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Therapy for pedophiles?

Should there be therapy for pedophiles?

  • yes

    Votes: 10 62.5%

  • no

    Votes: 5 31.3%

  • not sure

    Votes: 1 6.3%
  • Total voters
    16
I'm all for any treatment that would help pedophiles who haven't molested children. I have empathy for those people.

I think the best treatment for pedophiles who have molested children is castration. I'm not sure if a hysterectomy would produce similar effects in female offenders or not.

If they re-offend after castration, execute them.
 
Captain Adverse said:
First, we must distinguish (as Milo tired to point out in that old video which caused so much trouble) between true pedophiles and those we lump in under that title.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedophilia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ephebophilia

Most Americans have a tendency to lump all sexual attraction for "minors," (i.e. persons under the age of 18) as pedophilia; when (as Milo also tried to point out however badly) sexual attraction to post-pubescent minors is a perfectly normal and natural phenomena of human sexuality.

IMO, true pedophilia is a mental disorder that demands treatment. That a sex offender who actually abuses prepubescent children requires incarceration in a penal mental institution until such time as a panel of mental health professionals deems them safe to return to society. Even then such felons would require ongoing mental counseling and monitoring.

Those who merely violated a moral code by having sex with under-aged, but fully "adult," minors should be treated like any other criminal. Punished for the level of their crime (consensual vs non-consensual), then allowed to re-renter society without undue limits on their liberty interests.
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This doesn't cover those who have sexually assaulted a minor, yet don't have an attraction. It is another one of those details most people tend to over look.
 
calamity said:
There are three distinctions: pedophilia, hebephilia and ephebophilia. All three are a sexual disorder, although it could be argued that ephebophilia is the least horrendous of the three. The other two target minors under age 15, with pedophilia being the worst since it targets prepubescent children.
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There is talk of adding infantphilia (can't remember ATM how they planned to spell it) to cover from, I think, 5 on down.
 
Pedophilia is its own sexual orientation and it can't be cured. All you can do is teach pedophiles to self-suppress and not engage in the behavior. It's basically teaching them to be celibate, and I think that's why traditionally a lot of pedophiles joined the clergy, since the clergy also practiced celibacy and so the role was compatible.

I think the best thing we can do for pedophiles is help them to become productive members of society in job and social structures that do not expose them to children. For refractory offenders, long term jail sentences are probably the only solution.
 
VanceMack said:
There is so much more to all of this. You cant just say 'kill all pedophiles'. Well...OK...you CAN...but it doesnt make much sense. You cant just say 'incarcerate all pedophiles for life'. Again...I guess you CAN say it...it just is an ignorant position. You cant say pedophiles cannot be treated because thats simply not true. And if you understand the treatment models, you really cant say 'treatment for the rest of their life' because that would be destructive and far more likely to CAUSE relapse then to cure or stave off attacks.

MANY pedophiles are non-treatable for the same reason most consider personality disorders non-treatable. They adopt a narcissistic world view and they become that world view. I believe their REASONING is misunderstood. The narcissist does NOT have an over-inflated sense of ego...just the opposite. It is the ultimate defense mechanism. They are so emotionally damaged they cannot even allow for the possibility that they have done something wrong, and in the case of a pedophile, something so heinous. They certainly cannot face the reality that they have brutalized and victimized a child. So...THEY become the victims. It wasnt their fault, they didnt do anything wrong, the child seduced them, they were only trying to help...excuse after excuse. And they do a pretty decent job of convincing themselves what they are saying is true. At least enough so that they dont end up hanging themselves with their own bed linen.

Most prisons use a 'system'. They are sold an 'evidence based' product and employ it as a one size fits all treatment model. Often those models are built on shame based tactics. They tend to create 'smart rats'...people understand what they are supposed to say after a while. Prisons often contract out the task of providing 'therapy' to companies with the lowest bid. Those companies then hire a bunch of under-licensed providers to second chair group sessions (and in all honesty...often without fully licensed first chairs) which also can be worthless at best and often times, destructive. Frankly...Ive seen group discussion on reducing pedo-attraction often do nothing but stimulate arousal. But while the expectation is that anywhere from 15-35% will relapse (regardless of treatment or treatment models) and some estimates are as high as 50%, the statistics suggest the majority of pedophiles that successfully undergo treatement do NOT relapse. But since there is an expectation that treatment will only be so effective, then why not do it as cheaply as possible? (My experience is the two biggest factors in change for those that successfully complete the program are 1-Prison (cuz it can be a bitch and most people REALLY dont want to go back) and 2-Those that are identified as pedophiles (sex offenders) are not true sex offenders (as was mentioned-people can be arrested and labelled as pedophiles/predators/sex offenders for a wide variety of reasons).

