Okay so to explain the point of this, I have no real interest in debating this or rather... I didn't decide to write out a debate on this what happened was - Somebody posted a question on Yahoo Answers asking for evidence to show if pedophilia was incurable...
And I wrote a ridiculously long response, just came out in one spewage. But I thought it would be an interesting, thought-provoking, uneasy debate area for this section.
So, this was what I wrote, read it (if you dare), it's like 1.6k words. I haven't checked through it so there may be some grammar mistakes or bad writing, I don't know. I'm actually not gonna come back to this topic as if I see responses... I just can't be fucked with debating any more, it's too consuming, I can never stop writing lmao.
But I thought this would kick-off the debate and provide an interesting topic.
Here it is...
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Well, I would imagine this is true.
Although, this raises some important and probably difficult to digest questions for most people, in relation to blame and responsibility.
As, well, personally I believe pedophiles are another variation on sexual attraction. It's not a choice, people who think sexual attraction is a choice are morons. For example, I am straight - Now, it's IMPOSSIBLE for me to "choose" to be attracted to men.
Which is why homophobia is so stupid. You can't choose who you're attracted to anymore than you can choose how big your nose is or what colour your eyes are.
Now, at the same time - I don't believe being homosexual is natural. By that, I don't mean I have a problem with it or oppose it as again, you can't choose / help it. BUT, it is NOT natural. Male vs. female attraction is natural because natural, if it's to be defined in any way shape or form has to be what natural selection intended.
Now, natural selection's only 'intent' is reproduction. Or rather, it's only result. Evolution's only intent is reproduction. And a male and a male, or a female and a female cannot reproduce therefore it is not natural, if it were - It would be 50/50 (as in, 50% of people gay), not 1 in 10 and if all people were gay, the human species wouldn't of come this far.
So however you want to look at it, logically speaking being gay IS a sort of disorder. Now, anybody who reads that will find it uncomfortable and slightly crude because it would be crude to treat it as a disorder, in society. But that doesn't mean it's not one. A disorder is surely a malfunction from the MAJORITY 'order' hence DIS-order.
Bi-polar is a disorder because it's detrimental to the natural state and it's a very small percentage of humans who have it. It's a dis / order, it's a malfunction. Homosexuality is also detrimental to nature as it's anti-reproductive, it goes AGAINST pro-creation and therefore has to be defined as a disorder if that word is going to have any credibility at all.
But again, it's just a sexual preference and may very well of natural selection's way of balancing out the growth of humanity - Along with disease. Of course, we can't treat homosexuality as a disease in society as aside from sexual preference, homosexuals are healthy, normal human beings so treating them as malfunctions would be disgusting. I'm not saying to do that.
But in practice, in sensible, bare-roots definition, homosexuality is a disorder.
Which brings me back to pedophilia. Pedophilia could also be described as an abnormal sexual attraction, in fact if properly studied... in the near-future I could imagine explanations pertaining to the fact that pedophiles have some kind of... regressive sexual urge.
Some kind of sexual attraction that never properly matures and is therefore stuck, or regressing to youthful attraction. But to simply pass it off as "sick individuals" is a waste of time. Because again, it's clearly not a CHOICE. None of us non-pedophiles could CHOOSE to be attracted to children.
So it's not like we're morally superior by choice. We are morally superior but only by chance and matter of fact. I am morally superior in not wanting to have sexual relations with a child, in comparison to a pedophile who wants to do that. But I'm not morally superior by choice or victory, I didn't battle the same urges the pedophile battled and win...
Which is kind of how society treats the issue. As if we're all higher-thinking people who have somehow defeated these urges or something. The fact is, most of us simply aren't attracted to children and that's why we don't have the problem.
So, pedophilia I feel is a disorder, I think it's a sexual attraction disorder and I also think homosexuality is a sexual disorder. They're disorders because they're extreme variants that differ from the mass majority. The mass majority which helps pro-create and reproduce and continue the species of the human race.
But it's all about context. Homosexuality and pedophlia are not choices. Now I know some people would squirm at me even daring to compare the two but the only reason why is because one of them is simply an attraction between two genders and the other is an attraction between two age gaps. Except, it's one-way. BUT, homosexuality is one-way also. Gay men are attracted to ALL men. Gay women are attracted to ALL women.
