jeffw@tekecs.UUCP (Jeff Winslow) (03/30/84)
Some people (on the net and elsewhere) have been saying recently that
chemical "castration" of rapists can't work because "rape is a crime of
violence, not sex". That is a confusion of political and biochemical
theories. As I understand it, rape is considered a crime of violence
rather than sex because the primary characteristic of rapists seems to
be, not horniness, but a willingness to do violence to women. But violent
behavior in males is currently thought to be dependent on the activity
of "sex hormones" just as sexual behavior is. Putting it another way,
chemicals which lessen sexual activity might reduce violent activity as
well.
Also, if the treatment works (Allen England's article did present one
case where it seemed to), it works, regardless of whether rape is considered
to be a crime of violence, sex, or metaphysically-moderated hyperbarism.
Facts make or break theories, not the other way around.
Jeff Winslow