Quote:
Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
Sure. Decades of observed developmental consequences of early sexual activity have shown that pre-pubescent sexual contact results in other negative social behaviors, such as depression, drug use, promiscuity, a tendency toward seeking sexual contact with a new generation of minors, etc. Take a poll of the sexual offenders, and you'll find that they were abused as kids.
As for statutory rape, I don't think the justification was ever religious. The laws against extramarital sex accomplish the same religious goals. But I would justify it today on the ground that 16-year-olds who have sex with 24-year-olds tend to become a burden on society by having children out of wedlock and dropping out of school. Oh, and the fact that we don't want 24-year-olds to get shot by angry parents of 16-year-olds, which is what would happen if statutory rape were decriminalized.
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Your answer is non-responsive. You explain why statutury rape and pedophilia laws are good (which is hardly a toughie), but the question was if you could state "a coherent, non-religious analysis of how to distinguish between a minor and an adult" for purposes of those laws. In other words, why is the day you turn 18, or 16, or whatever, such a magical moment?
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