22 year old guy having sex with a 16 year old girl

[KSig RC]

Originally Posted by DSTRen13

Age of consent's different in every state. Personally, 16 sounds like a pretty good age to me. If you're old enough to handle a car, you're old enough to choose your sexual partners (if you choose to have any). They're both extremely dangerous.

JMO.

I agree with this in principle, but many age-of-consent laws actually have an age difference component built in, so 16 year olds can't get down with 45 year olds at their bequest.

The issue, to my mind, is that the "cutoff" for adulthood fluctuates wildly depending on the particular thing you're discussing - you have to draw the line somewhere, and while 16 might be a fine age to make sexual decisions, as a rule I'm not too concerned with the current state of the "window" age gap rules. There are obviously corner cases where a 16 year old might be in love with a 32 year old man, but those will likely sort themselves out - I think that as long as they're considered children, though, we have to allow the law to view them as such in as many ways as possible. That was really why I responded above like I did - change the law if you want to change the law, but don't act like we give 16 year olds free reign over their own lives as it is.

This is where the problems with trying as an adult stem from, also - it's arbitrary.

[Glitter650]

Originally Posted by KSig RC

I agree with this in principle, but many age-of-consent laws actually have an age difference component built in, so 16 year olds can't get down with 45 year olds at their bequest.

The issue, to my mind, is that the "cutoff" for adulthood fluctuates wildly depending on the particular thing you're discussing -

http://www.ageofconsent.com/california.htm



I acutally think the difference is a good way to go in this case, because at least IMO... a 17 and 18 year old is NOT the same as a 16 year old and a 37 year old.

I DO see MAJOR problems with the flucation of the adult "cutoff" for so many different things. I mean there's no way that you can go a get a license, or take a drink before you are the ages deemed appropriate for that action, but you can be tried as an adult when you should've "known better".
Not that I don't think that some criminals ABSOLUTELY know what was going on when they committed their crime, and perhaps deserve the full extent of the "adult" law, but it seems like a double standard. Especially since it is so arbitrary sometimes. == shrugs ==

[DSTRen13]

I just really don't care if a 16 year old has sex with a 37 year old versus an 18 year old. Seriously. As long as it's not my child, who I wouldn't want having sex at 16 no matter who it was with (because yes, I am a prude like that), I really couldn't care less. Why on earth should such a thing be legislated??

[KSig RC]

Originally Posted by DSTRen13

I just really don't care if a 16 year old has sex with a 37 year old versus an 18 year old. Seriously. As long as it's not my child, who I wouldn't want having sex at 16 no matter who it was with (because yes, I am a prude like that), I really couldn't care less. Why on earth should such a thing be legislated??

What about a 15 year old? 14?

You see where I'm going - at some point, you have to draw the line . . . five? 10?

[DSTRen13]

Originally Posted by KSig RC

What about a 15 year old? 14?

You see where I'm going - at some point, you have to draw the line . . . five? 10?

No, what I'm talking about is the idea that it would be legal for a 16 year old to have sex with an 18 year old but not a 30 year old - those kind of age cut-offs. I understand age of consent, but the idea that you can consent only to having sex with someone up to a certain age is really bizarre to me.

[Sugar08]

Originally Posted by DSTRen13

No, what I'm talking about is the idea that it would be legal for a 16 year old to have sex with an 18 year old but not a 30 year old - those kind of age cut-offs. I understand age of consent, but the idea that you can consent only to having sex with someone up to a certain age is really bizarre to me.

I think the idea is that an 18-year-old is not as far removed from adolescence or "innocence" as a 37-year-old. Not saying I agree, but theoretically, it would be a more even playing ground.