Mother-Son Incest Case

[Martinus]

This is a very rare case where I don't think it is in the public interest. But generally people don't meet their parents for the first time when they are adults and end up having sex with them. I think the prosecutor should have used some better judgement here.

I don't see how this isn't in the public interest- the "public interest" issue is as much the increased risk of congenital defects weighing on the public health system as it is the authority imbalance issue.  Though I'd agree this sounds like a minimal issue in this specific case due to the mother being near/past the age where she's no longer likely to bear children- all things considered, given that the prosecutor felt it necessary to pursue the charges, I wonder what's not being reported- little charges like this seem to often dovetail with characters who, for whatever reason, refuse to play nice with the system.

Ok, Dr Mengele.

[Valmy]

Ok, Dr Mengele.

Oh you!

[The Brain]

Health risk to children of incest? Anywhere near the health risks to children of making them morbidly obese?

[Valmy]

Health risk to children of incest? Anywhere near the health risks to children of making them morbidly obese?

I think forcing a child to become morbidly obese is considered abusive

Probably harder to prove though.

[The Brain]

Health risk to children of incest? Anywhere near the health risks to children of making them morbidly obese?

I think forcing a child to become morbidly obese is considered abusive

Probably harder to prove though.

Forcing a child? Does any country place that kind of burden on small children?

[Martinus]

Let's sterilize people with genetic diseases!

[Valmy]

Forcing a child? Does any country place that kind of burden on small children?

I don't follow.

Let's sterilize people with genetic diseases!

Let's not!

[mongers]

Isn't there a Queen song about this situation? 

[The Brain]

Forcing a child? Does any country place that kind of burden on small children?

I don't follow.

Small children are not commonly expected to make decisions on their diet or level of physical activity. A parent often doesn't have to force a kid to eat sugar and fat, just make sugar and fat available in unhealthy amounts. Small children are also not commonly expected to actively avoid a sedentary lifestyle, a parent encouraging or expecting a sedentary lifestyle can often be enough to heavily influence the child's behavior without force being necessary.

[OttoVonBismarck]

Eh, I'm okay with the state prohibiting things that are so against the broad social morality.

[viper37]

Eh, I'm okay with the state prohibiting things that are so against the broad social morality.

like homosexuality?

[garbon]

Eh, I'm okay with the state prohibiting things that are so against the broad social morality.

like homosexuality?

Not anymore.

[sbr]

Mother-Daughter Incest is hotter.

[garbon]

Mother-Daughter Incest is hotter.

Well neither person is attractive in this case but don't know that principles should be decided on hotness.

[PDH]

Incest, outside of notions of royal blood (leading to the problems of the Ptolemaic system or the Hawaiian pure blood issues), seems to be an almost universal taboo.  The notion of taboo means that a society deems the act as forbidden, often associating it with all sorts of religious, karmic, or physical problems.  Still we know from animal husbandry (sorry, Brain, the OTHER kind) that selective breeding of even close stock will enhance certain desirable genetic attributes.  Also, in small scale communities the rate of inbreeding has often been quite close to incest or at least over the "frequent" line of determining incest.

Still, why is it such a universal taboo?  Total speculation here, but it would seem the small scale social aspects of child rearing needs to be independent from direct sexual activities - the two have totally different spheres of emotional and physical interaction.  Successful child rearing has been, for as long as humans have lived in groups, to be among the most basic concerns.  At times the raising of children can take precedent over the caloric needs of adults in a "feed the next generation" sort of scenario (while the reverse can also happen...)  It would seem to be that the taboo therefore helps to ensure the success of the society, rather than the needs/wants of the individual.

To casually throw out such a universal taboo would be to forgo any sort of rational look at the entire range of human society, and the importance of placing such in a historical context as well.  Culture does indeed change over time, but some elements seem to be at the present very much key to the replication of that society.