[Drew]

Thing is though, it's an accepted cultural norm out there. This is considered a perfectly viable alternative to marriage, for better or for worse.

If you think about it, it's really not that much different for a really religious girl "saving herself for marriage," and then marrying the richest guy she can. The only difference is what happens afterwards - after having sex for a tremendous amount of money, these indian girls have sex with lots of men for very little money, whereas the American stays with the man long enough to satisfy the prenup, then has the wedding annulled.

[TheMissing]

Originally Posted by Drew

Thing is though, it's an accepted cultural norm out there. This is considered a perfectly viable alternative to marriage, for better or for worse.

If you think about it, it's really not that much different for a really religous girl "saving herself for marriage," and then marrying the richest girl she can. The only difference is what happens afterwards - after having sex for a tremendous amount of money, these indian girls have sex with lots of men for very little money, whereas the American stays with the man long enough to satisfy the prenup, then has the wedding annuled.

Not saying I agree with that either.

The world is a f-ed up place.

[Nick]

i fully agree you need to look at it from a non UK or US standard.

But i think that what this comes down to is are 14 year old girls adult enough to make a decission like this. The answer is just NOOOOOOO.

Iv been to a lot of different countries across europe with basketball. Iv lived in the US for a year. US kids are deffinetly older looking but younger mentally than a lot of other places (no offence, i actually think that the immaturity was a good thing because my friends were at my level!!!)

Doesnt matter what part of the world your in 14 year olds are kids and kids shouldnt have sex with adults.

end\

[Drew]

I'm wondering how much of that is culturally-derived, too though. I mean, in the UK and US, you're told that you're not an adult until you're 18. 21, in some cases. So, you're never treated as an adult, never expected to make adult decisions, never faced with adult consequences, and as such if you'd ask me if a 14 year old kid should be allowed to make choices as an adult, then I'm going to say no.

However, say that you're living in a country where you're treated as an adult much earlier - you're given responsibility for your actions, you're allowed to make adult decisions and live with the repercussions, and youre publically recognized as being an adult. Would this be a sort of self-fulfilling proclaimation? I.e - would being treated as an adult at an early age make you more suited to make adult decisions?

I can't say for sure, but I'd suspect it's certainly possible. And if I read this right, your own observations sort of back up the possibility, that in a society the coddles their teenages and keeps them away from real responsibility as long as possible leads to us being fairly un-adult for our ages.

US kids are deffinetly older looking but younger mentally than a lot of other places (no offence, i actually think that the immaturity was a good thing because my friends were at my level!!!)

I don't know. It's a fucked up issue, because speaking as a 27 year old American hearing that a girl half my age is having her virginity auctioned off to the highest bidder is absolutely wrong, but trying to get out of my "safe" mindset, you can't get around the fact that the girls are ok with this choice. :/

[Nick]

Where i live you are an adult when your 16


Was i mature enought to raise a family (which im legally allowed to do at that age) haha no no.

Id agree that its possible that being given more responsibility will make you more responsible and im sure in some cases its true. But i think that what this comes down to is something that is inherrantly wrong.

I know iv kind of went off on one on this subject but think of YOURSELF having sex with a 14 yearold its a pretty horrible thought which is why its wrong wherever your from.

[Drew]

Originally Posted by Nick

I know iv kind of went off on one on this subject but think of YOURSELF having sex with a 14 yearold its a pretty horrible thought which is why its wrong wherever your from.

...but that's because I've been raised to think having sex with a 14 year old is wrong, you know? For probably the majority of the human race's history, that was actually the norm, someone about my age marrying someone about that young.

[Randy]

Originally Posted by Drew

...but that's because I've been raised to think having sex with a 14 year old is wrong, you know? For probably the majority of the human race's history, that was actually the norm, someone about my age marrying someone about that young.

And historically, enslaving other races you deem inferior to your own was the norm. I like to think we've evolved past such barbaric activities, to some degree.

At a certain time, without adequate scientific knowledge and healthcare, it was necessary to find a young girl who was healthy and fertile for procreation. In the modern world, I don't think the old guy+young girl dynamic is appropriate or necessary.

I'm sure other cultures see if differently though, and I can understand that... But things like this hearken to dark ages, rather than "alternative cultural beliefs", IMO.

[noodles]

Originally Posted by Nick

lol anyone who says that these people arent barbaric is talking out their ass. Cultures like this need to be stamped out.

Damn straight! I wish someone stamped out the USA back in the 1800s. Fucking barbarians.

[eleven59]

Originally Posted by Drew

Realizing I'm calling down the Wrath of Aaron here, I'm going to go ahead and say that that's not exactly the most nuanced read I've heard. Sure, we're not perfect and sure there's room for improvement before wecan really claim serious moral high ground, but I'll disagree if you want to argue that we only report on stuff like this to make us "feel better about ourselves."

If anything, I'd attribute it to a lack of cultural understanding - that it's possible for a society to embrace prostitution as a form of acceptable social interaction, that we're taking our "enlightened" American moral compass, pointing it at another society, and judging accordingly, without stopping to consider that society's moral orientation. It's the typical American problem of assuming everyone else is either just like us, or wants to be. That's a very different thing than pointing the finger to shift the blame, you know?

No wrath here, you weren't disagreeing with the parts I felt strongly about That statement was possibly a bit of an exaggeration, but it's hard to deny that North Americans can be very hypocritical when it comes to moral judgement. I mean, the only difference between what's happening there and what happens in North America is that there it's culturally accepted, while here in North America it's swept under the rug and dealt with quietly.

[eleven59]

Originally Posted by noodles

Damn straight! I wish someone stamped out the USA back in the 1800s. Fucking barbarians.