I'm of a similar mind about mandatory reporting for pedophilic urges from mental health professionals. Obviously actual child abuse is different, but mandatory reporting disincentivizes non-acting pedophiles from sharing their feelings and maybe finding a way to cope. Mandatory reporting replaces the potential for treatment with near-certain societal suicide, so they'll keep those urges bottled up, where they can grow strong enough to drive them to child abuse.

I think it's much better to take a pragmatic approach designed to reduce child abuse, than a zero-tolerance moral approach unmotivated by results.

[–] bizarroland@fedia.io 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

True, even though I get it, the idea that we should abandon our humanity and become bloodthirsty savages with the slightest amount of justification is truly bizarre.

I get that we want to punish evil people and the easiest way to identify an evil person is when they harm children. Despite my wanting to be a better person, I do not feel bad when a father murders a pedophile that victimized their child.

But despite that, I feel like we should at try to do a little better.

[–] agamemnonymous@sh.itjust.works 2 points 2 days ago

It's easy to villainize child abusers, because they're definitely villains. I'm talking more about those who haven't harmed children, just feel the urge to. Early detection is key to prevention.