If the media would stop hyperbolizing sex abuse charges and if the legislators would stop acting from the platform of political correctness PERHAPS some sanity could come to this issue. Until the citizens, those who have experience with this issue, stand up and speak openly about their experiences, no sex offender or their family members are safe. The US incarcerates more of its citizens than ANY other nation on the planet. That means the citizens of the US are either more evil than any other nation OR the US is more punitive than any other nation. The old argument that other nations kill their criminals is NONSENSE. Most state "murders" are committed in a war environment not in a judicial environment.

People who are ignorant of the media's use of hyperbole and the legislators use of political correctness are the only people who CAN believe the crap gossip about sex offenders. A question begs to be asked - have YOU ever done ANYTHING that could get you charged under a mandatory minimum charge? And the answer is YES - whether you can admit that or not it is true. You should consider yourself in the same position as those charged with sex offenses because it is more probable today that ever before that those charges are at least exagerated. Do you know anyone who is actually innocent and locked-up? Probably you do. And why do you think you have escaped incarceration, because YOU are SO GOOD, or lucky?!?!?! THINK for a change!

For all those who assume that a child that is involved in any unwanted sexual activity being damaged forever, I can assure you that is hardly ever the case. I wish you would give some credit to the individual's ability to heal. The only crime that the victim can not heal from is murder because the person is dead and certainly unable to heal. Most people DO heal from unwanted sexual activities - but that fact would put alot of psychologists out of business, right? I experienced unwanted sexual activity from my step-father and I healed from those experiences. Poverty is the experience that I have trouble healing from. I live in the US and believe that the US goes too far to the extreme of the idea of there being a "pedephile around every corner", it makes for good newspaper sales. It has created havoc in the judicial system - MANY innocent people are in prison due to this fear promoted by the media and the real, medically diagnosable pedophiles are under the radar. Has anyone ever read a DSM? There is an excellent book just out about what people really honestly SHOULD be afraid of. Check it out.

"still paying" I am so sorry that the victims assistance in your state failed you so miserably! I encourage you to advocate for services that provide for healing from unwanted sexual activity. That could very well help you move through your own healing process by helping others with your experience. Revenge is never as satisfying as expected - it actually only feeds the need for more revenge. How much punishment is productive? If the goal is revenge there is no limit to how much punishment is enough - there is NEVER enough punishment for revenge to be satisfied with. What do you want "still paying" revenge or punishment? Which of those is going to help YOU heal? Are you going to allow your victimization to cripple the rest of your life? I urge you to seriously consider how you can help yourself heal so that you can live the life you want. Unless revenge is the life you want. Not for me! I want to ENJOY life not waste it on being pissed off at someone who doesn't even care about me. I would much rather live in the moment, not in the past. How about you "still paying"? Do you really want to live in the past?