All sexual attraction is one way. Heterosexual attraction included.
Only difference is, homosexuality is seen as acceptable (or, in a constant fight to be) simply because it's an attraction between two consenting adults. Where as an attraction from a pedophile to a child, is a one-way attraction to a likely unknowing, unwilling and innocent child. A human that isn't sexually matured or capable of full comprehension or stimulation yet.
THAT is why it's treated as something that is morally disgusting and to be ousted at all costs. As well it should be, for the protection of all unwilling children.
But here's where the difficult question of blame comes in. Because how can you seriously "blame" a pedophile in being attracted to a young child any more than you could "blame" a hetrosexual male for being attracted to a female or a homosexual male being attracted to another male.
You cannot choose it.
Now of course, the majority of the blame comes into place in the action(s). We blame them for the actions, which... Is certainly more understandable. But again, given the fact the rest of us do not have those urges, it's very easy, very very easy for us to act as if we're better people and above it simply because WE DO NOT DEAL WITH THOSE URGES.
It's luck, it's disorder... It's morally vile but only in the context of society and logic. What I mean by that is, the disorder itself (which I believe it is) is, practically speaking in the same vein as other disorders.
But depending on what desires and therefore actions certain disorders lead to, society is bias.
We're bias in all sorts of ways.
For example, Autism is easily more accepted than ADHD despite ADHD have far more genetic basis and proof (believe it or not). Why? Well, quite obviously because of the actions and outward appearances each disorder produces...
Autism is easily accepted, at face-value, because everybody has seen Rain Man and wouldn't dare question somebody acting in that way. They would see it as crude and offensive to question whether Autism exists when somebody is so VISIBLY suffering with a disorder.
Despite the fact that a lot of Autism can be as invisible (in comparison) as anything else and this is again, ignorance and buying into stereotyping at large.
And because the extremities of ADHD are within the normal realms of human behaviour ie. attention, hyperactivity and mostly INTERNAL thought issues, it's not as VISIBLE and therefore it's questioned, ridiculed and DOUBTED by a vast majority of society and passed off as bad parenting, diet issues and other totally ludicrous ideas and cop-outs.
Fact is, most of humanity is moronic. Probably because being highly intelligent in itself wasn't the most advantageous thing evolutionary speaking, and what more likely is - Is sociability. Which is why you see very social people go a long way. Because human solidarity is the key to humanity's success. The fact we can empathize, reason and solidify in issues, puts us head and shoulders above all other living things.
And, a lot of highly intelligent people... Usually also have, inherit or develop mental disorders such as Bi-polar or ADHD and due to the fact they see things so clearly for what they are, are very unhappy and really never get enjoyment out of socializing for its own sake or basic human interaction in the same way that much less intelligent people do.
This means less intelligent people probably get more enjoyment out of socializing and therefore forming relationships and therefore? solidifying - And progressing. Which is why being social, happy and stupid is probably much more advantageous then very intelligent but depressed, unsocial and dissatisfied.
Which can be summed up with:
IGNORANCE IS BLISS.
I am one of the unhappy people. But it's not necesarily 'just' a view of society that makes you unhappy, I believe I am bi-polar anyway so I'm irrationally and extremely depressed over nothing most of the time. Doesn't matter about the environment, situation, set of circumstances etc. As I am just annoyed at existing in itself.
But it also makes you hate the dumb majority so much. I am annoyed at most of humanity and how dumb and fucking irritating they are. And I have a massively high irritant rate. I think bi-polar people (and there's some evidence of this) may be more sensitive to stimuli also which is the reasoning behind being highly irritable.
As noises / light seem to be so much more intense and loud for me. Even somebody putting a cup down is like... SO annoying to me. Fucking earth-shattering just like BANNNNNNNG. It's so annoying. And light is very bright to me I have to always shut my curtains.
Anyway, I'm sure if you look hard and long enough in the right areas of psychology and brain biology that you will find some ideas and history that could be articulated as evidence. It's just about arranging it and arguing it in the right way.
I have no idea as I haven't looked into this specific area, but the key is - Don't count on others.
Don't count on finding 100 papers that "prove" pedophilia is a disease or incurable, just think logically and rationally about everything that you're asking. Think about it from every angle, study every inch of the psychology behind it then study every side of the argument and, make a case for what you believe as strongly as you can.