How many folks know both sides of APA's declassification of homosexuality as a mental disorder?

Question

Dr. Bieber was one of the key participants in the historical debate which culminated in the 1973 decision to remove homosexuality from the psychiatric manual.

His paper describes psychiatry's attempt to adopt a new "adaptational" perspective of normality. During this time, the profession was beginning to sever itself from established clinical theory--particularly psychoanalytic theories of unconscious motivation--claiming that if we do not readily see "distress, disability and disadvantage" in a particular psychological condition, then the condition is not disordered.

On first consideration, such a theory sounds plausible. However we see its startling consequences when we apply it to a condition such as pedophilia. Is the happy and otherwise well-functioning pedophile "normal"? As Dr. Bieber argues in this article, psychopathology can be ego-syntonic and not cause distress; and social effectiveness.. http://www.narth.com/docs/normalization.html

Answer 1

I do I do. The gays invaded the general meetings of the organization and swore to disrupt the procedures until homosexuality was removed from the list of mental disorders. I've read the transcripts . Now you've done it, you'll really pee off the gays if you let that information out. They thought they'd buried it.

Answer 2

Homosexuality is not an a mental illness. It was classified as a mental illness in like the 70's but it was removed on the basis that homosexuality did not cause harm to one's self or others. Homosexuality is a lifestyle, much like being straight is a lifestyle. Granted the gay lifestyle and population is a minority compared to the straight lifestyle. Think about it...I am gay, and if being gay is an illness then how come I funtion normally in society, I have a good job, I can drive a car, I can live independently...etc. If I had an mental illness, then I should be sitting at home, probably with my parents because I wouldn't be capable of taking care of myself, and I would be collecting disability benefits from the government, because I wouldn't be able to work. I would be treated like I had ADD or ADHD or downs or something. The American Association of Psychiatrists used their knowledge and expertise in voting on the matter because they realized that homosexuals were not mentally handicapped people, rather, they were a minority group of people compared to the general population.

Answer 3

Well, now we get down to Muhammad, Islamics and many other nationalities.

I've even heard rumors that I never heard before that Mary, the mother of Jesus was 14 or younger when God impregnatedher.

So, does that make God a pedophile?

Is pedophilia, alone, an abberation.

OK, there are lots of 10 and 11 year old girls on the street, often doing prostitution or stealing to survive.

Don't believe me, go to Hollywood, California and stay at the Greyhound stations and you'll see little girls coming off the bus alone from places where they were beaten, yelled at, made to feel inferior and they come to LA to be stars.

Now, some 40 year old guy takes one of these 10 year olds who is living on the street and "marries" her proving a good home, no yelling, no berating, feeds her, takes her to the dentist, but he has sexual relations with her. She enjoys this new life and doesn't mind the sex, which is gentle and natural.

What is that person? Is that person abborated? Is that person evil?

This is what Islamics say about Muhammad in defense of him marrying a 6 year old girl and mating her at the age of 9.

It was and still is quite common in Mexico for a rich man to arrange for a pre-nupt with the family of a 5, 6, or 7 year old girl, whom he married at the legal age of 14.

This went on and still does, throughout the 20th century.

If I'm not mistaken, musician Gerry Lee Lewis, who was in his 40's married is 14 year old first cousin.

Is that incest? Is that pedophilia?

The law of EVERY state clearly says sex with anyone under the age of 15, 16, 17 or 18 UNLESS THEY ARE YOU LEGAL WIFE, is a crime.

Hence any man who is legally married to a 12 year old girl in his country of orgin that allows it, can have sex with her in EVERY state of America.

Any man who marries a 13 year old girl in States that Allow such marriages with PArent and Court consent can have sex with her in any other state.

Is that pedophilia.

When a parent takes pictures of their 6 year old in the bath tub, is that pedophilia.

In Japan, it is legal to take pictures of your naked children, including showing their sexual parts, at any age.

In Japan it is legal to marry a 14 year old with parental consent.

Is that pedophilia.

In the US during teh 1800s, girls in the Plains states were married as young at age 12, admittedly, mostly to boys between 16 and 18.

Now, is that pedophilia?

In almost EVERY country it is LEGAL for a 17 year old to have sex with a 14 year old, but it is a feloney for anyone over 18 to have sex with someone under 18 years of age.

