Re: Thank you

"When/If our sexuality becomes normalized, we will see the same numbers of insensitive louts, manipulators and bastards amongst our numbers as there are in any other sexual orientation. I see it in gays all the time, but I suspect they were probably more sensitive back in the days when they were persecuted too."

There are some differences: Boys play rough, for starters - and gays know what they want and expect other gays will too. I think you will find that most adults are more understanding and forgiving of children than of other adults - they expect other adults to understand and play by the same rules that they do (though frequently this expectation is unjustified) but most know that children are at a disadvantage and try to act benevolently. There are certainly manipulators out there, but there is also a majority of people who will at least attempt to do right by others - especially children.

But otherwise - yes, some of our circumstances are ideally suited to increasing our self-awareness.

I do agree that most parents care about their kids, and even that parents mostly do a good job of raising them - but parents are flawed people with limited understanding like everyone else, and their concern for their children is often exploited by demagogues and zealots seeking their own ends. The short version is that children will always be exposed to dangerous individuals (who are usually in their own family) but that the greater availability of alternative points of view and a greater circle of friends is generally healthier for children than the restricted sphere of the nuclear family.