Re: to Concerned Aunt (of course y'all others too)

"A pedophile decided to be in love with the most powerful creature on earth when they are at the most vulnerable, the forming stages of life."

Decided? Sexual orientation isn't considered a lifestyle choice by most. Did you fully examine your options as a homosexual before you "decided" to become hetero?

If you were like most humans, you recognized certain feelings within you while also noting that what others claim to feel, you don't.

I can't manufacture a desire for adult men in order to "decide" against it.

Further; "formative" is something of an issue with homo-sapiens; who supplement biology and instinct with culture. Our culture nurtures and shapes well past the age of viable self-reliance. And then it requires acculturation on top of survival skills which extend "infancy" well into adulthood.

Indeed, its easier to think of us in a stage of always "becoming."

And yet, we don't view the "cougar" dating a young adult as someone "deciding" to love the vulnerable and unformed.

Persons are persons at every stage. And it would be an insult if I told most all GirlChatters ( most of whom are younger than me ) that they are all unformed potential future 40somethings. ( And if I managed to convince them of this, I'd just be using my power as a fully formed 40something to take advantage of their 20 and 30something naivete. ) ;p

Everyone has a responsibility to those they love; regardless of where they are in life.

We should be particularly careful with those who have less capacity to look out for themselves. But such incapacity varies from individual to individual due to various circumstances in life. It is not conflated ( as was believed in the past ) with gender and race. It is not conflated with age.

Its time to respect and love people; not demographic categories.

Dante