Comment on For pride month, I thought I'd take a stab at mocking a historical case of circular reasoning.
merc@sh.itjust.works 1 week ago
Blackmail is more often about shame than about law. Even when it’s legal, people are blackmailed about sexual things because it’s embarrassing.
So, in addition to making it legal, you’d also want to make it something people weren’t ashamed about. The more open a society is, the less shame people have in being themselves, and the less susceptible they are to blackmail.
captainlezbian@lemmy.world 1 week ago
Yep, you can be as big of a freak as you want and get security clearance if you’re only really hiding it as a courtesy to others. Meanwhile totally socially acceptable things that you’re too ashamed of can cost you it.
merc@sh.itjust.works 1 week ago
Right. Something being illegal can put additional pressure on someone to keep it quiet. But, blackmail is more often about shame than about something being illegal.
Some things should probably stay illegal: paedophilia, bestiality, cannibalism, etc. In that case, the comic is wrong. Despite the fact they could be used to blackmail someone, they should remain illegal. Even if someone has no shame in engaging in one of those things, it’s better that it remains a potential source of blackmail than that society allow people to do it.