Consent

Consent

Consent maybe limited in many animal species, but humans have laws relating to consent. The laws let a lot down. The laws do little to stem assaults. Morality plays a bigger part. The alpha male that protects and fends off interlopers are ever present today as they were eons ago.

Any act with a person who is too immature to make an informed choice is abusive. Thus, those that have an affinity towards young people face a life-long issue to contend with. Self-restraint is constantly challenged by this unacceptable pull towards to pleasuring themselves with children.

How do we deal with those who have an affinity towards the young, rather than an acceptable attraction to those above the age of consent? The nature of someone's affinity can’t be altered so can only be contained. A paedophile may find a method of release without any interaction with children. They have a powerful affinity to keep in control. Something drastic needs to be done to break the cycle of being locked up, released then reoffending once more. Doing some time in prison for each crime doesn’t solve the problem. Removal of the chemical system that causes the sexual arousal and excitement is an option. Those that cannot control their actions might prefer some form of castration, on a voluntary basis, to free themselves of the temptation and torment.

Not all those that abuse the young are paedophiles as such. They have a general affinity towards people of all ages and not children specifically. Some abusers are opportunistic. They will groom and exploit children as they are easy available targets.

It hardly needs mentioning that a child who has dreadful sexual interference suffers a huge loss of self-worth and can be haunted by the experience for decades thereafter. Some predators have an utterly misguided idea that they are showing care. Confusing kindness and compassion with delusional destruction. Children can be taught from an early age that a hug and a cuddle is fine, but anything else needs to be reported in confidence to their parents without fear of reprisal. It may appear obvious in retrospect, but when a child seems unusually gloomy about spending time outside of your domain, it may be a subtle clue to there being something wrong going on. Most exploitation of this nature is close to home in the near family rather than by random outsiders.