2008-01-28 TVO/The Agenda: Rethinking Pedophilia (1/4)

A discussion, hosted by Steve Paikin, with scientist Michael Seto, psychologists James Cantor and Robin Wilson and police officer Gordon Whealy.
They talk about the latest scientific insights that pedophilia is a mental illness caused by a variation in the brain, stressing the difference between the preference it causes and the behavioral choices that are made on that preference; not every pedophile is a child molester, not even every child molester is a pedophile.
From their professional experience they plead for systems of support and accountabiltiy, counseling and monitoring to prevent recidivism or the preference to turn into detrimental behavior.
Furthermore they correct public opinion about recidicivism rates (much lower than for other crimes) and fear projected on pedophiles living in the vicinity (85% of child sex offenses are perpetrated by friends and family).

TVO website:
http://www.tvo.org/cfmx/tvoorg/theagenda/index.cfm?page_id=7&bpn=779115&a...

More background info:
http://www.tvo.org/secretlife/

© The Ontario Educational Communications Authority MMVII

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• pedophilia
• Michael Seto
• James Cantor
• Gordon Whealy
• Robin Wilson
• TVO
• The Agenda

[realzoomy]

James Cantor is another of the Kinsey Institute diciples, and Alfred Kinsey based his "scientific" studies on research obtained from criminals, prostitutes and paedophiles, so why is he being given any creedence?

[popgrafix]

@realzoomy Interesting, where did you get that info from? (or was it mentioned in the discussion? it's been a while since I saw it)

I agree that Kinsleys methods were unscientific and I thought most modern researchers agreed with me on that.

[greycloud24]

@Stereophonics81 what age are we talking about here? i was thinking pre-pubescent in which case they do not have an innate preoccupation with sex. if you are talking about post pubescent teens than that is a different story altogether. however having an authority figure in a sexual relationship than becomes a problem with relationship skill development.

[Stereophonics81]

@greycloud24 - I agree with the first part of what you said, obviously, but you lost me on the second part. Like I previously mentioned, the 'preoccupation with sex' is going to exist whether they're sexually active or not. Sexuality is innate. So I do not agree that sex (fundamentally) in any way shape or form hinders a child's development or 'alienates them from their peers.' There is no evidence at all that supports the theory that sexual pleasure does this. Quite the contrary.

[greycloud24]

@Stereophonics81 continued. the development that they miss out on sets them behind their peers. during adolescence this can alienate them from their peers which in turn causes depression and many other disorders. humans are social animals and it is important that we do not alienate children from their peers. during puberty and following for two years girls are especially sensitive to these problems.

[greycloud24]

@Stereophonics81 i believe it is a major contributing factor. we tell these kids that they are victims and we repeat that message until they believe it. we unconsciously use body language to program them to believe they were coerced and deceived and taken advantage of. we allow them to blame other problems in their life on this victim status, we encourage them to blame it. however there still is a preoccupation with sex that diverts their attention away from other important development.

[Stereophonics81]

@greycloud24 - Again ... the 'guilt and self blame' you speak of is certainly legitimate, but the question that needs to be asked is where does it come from? Until you (or anyone else) can put forth any real evidence that shows how an orgasm is harmful, I will continue to believe that the societal stigma / condemnation is the root cause of these problems.

[greycloud24]

@Stereophonics81 having a hard time finding the study (i have read lots of them because my views are controversial on this topic as well even though they don't advocate for sexual relationships with children). i read a study that showed that raped children blame the attacker and recover more quickly than "consenting" children who suffer through guilt and self blame for extended periods of time. it has to do with social development, failed relationships, revictimization, and self blame.

[Stereophonics81]

@greycloud24 - Wait, wait. Let me get this correct now. You're actually sitting there with a straight face and trying to tell me that the damage from rape isn't as bad as the damage from a pleasurable sexual experience? Are you crazy?

To say that sexual pleasure 'retards' a child's development is ludicrous. They're going to be thinking of sex / masturbating frequently (they're human, afte rall) regardless; why is actually engaging in it any worse or any more 'overwhelming' as you put it?

[greycloud24]

@Stereophonics81 the orgasm is distracting for children and they need to stay focused on other things. good sex for children can become an obsessive compulsion that overwhelming their life and retards development in other areas. the damage isn't as sever when a sex abuse victim dislikes the sex compared to when the sex abuse victim enjoys the sex which is much more harmful.

[Stereophonics81]

@greycloud24 (3) - So is it any wonder why a child's emotional or social development may be hindered as you put it? (Of course, plenty of people have had sexual relations as a child with an adult and look back upon the experience as nothing but positive, *especially* before society became overrun with irrational fear and hysteria toward sex and children.)

Still waiting for that logical answer that explains how giving somebody an orgasm is *fundamentally* harmful ...