Well put


Originally Posted by Birdwatcher
Let us remove the pedophile issue for a moment.

Most of the interactions between an adult and a non-family member teenager in public arenas such as the Boy Scouts or teaching is of a non-verbal nature. Hard to describe, but how the situation "feels".

I am a heterosexual male (thank God), there are reasons why I cannot take a group of teemage girls out camping in a remote area. NOT making any moves on teenage girls is a test I have passed countless times over the last thirty years. But the fact that should even be an issue is exactly why I would avoid putting myself in that situation.

It aint usually purposeful pedophilia either. Some girls fifteen and up can seem remarkably mature (recall that women commonly used to marry from that age on) and they are becoming adults. When you work with teenagers you can become emotionally close, if it is a young woman the fact that you are of opposite genders inevitably comes to mind.

These situations are as predictable as the sunrise, inevitable given normal human nature. EXACTLY why most such organizations are structured to head these situations off at the pass.

OK, take a young guy 13-17 years old, perhaps from a one-parent family, no male father figures at home. Lets say this individual becomes attached to an inspiring and giving scout leader during these formative years. If this scout leader were openly homosexual, the fact that this older man is sexually attracted to, and has sex with, other men would inevitably cloud the relationship.

I was in the Boy Scouts, enjoyed the heck out of it, the LAST thing I would have needed at that age was an openly homosexual scout master.

Birdwatcher