I don’t view the claims of pedophilia as a mental illness or religious beliefs as justification for the individual abuser’s actions against a child. There are laws in place that serve to protect those who cannot protect themselves and obviously for good reason.
I do find it interesting that the points of contention were with sexual abuse, with today’s typical defense tactics provided as justification or explanation for the behavior. I stand firm in my personal belief that the problems in humanity exist as a result of an individual, not a religion, the religion comes after the belief. My post regarding individualism may help to explain my views on this.
The “this is my religion, you have to respect it” defense
I will not accept religious belief as justification for the acts of any individual. It is the choice of an individual to act. Even if their religion tells them to disregard law and others as individuals; their religious beliefs should not be a defense when their actions affect others. Regardless if you accept the view that every religion started as an individual idea and that these ideas have been interpreted by others with their own individual ideas, when you act on your beliefs and it affects others, the consequences of those actions are on you as an individual. Isn’t it ironic that individuals feel it’s their right to claim their religion as a defense but who would have a religion on trial for a crime. What would we call that, religious persecution?
Is murder acceptable because it is viewed as acceptable by a religion?
If Vigilantism was considered a religion, would the individual cases of vigilante justice be excused from punishment?
We should all be tolerant of others as individuals and in their individual beliefs. What we should not do is be tolerant of intolerance and beliefs with harmful intentions, or those that impose on us as individuals, just because someone claims it is their religion does not excuse their actions.
The “they have an illness, it’s not their fault” defense
I will not debate the fact that there are individuals who suffer from mental illness and have reduced mental capacity. I will also not argue the fact that some individuals with mental illness may have difficulty controlling their actions or knowing right from wrong. My debate is with how we as a society are quick classify almost any individual sickness, flaw or weakness as a disease, and excuse the individual from their actions for it. If pedophiles truly suffer from an illness, that makes them that way and they are unable to control their actions, they shouldn’t be in a society that doesn’t condone it. That being said, if a society were to condone this behavior, for whatever reason, I’ll be happy to take my leave. If the individuals that choose to act on their urges or impulses and choose to sexually abuse a child, they have made that choice. The concern for fairness for the individuals committing these crimes cannot undo their actions and where is the fairness for the victims?
If you argue on behalf of illness, I argue that if it is illness there is no cure.
Can the individuals with this “illness” be trusted to function in society; does signing up on a sexual offender list make them better or make their potential victims safer? Regardless, if the underlying cause was due to a perverted illness or sickness, and the individual is of full mental capacity otherwise, the individual committed the offense and should receive punishment fitting the crime. I believe some individuals confuse sickness with illness. Most criminals are sick, morally sick individuals, does that excuse them from their crimes?
