“A dangerous paedophile today asked for chemical castration as a judge jailed him indefinitely for a sick catalogue of abuse. Glen Want was locked up after police discovered pictures of himself spanking a nine-year-old boy on his computer. Officers also found other sickening downloaded images of child abuse when they raided his Eastbourne home. Some of the children were aged between one and eight. Documents containing references to masochism, torture and even the death of young children were also discovered. Want, 42, yesterday told a judge he wanted to be chemically castrated to curb his sick urges. He said he wanted to volunteer for treatment which would leave him impotent… Richard Cherrill, defending, told the court yesterday that Want is suffering from a brain tumour. Mr Cherrill added: ‘He asks me to draw to the court’s attention a newspaper story about chemical castration. ‘He is very anxious to undergo such treatment, and hopefully he will be able to receive it. ‘Through me he declares his willingness to undergo that treatment voluntarily. ‘He is determined to rid himself of his dysfuntional sexual desires.’” — The Argus (UK)

A perusal of the scientific literature on chemical castration indicates that a strong consensus on its efficacy has yet to emerge. Some studies claim that it’s extremely effective. Others are less optimistic: “it is presently unclear whether pedophilia responds better or worse to this therapy in sexual offenders… Although, there is some indication that recidivism will decrease following chemical castration, its use is limited by a high refusal and drop-out rate.” When you combine that with the lack of detailed knowledge about its side effects and the obvious ethical issues that arise when neutering people, you understand why few American states have adopted the practice of castrating sex offenders.

Another point to consider is whether a guy such as Mr. Want — yes, that’s his now ironic name — is really a sex offender at all. His lawyer called the spanking photograph a “thought crime” because it was the little boy’s sister and not Mr. Want who took the picture. In a more general sense many “sex offenders” may really be thought criminals. Is castrating Mr. Want going to change any joy he experienced at spanking, hurting, or torturing a child? Does it make sense to target the penis when the pleasure in the act was clearly more diffuse, even more conceptual? A limp dick doesn’t prevent the guy from spanking anyone. The hope may be that it removes his motivation for doing so, and yet it also seems perfectly reasonable to think that it could simply transform his motivation into something else. What was once a cruel sexual impulse could become even nastier precisely because it’s blunted by frustration and impotence.

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