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The cognitive/affective construct designated by the term pedophile is delineated on the basis of how he is presented in the popular media. His salient characteristics are listed and then examined in the light of scientific and historical data. The pedophile is discovered to be a social construct that floats in the thin air of fantasy. Since the truth-value of the construct pedophile approaches zero, we are confronted with the question of why he continues to be such a central and emotionally fraught aspect of American culture. The answer to this question is found in his political usefulness. Specifically, the religious right uses him to further its agenda of sexual repression, and the political right uses him to dismantle the machinery of a free society.

How is it that a small country such as Belgium, with its reputation of relative conservatism, has jumped to the forefront of LGBT-friendly nations when it comes to the extension of rights to, and implementation of government policies for, its LGBT population? The analysis offered here focuses on a combination of six causes: the impact of wider secularization processes; the political history and culture of the country; the organization of especially the Flemish LGBT movement and reasons for its political effectiveness; mainstream social trends in national scapegoating hierarchies; the overall media environment; and the window of opportunity opened by the political landslide of 1999.

The relationship of several antecedents of aggression toward homosexuals was investigated. Attitudes toward homosexuality, perceived similarity to the target homosexual, and type of prior contact with the target homosexual were found to interact in influencing such aggressiveness. The implication of these findings to the "personal threat" and "scapegoating" hypotheses of aggression toward homosexuals is discussed.