My work has recently been a topic of discussion on some radical MRA sites.

In a comment left on my blog, and in a debate on one of their own blogs, the male sexualists - representing a radical spin-off from the broader MRA movement - argued that pretty much every normal man is attracted to under-18s. I agree with them, and believe that the vast majority of men claiming otherwise are the most pathetic of liars.

The male sexualists took issue with my use of the term 'MAP' in reference to the Porepunkah shooter, arguing that there was no reason to call him a MAP simply because he engaged in criminalized activity with a person who could well have been a sexually mature teen. More broadly, they expressed concern that the term 'MAP', by technically including anyone over the age of 18 attracted to anyone under the age of 18, captures pretty much every adult sexual orientation in existence. And I very much understand their position.

Ultimately, however, the term 'MAP' was never intended to be applied to normal men attracted to, say, 15-40 year olds. As a MAP Union article explains, the whole purpose of the 'MAP' term was to be as inclusive as possible while avoiding the 'pedo' stigma. Indeed, I used the term 'minor-attracted person' as an older teen in 2007, before it was ever a movement or a meme, having joined the boylove community as an older minor attracted to younger boys. It wasn't a case of political correctness or wokism, but a matter of creating an all-encompassing identity behind which heterosexual and homosexual hebephiles, pedophiles, and even nepiophiles of any age could lobby for change. This fairly disparate group of individuals might not be interested in the same things - I certainly can't understand how the hell someone might be sexually attracted to a toddler - but we're all in it together, and we need to fight together. Rallying behind the 'MAP' cause works, and without it the community would be even more fractured than it is now.

Should a 40 year old man attracted to 15-40 year olds call himself a MAP? Probably not. The term was never intended to refer to him. What that man should do is be honest, and stop the performative bullshit about wanting to burn anyone at the stake should they admit their age of attraction falls below some magic number. The MAP rights community and the male sexualists complement each other, but they do so more effectively when coming at the issue from their own unique, honest angles. It benefits MAPs to have regular men stating they are attracted to under-18s, that this is in fact normal, and that a man having a sexual relationship with a sexually mature teen is not going to cause the Earth to shatter into a million pieces. Likewise, having radical MAP activists thrust discussion of age-gap relationships into the spotlight promotes discussion. It offers an extreme version of reform to which male sexualists can suggest a very moderate and relatively 'reasonable' alternative. It also offers a radical "so what?" pushback against the pedo slur leveled at male sexualists.

Both groups need to be clear about the reality that the stigma surrounding age-gap relationships isn't truly about harm prevention at all. It is about disgust over a perceived deviation from the norm; the punishment of such 'deviants' has always gratified humans with a swell of sadistic pleasure. I say perceived deviation because attraction to teens is not a deviation at all. The problematization (and criminalization) of adult-teen sexual relationships stems from the work of puritanical social reformists, mostly Christians and feminists, in the late 19th century. Deeply flawed research performed by 'social scientists' in the 1980s wrongly labeled such relationships inherently harmful, creating a new 'industry' to prevent this imaginary harm, and offering a handy excuse for the haters in what was otherwise an age of sexual liberation.

MAPs are busy attacking the notion that AMSC is inherently harmful, which is a necessity both for MAPs and the male sexualist movement. Having normal men come out and state that they prefer teens to older adults will go a long way toward normalization and 'disgust reduction', which will help to push moderate proposals like 16/12 toward a modicum of respect and viability. MAPs and male sexualists should work together, but it's better to do this honestly, without the latter adopting the 'MAP' banner.