The Student Room Group

Why is Incest illegal in the UK?

Meet Patrick and Susan. A young couple, and in love, with four children. However their life was torn apart when the state and society deemed their relationship "unnatural" and "immoral", and imprisoned them both. This was because they just happened to be brother and sister.

Patrick and Susan were jailed repeatedly for one crime, loving each other. Since then their children have been forced into care, and the lovers were separated from them and each other for many years.

How can anyone argue this is moral? Who has the right to say that a consensual relationship is wrong?

Discuss.



Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/6424937.stm

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The kids will be mutants.
Reply 2
Original post by Glen_Nichols
The kids will be mutants.


This.
Do you need any more?
Ok, thats it, I've had enough. This has gone too far!!

This attitude of let two consenting adults do whatever they want is fine...up to a point.

Incest is sick, and if it ever becomes legal....just the thought of it makes me want to be sick.

How would you feel if your brother and sister came home one day and told you they had been having sex :lolwut:?
Reply 5
Original post by Glen_Nichols
The kids will be mutants.


This would be the reason.
(edited 12 years ago)
Reply 6
Because having kids with such a close genepool means there more likely to get a genetic disease? Therefore you could also argue that it could be considered wrong to have a relationship that may cause harm to your own children, and putting your children after yourselves.
Reply 7
It's not like incest is the only thing the government (wrongly) thinks it has a (moral) right to stick its nose into.
Reply 8
Im telling your family to RUN!!!! :/
Reply 9
Troll or retard.

Just look at the child birth deficiency rates in incestual relationships. That's the main reason.

Dispatches did an episode where they looked at the Bangladeshi community, who seem to love marrying their cousins, and as a result have the highest level of child birth defects in the UK

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/dispatches/episode-guide/series-68/episode-1
Reply 10
Well for anyone who says it should be illegal for the reason that their children will have a higher chance of getting certain disabilities, would you then also say it should be illegal for people with serious inheritable diseases to have kids?

If not, then why are they any different?
Reply 11
Original post by Glen_Nichols
The kids will be mutants.


Original post by ninjacarlotta
This.
Do you need any more?


They have four kids and none are mutants. Next stupid question.
Reply 12
To provide a deterrent against doing your sister, like you need one. Maybe you do... who knows? :smile:
Incest seems boring and like the easy route (I get along with my brother/sister, why not marry them?). Finding someone who is not a relative but who you can still have a similar level of emotional connection with appears to be more fun.
Reply 14
Original post by Lewroll
Ok, thats it, I've had enough. This has gone too far!!

This attitude of let two consenting adults do whatever they want is fine...up to a point.

Incest is sick, and if it ever becomes legal....just the thought of it makes me want to be sick.

How would you feel if your brother and sister came home one day and told you they had been having sex :lolwut:?


What would you do if your mum came home one day and said she had raunchy sex with your dad. Oh, would you feel sick then too? Better ban parental sex aswell.
"People have said that our children are disabled, but that is wrong. They are not disabled," said Patrick.

"Eric, our eldest child, has epilepsy, but he was born two months premature, he also has learning difficulties. Our other daughter, Sarah, has special needs," Patrick said.

Urm wut? I'd definitely class epilepsy and learning difficulties as disabilities. Were his parents relatives as well?
Reply 16
There's an increased chance of genetic disease, but banning the relationship from that perspective justifies other bans that people might disagree with. By the same logic you can ban people with genetic diseases from breeding.

I'm not really that passionate either way about this, just throwing in that point for discussion.
It's called WINcest for a reason.
Reply 18
Original post by Scribblet
Because having kids with such a close genepool means there more likely to get a genetic disease? Therefore you could also argue that it could be considered wrong to have a relationship that may cause harm to your own children, and putting your children after yourselves.


Yes, maybe, but there is a risk of genetic disease without the parents even being related.

Then, following from your logic, you believe that women over 40 (who have the same risk of birth defects) shouldn't be allowed to have kids?

Adults with down syndrome should be banned from having sex? Or even merely a person with a averagely high risk of hereditary disease (history of mental illness or heart disease) should be imprisoned for having sex?
Reply 19
Original post by Stefan1991
They have four kids and none are mutants. Next stupid question.


But most tend to be.

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