sounds to me like you still have the views he had before he left to the other country — David Solman
I think we've entered entirely too speculative a territory here. I really don't see any way to untangle what we know to be an extremely culturally variable attitude to sex from what might be generalisable moral. — Pseudonym
What might be a few questions? — tim wood
think the idea of laws for the protection of certain persons is appropriate. — tim wood
Not so much of a question type test, but more in line with psychological development and maturity. Obviously there would be a part of it that would question the person's knowledge about the risks and consequences of sex would have to be included, but it would be more important from my point of view to evaluate their ability to make rational decisions.
And I don't think that there should be a practical section to the test. — Sir2u
But we're not talking here about protecting certain people from others, we're talking about presuming to protect them from themselves. — Pseudonym
Huh? How many twists did it take to get where you are? Although in a sense it does make sense: predators need to be protected from themselves! — tim wood
He was saying that we're talking about protecting children from themselves, rather than protecting children from adults — Michael
What do you imagine "consent" means in this context? Surely it cannot mean only the physiological ability to say "yes," yes? If, then, it means more than that, what do you say it means? — tim wood
I would say consent requires that the person knows what it is they're consenting to, but most teenagers know stuff as complicated as the basics of particle physics, I think it would be a hard call to argue that they didn't know what sex was. — Pseudonym
Work this through then. Bob's been arrested for statutory rape, so he puts the girl on the stand and proves she's mature, or not, and if the jury sides with him, he goes home, but if not, he goes to prison. Bob goes free after having sex with a street wise 14 year old but Joe goes to prison for having sex with a naïve 22 year old? — Hanover
Rape shield statutes specifically protect rape victims from having their sexual past presented at trial. Are in favor of eliminating those so that juries can consider the background of the victim, despite the fact that no rape victim with an extensive sexual past would ever want to press charges? — Hanover
My point here is that laws have to be clear and let the public know what to expect and what is expected of them. Since the passage of the test you propose generally will follow age, it seems to make sense to base these laws on age instead of case by case bases, — Hanover
especially considering the scrutiny the victim will be forced to undergo at trial and the uncertainty the accused will have in knowing who they can have sex with. — Hanover
First of all we are talking about a test to decide whether a person is old enough to engage in sexual activities with other people, not rape. — Sir2u
My idea would be applied before the act, not after. — Sir2u
Again here you go towards rape and victims, not age of consent which I was discussing. And apart from underage sex being called statuary rape there is quiet often a bit of willingness and even wantonness involved on the part of the victim. — Sir2u
Rape is defined as non-consensual sex. Having sex with someone lacking the ability to consent is rape. — Hanover
So it's rape if I have sex with a 50 year old who has unliscensed sex? — Hanover
Ummm yuck. I can't get aboard your victim blaming. — Hanover
I think consent laws are an effort to protect a class of people from exploitation and abuse. — tim wood
there are child-labor laws and a host of other laws protecting both children and adults in "imbalanced" relationships. — tim wood
And to restate my view, consent addresses inequality. I believe that same-age sex, without force or coercion and with mutual "consent," should be free from legal scrutiny. — tim wood
Its not the existence of an age of consent I object to, its the cultural influence over what that age actually is. We cannot keep denying a young adult's right to choose what to do with their own body on the basis of some cultural notion of development with no objective basis.
OK, so what is "same-age" - same year, same month, exactly the same birthday? Why is it you are so confident that age determines power with such accuracy? — Pseudonym
I believe that same-age sex, without force or coercion and with mutual "consent," should be free from legal scrutiny. — tim wood
so if they are the same age and there is no force or coercion and with mutual "consent" sex would be alright? — Sir2u
And to restate my view, consent addresses inequality. I believe that same-age sex, without force or coercion and with mutual "consent," should be free from legal scrutiny. Schools, parents, guardians may have a viewpoint, but the matter should not be criminalized. — tim wood
it's reasonable to argue that studies of the phenomenon of youth and childhood afford an objective (read: not just cultural) basis for some decision making. — tim wood
Get involved in philosophical discussions about knowledge, truth, language, consciousness, science, politics, religion, logic and mathematics, art, history, and lots more. No ads, no clutter, and very little agreement — just fascinating conversations.