So if a 17 year old boy is having an affiar with a 14 year old girl, the moment he turns 18 he has to stop until she turns 16 or 18 otherwise he is a criminal.

I have never figured that one out.

I know two sexually active young people. One was 14 and the other was 17, that was legal. When the 17 year old turned 18 it became a FELONY until the 14 year old turned 16. AT 17 they would legally be allowed to live together.

That is a very strange law.

Cool one year. Serious crime the next year. In two years you can cohabit with no penalty at all and parents can't stop it.

Very strange law.

Answer 4

The classification of "paedophilia" as a psychological disorder is highly problematic. There is no proven psychological treatment to change such an orientation: the best "treatment" can do is to help the "sufferer" gain insight into the suffering caused by acting on his desires, and to develop strategies to reduce or eliminate his offending.

The sexual abuse of children is a crime, not a sickness or disorder. A claimed "disorder" is no excuse. Criminal intent and activity is not sickness. Crime harms victims, and demands a primarily judicial, not therapeutic, response.

The "ego-dystonic" vs "ego-syntonic" distinction about homosexuality was a political sop during the reign of DSM III to assuage the hurt feelings of those who opposed the initial declassification of homosexuality from DSM. It quietly disappeared between DSM -III and DSM -IIIR

I discovered the NARTH website a few months ago. Despite its claims to be an organisation for "research and treatment" they have not produced a single peer reviewed published article on the safety and efficacy of their proposed "treatments" for their proposed "pathological condition". Not one. Ever. They are a religiously based lobby group, and their scientific pretensions should be rigorously challenged.

Answer 5

The difference between being sexually attracted to a 5-year-old and someone your own age is immense.

And homosexuality was only removed from the Pentagon's list of "disorders" a few years ago. Things did not change with one person named Dr. Bieber in 1973.
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Ha. You also left this totally ridiculous and sexist part out of your plagiarized quotation:

"He (Bieber) found (in homosexual males) a close-binding, intimate mother who tended to interfere with her son's assertiveness, and who tended to dislocate his relationship with the father, siblings, and peers. However, Dr. Bieber found that homosexuality can develop without the frequently occurring close-binding-intimate, mother-son bond."

Wow. Amazing. Nothing like championing female inferiority, "unassertiveness," and supposed duty to "step aside" for the male.

Answer 6

This is why we must follow the Word of God, and not man's opinion. Humans will change their beliefs based on popular likes and dislikes, and to appease their personal desires and wants.

As time goes on, a lot of things are going to be considered acceptable, that are now illegal or morally wrong. I suspect in the future the legal age for adults to be with children will be lowered, which will be a travesty. I personally think 18 is too young for people twice that age to have relationships with, but people consider it normal, because society says it's ok. Isn't it strange that we live in a society that will allow adults to take a teenager's innocence, but will consider that same teen too young to drink?

In contrast, according to Heb 13:8, God is the same yesterday, today and forever. If he tells you something ONCE, you better believe it's truth and will not change regardless of what the majority think.

Answer 7

I know both sides.

Look, for all of time when human beings do not know the answer to something they just make up an answer and pretend that it is a truth. Later when it is proved that what was thought to be right is in fact wrong it is hard for people to except the new truth.

Answer 8

I just want to add my comment on that: look how intelligent psychiatry is: they almost killed me by forcing me to take neuroleptics that cause me damage (weight gain, trembling and a slower functionning brain). They didn't give me an option between 800 milligrams of meds, what am I saying, they didn't even give the meds to me that were better than other meds, and always tried to force me to take them instead of teaching me how to take them based on my free will and based on my acceptance that I have a problem and that I need something (what I learned on my own with the years and made it to take a small dosage, but everyday now today). I mean, how can we trust them when we look at the way they deal with problems? They are usually also supposed to make tests to give a diagnosis, and I had mine in 5 minutes! they are just charlatans I think, or how do you say that, they don't do their job very precisely....

Answer 9

Pedophiles don't ask for consent, and even if they got it, it would still be illegal and extremely distasteful. Pedophiles hurt childern, homosexuals who engage in consenual sex as adults don't. They should have the same rights to privacy as everyone else. They don't hurt society, sex is the domain of the bedroom, not of the public space.

P.S. When are you going to change your name back to "Equality for All"? I rather enjoyed that more!

Answer 10

Probably the same number of folks that actually care about the subject.