Mental health as a way of enforcing social laws

Homosexuality was a mental illness. But today so are the...think they're called paraphilias...but I don't defend paedophiles.

I probably should but it depends on the definition. I would find it hard to defend someone who had sex with someone without consent or capacity to make the decision.

Let me be precise as I dig myself into a hole of shit. I had a chat to a doctor about one of his patients. This patient knew a lot. He'd been having paedophile thoughts. He came to see his doctor because he was having trouble controlling them. He'd never done anything to a child but he feared doing it. He wanted therapy. The doctor was unsure whether to report him to the police.

He had done no harm, was not hiding his condition from his doctor and was seeking thought/behavioural modification.

In another country or another time paedophilia may not be unacceptable. I think it's a Polynesian country or somewhere round there where the king deflowers every virgin. It is a culturally accepted and, perhaps, enforced thing. I assume it is bound in the culture and the act itself isn't something out of a porn movie.

But in this culture there are social and criminal laws. This individual was aware and aware of his deviance. He went to a doctor iin confidence. He wanted to be 'fixed'.

This is about social laws, behavioural modification and choice. Let me tell another small story. I used to work at a mental health charity and someone came across a piece of recent research that showed 15% (or something like that) of therapists would try to change or adapt a clients sexuality if asked.

I was disgusted and so was he, but for different reasons. He was gay and he was surprised at the 15%. I'm not but I believe in gay rights but more importantly choice. I was disgusted at the 85% who'd not done what the client wanted.

These two stories are just the start of a thought process. What is mental illness? What is paedophilia? Other stuff too.

Let me be clear. I am not adocating paedophilia. I'm trying to explain how social laws and psychiatry are bedfellows, irrespective of a biological component however biological evidence may be used to support the social law and treatment may involve chemicals.