OK, so I'm reading a blog that was written by a young (12) girl. There are some posts on there that are NOT written by a preadolescent boy, but instead are posted by some sick SOB who has dirty ulterior motives in mind. Here is my question: Where are the parents? Why do the parents not regulate what goes on in the crazy Interweb thing all the kids are doing? To make myself feel better, and to rant insanely, I am going to give a couple of points that you people should follow.
Point 1: (Most important) The computer goes in a public place. No kid gets a computer in their room. Computers are great tools. However, with the amount of really nasty people on the internet right now, and with the amount of horrible places to visit on the net, we as families should remove the threat by ensuring that the computers are in places where we can see what's going on on them.
Point 2: Password protect the monkey out of that thing. No one should be able to get on the computer without parental permission, and the only people who should know that password are the parents. This makes sure that the parents know when the kids are online. And this leads me to point 3.....
Point 3: Learn to use the History tab. The History shows you what web sites have been visited day by day. You can get this by pressing the History button, or you can use the drop down URL bar. Parents (using the password) should be the only ones who delete the History. If it's deleted on a day when you didn't BOTH agree to do it, then you know that someone in the house is deleting it because they don't want you to see what they've been looking at.
Point 4: Kids have no expectation of privacy. Did they pay for the computer? Do they pay for the house? Are they your kids and do you love them? Then you have the exclusive, permanent, and inalienable right to spy on them and search their stuff- physical and intellectual property. If they cry, tell them to suck it up. If they hate you, at least they're not being molested by some mullet-wearing, moustached perv in a minivan. You're in charge. Be in charge.
I guess that's it. Please be responsible adults, and if you can think of other tips, please post them in the comments. And if you know or suspect something is going on with someone, let people know. Start with the parents and go on to the authorities. Do your part.
