Words: Paedophile, n.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.IF EVERY criminal wants to be caught, then Gary Glitter's forbidding a PC World engineer to open his lap-top files was tantamount to making him click on the mouse forthwith. An unremarked aspect of the case is that nobody will now have a machine repaired but, instead, buy a new, faster one for less.
Meanwhile, we have the word paedophile, but not one for a love of children - which, from the Greek, is in fact what it should mean, just as an audiophile relishes hi-fi rather than smashes it up. Some parents loathe children; some of the childless - such as Virginia Woolf - are magical with them.
Paedophile was Havelock Ellis's 1906 coining. Does any other word that ends in -phile mean a perversion? Some might suggest Europhile.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments