Ill Conceived What is Childhood?
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Nov 23, 2025 The latest discussion dives into the upcoming release of documents about Jeffrey Epstein, igniting debates around what defines childhood. Hosts explore the troubling trend of minimizing abuse through semantic arguments. They analyze how purity culture can facilitate abuse and connect it to broader natalist concerns about women and childbearing. The episode critiques a controversial defense of sexualization in teens and reflects on historical shifts in age-of-consent laws. Their exploration sparks critical dialogues on childhood protections and political implications.
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Schools Made Adolescence Legally Valuable
- The high school movement and the Life Adjustment Curriculum institutionalized adolescence and schooling.
- Hosts credit these reforms with creating legal protections and a distinct social role for children.
Consent Laws Rose With Social Reform
- Age-of-consent laws rose dramatically from ~10 (1890) to mostly 16–18 by 1920 alongside schooling and feminism.
- Josh notes that this legal shift aimed to protect young girls from exploitation and prostitution.
Write Laws Around Power, Not Just Puberty
- When making consent policy, prioritize power dynamics and realistic protections over crude biological claims.
- Use age thresholds and Romeo–Juliet exceptions to avoid criminalizing peer relationships while protecting minors from adults.
