For most of humanity "childhood" wasn't even a concept in the way we think of it today. Our ability to give the people in society this gift of childhood is truly one of the greatest achievements of modernity. But it's still a somewhat arbitrary line in the sand we drew, yes. I personally believe it is a reasonable one, designed conservative enough so that one can safely assume anyone on the other side of the line has had the chance to develop and grow free of unnecessary outside influence to rightly be deemed an adult after.

If society wants to redefine the terms of where that line is drawn, that is fine, as we as members of society can do so.

But for the time being we drew the line at 18. It seemed fucked as hell to say "this is the line, this is what's appropriate" and then demonize a man for staying within those lines. It's fucked to say "here's the line" when you actually mean "actually the real line is way over there and by being this close you've actually broken the rules."

Dude is staying inside the lines, and interacting with those we have deemed full legal adults imbued with the right and power of autonomy. To the best of my understanding there have been no claims of coercion, abuse, or anything of that nature. So I'm sorry, but trying to convince me that dude is doing something wrong by adhering to the rules as laid for him just isn't going to vibe with me.

[–] Miaou@jlai.lu -5 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

I've always been appalled by those who calibrate their morals based on the legal framework, rather than the other way around. Hopefully wherever you live doesn't start allowing slavery, child marriage etc. Following the law was quite during the 40s too, ask Coco Channel. Who can blame her?

[–] Vespair@lemm.ee 5 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

There is validity to this argument, certainly, but we are not talking about a social moral defined solely by legality, we are discussing a case where legality was defined within the confines of social expectation.

Legality is not inherently morality, but it can be an indicator of social morals.

There will be times when they are at odds, but I have yet to hear a compelling case in this situation.

So I ask, what social harm is being caused by defining adulthood at 18? And let's be clear, I am looking for actual harm here, not potential for harm; going through a dangerous intersection is not the same thing as experiencing a car accident.