Individual therapy is the best way to identify true predators, treat predators, and determine if the treatment is effective or the responses are just rote. There is a delicate balance between understanding the monster and helping the monster (and many of those that are good subjects for positive treatment DO see themselves as monsters) vs reinforcing the monster.
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Really appreciating this post. Thank you.
 
maquiscat said:
There is talk of adding infantphilia (can't remember ATM how they planned to spell it) to cover from, I think, 5 on down.
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Thinking about that hurts my brain. I'd support the death penalty for those people in a minute.
 
calamity said:
Thinking about that hurts my brain. I'd support the death penalty for those people in a minute.
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Actual offenders or anyone who just is afflicted with it?
 
This thread does have a stink of hypocrisy about it.

I wonder how many of these americans calling for death of peadophiles would also in another thread about the 14th amendment defend the existence of that amendment. I wonder how many of these would scream for the blood of any politician who deliberately ignored the 14th just so that the politician can get what he desires.

And yet here they are on this thread doing exactly that.
Rights of Prisoners :: Fourteenth Amendment--Rights Guaranteed: Privileges and Immunities of Citizenship, Due Process, and Equal Protection :: US Constitution :: US Codes and Statutes :: US Law :: Justia
Rights of Prisoners.—Until relatively recently the view prevailed that a prisoner "has, as a consequence of his crime, not only forfeited his liberty, but all his personal rights except those which the law in its humanity accords to him. He is for the time being the slave of the state."1122 This view is not now the law, and may never have been wholly correct.1123 In 1948 the Court declared that "[l]awful incarceration brings about the necessary withdrawal or limitation of many privileges and rights";1124 "many," indicated less than "all," and it was clear that the due process and equal protection clauses to some extent do apply to prisoners.1125 More direct acknowledgment of constitutional protection came in 1972: "[f]ederal courts sit not to supervise prisons but to enforce the constitutional rights of all 'persons,' which include prisoners. We are not unmindful that prison officials must be accorded latitude in the administration of prison affairs, and that prisoners necessarily are subject to appropriate rules and regulations. But persons in prison, like other individuals, have the right to petition the Government for redress of grievances …"1126 However, while the Court affirmed that federal courts have the responsibility to scrutinize prison practices alleged to violate the Constitution, at the same time concerns of federalism and of judicial restraint caused the Court to emphasize the necessity of deference to the judgments of prison officials and others with responsibility for administering such systems.1127
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I don't know what to say here that hasn't already been said.
 
Masterhawk said:
After hearing about milo, it gave me an opportunity to post an idea: help prevent pedos from offending. The UK is trying this solution and Germany is starting to step in

Treating Pedophiles: Therapy Can Work, But It's a Challenge

If it reduces child sexual abuse, maybe the US can also try this solution as opposed to relying on the sex offender registry (only a third of all sex offenders re-offend within 5 years).
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Sociopaths and pedophiles cannot be rehabilitated. Either lock them up for life, or kill them.
 
BlackBook said:
Agoogle search away.
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Tells me only that you try to paint something as all the same when the evidence tells us that there are varying degrees and many different ways of behaving under those influences.
 
soylentgreen said:
Tells me only that you try to paint something as all the same when the evidence tells us that there are varying degrees and many different ways of behaving under those influences.
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It should only tell you that I don't spend time writing well sourced arguments for mere trolls. I've recently learned this site has a pay-to-play forum...The Loft...for real debate. I think that's what you're looking for.
 
BlackBook said:
Agoogle search away.
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BlackBook said:
It should only tell you that I don't spend time writing well sourced arguments for mere trolls. I've recently learned this site has a pay-to-play forum...The Loft...for real debate. I think that's what you're looking for.
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ROFLMFAO! You don't have time to be writing arguments for yourself? Because when you make such a claim and then refuse to support it, you are the troll.
 
maquiscat said:
ROFLMFAO! You don't have time to be writing arguments for yourself? Because when you make such a claim and then refuse to support it, you are the troll.
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Your behavior here is exactly what I'm talking about.
 
Masterhawk said:
After hearing about milo, it gave me an opportunity to post an idea: help prevent pedos from offending. The UK is trying this solution and Germany is starting to step in

Treating Pedophiles: Therapy Can Work, But It's a Challenge

If it reduces child sexual abuse, maybe the US can also try this solution as opposed to relying on the sex offender registry (only a third of all sex offenders re-offend within 5 years).
Click to expand...

There's no need for it, because "pedophilia" is just a manifestation of vice, as is homosexuality, corprophilia, pornography and other fetishes; those who keep themselves guarded against vice do not need an exclusive remedy for "pedophilia"; keeping one's mind clean rather than viewing sex and sexual partners as "objects" to be consumed or acted on rather than willing participants would be the solution, and one evil enough to act with malevolent intent upon a child would not likely be willing to undergo the self-reflection needed to change their ways.
 
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