(October 26, 2016 at 6:08 am)paulpablo Wrote:(October 26, 2016 at 2:17 am)robvalue Wrote: Let's pretend you have a friend, and you're a parent. You've known this friend a long time. You trust them, and you believe they are a good person.
One day they confide in you that they are a paedophile. They have sexual urges towards young children. They say they haven't ever acted on them, nor do they intend to, and you believe they are sincere. They just want your understanding and support, and they ask that you keep this confidential.
I haven't answered the main part of the question yet, but this is just about the problem I have with this section that leads up to the question.
I don't see why I believe they are sincere? [...]
The way I see it is, even if I do strongly believe they are sincere, belief is never enough and I can never know for sure.
I'd just want them to get treatment. I don't think I could bring myself to really stay in contact with them because I'd feel too uncomfortable.
And I wouldn't tell anyone because they technically, as far as I would know, wouldn't have acted on any of it or broken the law so there would be nothing to report. If the person is innocent and it's just urges it's treatment that would help. And if the person isn't innocent it's evidence that would help. If I'm not able to provide either treatment for a non-criminal pedophile or evidence against a criminal pedophile then all I'm left with is someone I personally feel too uncomfortable to stay in contact with.
