Two other things I wanted to say.

I mention in my post:

> I understand the other side’s concern; they
> want to be able to respond when a child is at
> risk of being hurt, and that is a laudable goal.

It is an irony to me to have realized that -- were we (as individuals attracted to minors) fully equal before the law and relatively free of the deleterious effects of invidious animus -- we would be the staunchest supporters of the neglect and abuse statutes among any segment of society.

If I were an average private citizen who was accused of some specific act of abuse or neglect of a child -- and the laws were fair -- I would reasonably expect a jury that held one or more "MAA's" to be more critical, and more likely to vote for hanging, than otherwise.

Also, my sigpic acknowledges my military service to my Country. It conceals from plain view something of high significance to me, and my life. I was offered military intelligence school when I enlisted in the U.S. Army. I had conversational fluency in German because of high-school classes and my great-grandmother (an emigree). I turned down MI school and accepted "combat medic" school, equivelant to a civilian paramedic with some additional authority, because of the history of that occupation in the service. I grew up in a military family. Up until Vietnam, conscience-objectors were required to serve as either cooks or medics and were permitted to not carry a side-arm.

I am a pacifist, utterly and totally. I served in a hostile area, providing border patrol along the East-West German wall before the fall of Erik Hoenecher's Communist government. Several times during my tour, the East German military amassed and prepared for invasion, particularly twice in response to "REFORGER" exercises wherein we deployed our field artillery within range of East German military targets. I was Calvary; we were the first forces that would have sustained contact with the enemy. Our mission was to penetrate the enemy line and to provide forward intelligence, thus the border patrol mission.

At the end of my tour, my service-issued Colt .45 ACP remained unissued from the Armory of the First of the Second. I refused to carry it.

Pacifism demands more of one than war. It is a more difficult path to follow.