I don't want to pick up a pitchfork and say that all pedophiles are monsters, though I can quite easily undestand why anyone who has been a victim of abuse would think that. I do think that many of them are mentally ill, or have themselves been victims of abuse, are socially ill-adapted and in many cases need professional, medical and social care....
I have been a victim and would like to say i dont want to pick up a pitchfork and call them all monsters. I would say though that they are ALL severely ill and ALL in need of the care you mention. Except obviously the perfectly normal blokes who happen to fall for a 17 year old or whatever, or like the young lads with teen girls, you know...the lines get blurred at a point. But sometimes a paedophile is undeniably a paedophile, and at that point it is severe illness and needs dealing with away from the rest of society
I kind of agree, there is the big "mad or bad" debate around. Working in mental health it can be extremely difficult to identify whether people are pedophiles or some type of sexual abuser due to mental illness, past experiences or just being evil, unless of course there is some form of underlying mental illness that has caused it. I agree many must have mental health problems, but whether it can be said all do.... I'm not sure.
Not everyone who has a sick mind has mental health problems. People who murder can be mentally well, people who rape can be. People are too quick to say that if someone differs from the 'norm' they must be mentally ill. I am in no way standing up for pedophiles, but I don't think they all are mentally ill. What is normal? What is sane? There are people who do horrible things who are completely sane just as there are people who do horrible things who have mental health problems. And vice versa. I might have a different view on this to some, but it happens to often that if someone does something awful - they must be mentally ill....no they don't.
