DO, only what you THINK ABOUT doing.
I have, at times, thought about offing a particularly troublesome boss. I didn't. I didn't even BEGIN to enact a plan. But I thought about it - and thinking about it brought me some sadistic joy. Then I moved on with life. But hey, I got joy out of thinking about an atrocious act - one I would NEVER ever actually carry out - but I thought about it anyway.
Lock me up. Ostracize me. Put me in a pen where I can't hurt others. Because THINKING about something - or even worse, thinking about it AND SMILING - is enough, now, to make you a bad person worthy of being labeled, shunned, and/or thrown in a mental institution to be "treated" until all thoughts are clean, pure, and - most importantly - in accordance with societal approval.
Being attracted to someone is not a crime. Thoughts are not crimes. Finding JOY in your thoughts are not crimes. And they shouldn't be TREATED like crimes, either.
Once someone crosses from thought to action, THEN they become criminals, and should be treated accordingly. But ONLY THEN.
"And if pedophiles attempt or manage to abuse children—as the club forming over at CNN has done—they should be punished accordingly."
Absolutely. No one - I repeat, NO ONE - is arguing this.
But you are conflating an attraction with acting on it. You are creating ANOTHER category of thought crime. No longer does it matter what you DO, only what you THINK ABOUT doing.
I have, at times, thought about offing a particularly troublesome boss. I didn't. I didn't even BEGIN to enact a plan. But I thought about it - and thinking about it brought me some sadistic joy. Then I moved on with life. But hey, I got joy out of thinking about an atrocious act - one I would NEVER ever actually carry out - but I thought about it anyway.
Lock me up. Ostracize me. Put me in a pen where I can't hurt others. Because THINKING about something - or even worse, thinking about it AND SMILING - is enough, now, to make you a bad person worthy of being labeled, shunned, and/or thrown in a mental institution to be "treated" until all thoughts are clean, pure, and - most importantly - in accordance with societal approval.
Being attracted to someone is not a crime. Thoughts are not crimes. Finding JOY in your thoughts are not crimes. And they shouldn't be TREATED like crimes, either.
Once someone crosses from thought to action, THEN they become criminals, and should be treated accordingly. But ONLY THEN.
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SFC Casey O'Mally
SGT Joseph Gunderson What gives you that impression? Is it the part where I quoted the SECOND TO LAST sentence in your article?
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SGT Joseph Gunderson
SFC Casey O'Mally - If you read it in its entirety along with the linked thread, you would see there was a defense of pedophilia made by USA Today. I also state that pedophilia is a mental defect for which treatment should be sought. However, by providing a defense, by saying that people are born pedophiles, the rationalization opens a door. You've chosen to ignore several parts of the post.
I never once called for prosecution of thoughtcrime. However, your conflation of thoughts of lashing out angrily and thoughts about pedophilia are revealing, as it, too, says something about it being something normal and uncontrollable.
If pedophilia is as normal as thinking terrible thoughts out of emotional stress, then the argument can be made that it IS normal, that it shouldn't be something requiring treatment--just as one wouldn't seek treatment for getting angry.
I lay out the rough argument pretty clearly, too.
For more on this argument, please pick up a copy of 'The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self' by Carl Trueman.
I never once called for prosecution of thoughtcrime. However, your conflation of thoughts of lashing out angrily and thoughts about pedophilia are revealing, as it, too, says something about it being something normal and uncontrollable.
If pedophilia is as normal as thinking terrible thoughts out of emotional stress, then the argument can be made that it IS normal, that it shouldn't be something requiring treatment--just as one wouldn't seek treatment for getting angry.
I lay out the rough argument pretty clearly, too.
For more on this argument, please pick up a copy of 'The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self' by Carl Trueman.
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SFC Casey O'Mally
SGT Joseph Gunderson And yet, we have treatment for folks who get TOO angry TOO often.
Generally speaking, the DSM only considers something a disorder if it interferes with life. You can have a short attention span, but you don't have an attention deficit DISORDER unless that hurts your ability to focus in school, at work, or in completing daily functions like cooking. Some pedophiles need treatment. But not all have a disorder.
You did not call for prosecution of thoughtcrime. You just call for "othering" people. And you don't state it, but you strongly imply that it may be necessary to force "treatment" of nonconformists based on their thoughts.
And yes, generally speaking, we CANNOT control our heat-of-the-moment thoughts. Our "lizard brain" (lymbic system, which is responsible for fight or flight, but ALSO for attraction and revulsion) responds to stimuli reflexively. What we CAN control is our second and third thoughts. What we CAN control is our actions. And what people DO is what is important. What they think is completely irrelevant, excepting as it impacts what they do.
Generally speaking, the DSM only considers something a disorder if it interferes with life. You can have a short attention span, but you don't have an attention deficit DISORDER unless that hurts your ability to focus in school, at work, or in completing daily functions like cooking. Some pedophiles need treatment. But not all have a disorder.
You did not call for prosecution of thoughtcrime. You just call for "othering" people. And you don't state it, but you strongly imply that it may be necessary to force "treatment" of nonconformists based on their thoughts.
And yes, generally speaking, we CANNOT control our heat-of-the-moment thoughts. Our "lizard brain" (lymbic system, which is responsible for fight or flight, but ALSO for attraction and revulsion) responds to stimuli reflexively. What we CAN control is our second and third thoughts. What we CAN control is our actions. And what people DO is what is important. What they think is completely irrelevant, excepting as it impacts what they do.
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