I'm going to get flamed here, but my personal thoughts are that if someone can get their rocks off looking at these cartoons of underage girls and it's enough to satiate their desire that they don't do it in real life, then I don't mind it at all. Heck, I even strongly encourage it.

It's a victimless crime. Just let them have it if it doesn't hurt anyone.

Edit: VICE did a great video about this. I encourage you guys to check it out. https://youtu.be/Ky3HqvT3M8E?si=RqYHZ5EfSN5M2liw

[–] usualsuspect191@lemmy.ca 19 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Has there ever been an established correlation between people who're into underage animated characters and real underage people? It could easily be two completely or almost completely separate groups of people so it might not be helpful at all. Still not harmful either I suppose as I tend to be in the camp of no victim= no crime...

[–] wandermind@sopuli.xyz 16 points 2 years ago (1 children)

When I started watching anime, the characters were my age. Now I'm significantly older, but I still like similar characters than I used to in a similar way than I used to.

I've also seen Japanese schoolkids in real life, and while I find them adorable the same way I find any kids adorable, I have absolutely zero interest in them in the way I do towards the fictional characters. They are two completely different things for me now.

[–] usualsuspect191@lemmy.ca 6 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

I feel you're treading in similar waters to a thought experiment I've pondered before:

Imagine you either remember or fantasize about a sexual situation that occurred while you yourself were a minor with another minor. Is there something inherently wrong with becoming aroused by this? What if you're fantasizing about a situation where you were underage and something happens with someone who is not? Does anything change if you write it down? What if you draw it? Is it less wrong if you're imagining to be the underage person than if you imagine you're the older one?

I don't have any answers to any of this of course, other than it feels less wrong when you're imagining/remembering yourself to be an underage person in these situations as you can sort of retroactively consent in a way?

I guess the takeaway is probably that fantasy and reality are too different to be judged the same, and the only danger arises from those who start blending the two.

[–] lateraltwo@lemmy.world 5 points 2 years ago (3 children)

It might sate a number of them, but unhealthy addictions tend to have a nature of escalation that makes the fantasy no longer possible to limit to just drawings or other mediums. Providing, in any way, is implicitly enabling that 'addict' to seek higher thrills. The harm comes after.

[–] wahming@monyet.cc 6 points 2 years ago (2 children)

You're arguing that sexual orientation can be trained or influenced by our media, which is the exact argument that the Conservative right has been using to ban books (and everything else). It's also an argument that has been proven groundless time and time again.

[–] ParsnipWitch@feddit.de 3 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Was it proven to be groundless, though? There are studies which show how media, like social media, influence body image and also social norms and values. The research on the effects of pornography is largely inconclusive and some say there is an effect.

This meta study claims they found a connection between aggressive behaviour and the consumption of (violent) porn. But I can't find an open access link: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/A-Meta-Analysis-of-Pornography-Consumption-and-Acts-Wright-Tokunaga/91048b61adb1b989423920a6b0f344210bc725ed

I am not sure if one can boldly claim that the media consumed doesn't influence a person.

I also think there is a difference between what conservatives claim, which is mostly that your sexual orientation gets influenced by media, versus the claim at hand, that watching animated porn of underage characters increases that preference or even makes it more extreme.

[–] lateraltwo@lemmy.world 2 points 2 years ago

This isn't a political issue, total freedom is not possible under any world view anyway, so saying "the Nazis did it" isn't enough justification to abandon censorship when it comes to harmful media.

[–] HubertManne@kbin.social 6 points 2 years ago

I agree. This is just like violence in video games really.

[–] jaschen@lemm.ee 2 points 2 years ago

You're assuming it's an unhealthy addiction. How do you know it's not a mental disability? Or a post traumatic experience?

Even if it's an addiction, how someone treats an addiction for drugs varies across the board for even the same drug.

Currently there are no victims. Restricting the medium has a chance it makes things worse. Who knows. If we restrict it, we might see more Catholic priests in Japan.