MAP Forum

This may be a very controversial post but i feel the question needs to be asked.

Would you have sympathy or empathy for a map who molested/sexually forced themselves onto a child if they genuinely feel bad about what they have done and regret their actions?

Edit decided to add more context to this post.

So the idea of this thought provoking post came to me after thinking back to Humbert in the Lolita novel who is a flawed morally grey complex character.

In some parts of the book he and Dolores Haze have consensual sex and she is a willing participant but in other parts of the book Humbert does sexually assault and even force himself onto Dolores but at the very end of the book he does apologize for his actions.

So the question here is would you feel sorry for someone like Humbert if he was a real person given that his character in the book is not completely good or bad?

Also lets use a hypothetical real life example say there is a map who is a good person and is trying not to offend but they become desperate and mentally snap one day due to all the pedo hate in society and it gets to the point where they just say fuck it i have nothing left to lose and they abuse a child and act out but later on regret what they have done and genuinely feel bad about it.

So the question here is how would you feel?

Would you feel bad for that person?

As for me this topic is so complex i don't think i can give a definitive yes or no tbh.

If he actually raped/lured/groomed/pressured/coerced a child, no. If he believed that what he was doing was wrong at the time, no.

If it was consensual and he saw nothing wrong with it at the time, and for some reason he later came to regret it - either by learning about the stigma or because he got arrested, publically shamed, and underwent psychiatric reevaluation sessions that have caused him to view it as wrong then yeah I would have compassion for him.

I would only have compassion in the former case for the fact that I believe people can change and learn from their bad behaviors, but I would still would not feel bad for him.

I believe in the abolishment of the age of consent. I feel bad for people who "molest" children (with real "basic" consent) because, if caught, they'll be unfairly prosecuted and have their lives ruined.

Fragment wrote: Tue Jan 14, 2025 3:01 pm What do you mean by "molest"? Are you talking about someone who forced themselves on the child?

Yes

If somebody forces themself on a child, then I do not feel bad for that person. I feel bad for the child. But if they truly feel bad for what they have done, then that is good. They should feel bad. Perhaps they can then learn to be better people.

Everybody deserves the right to compassion if they have genuinely reflected on their actions and feel true remorse. That doesn't mean compassion is easy to come by. I hold grudges over small conflicts and go to war over things most people would simply let go, so I very much understand why many people cannot feel compassion for a person who has engaged in what they believe to be one of the most horrific acts possible.

Yes, 100%.

I would also feel compassion for someone who murdered or robbed or committed any crime if they genuinely felt remorse. I'm not particularly religious but it's one thing that stuck with my, after all everyone makes mistakes and has regrets, "let he who is without sin cast the first stone" so to speak.

One of the most moving things I read was by a parent many years ago who's child was killed and the parent spoke of her forgiveness for the person responsible. It made me question if I could have a heart that big and I don't think I could, but that makes me feel less than that mother. Anybody can blame and hate, but to forgive something like that takes a giant of compassion and love.

I have added more context to the original post to make my point seem a little more clear.

Hope this helps.

I would have no compassion for any who forces themselves on someone. My sexual orientation is that I am A Pedophile and solely attractive to YOUNG BOYS. I have been this way my whole life. I have never touched A BOY, take pictures or anything. I am A PEDOPHILE and so fine with it But don't put me in the same category as someone who will do harm to A child. Rape is Rape no matter who the victim is.

In those situations, I'm usually more angry at the people that enable it. For example, parents and churches that see abuse is continuing to happen but don't do anything about it or even cover it up.

In this respect, CSA victims and MAPs have a shared problem: the unwillingness of communities to acknowledge MAPs exist within them. Of course the majority of CS abusers aren't MAPs, but some are. Communities often pretend MAPs don't exist, both to avoid confronting abuse and to avoid having to show open support for non-offending MAPs within that community.

The underlying issue is litigation culture, in my opinion.
https://medium.com/@bhushandandawate/th ... 3b2d366782

Basically, acknowledging abuse is taking place opens a can of worms and tolerating non-coercive AMSC is potentially legally dangerous. Therefore, there are contexts where the law has a chilling effect on public awareness of crimes.