YOUR COMMENTS

Maybe with some more support the hosptitals in NH will get some resources to provide sexual assault exams to children.
- ER, concord,nh

It's got to start somewhere, Unfortunately, These laws may not stop the abuse completely, but maybe it will send a strong signal that this won't be tolerated anymore and reduce the abuse. . Maybe if the laws are tougher, these individuals will think twice about what they are doing. But if the temptation is too strong, nothing will stop them. That is why it is so important that parents talk to their kids about these chat rooms. They are so dangerous. Why gamble with your childs life? They are the most precious things in our life, don't we owe it to them to to teach and protect them? Don't let some stranger take their innocence and life away.
- Nicole, Manchester

All of these laws are reactionary and do nothing to prevent child abuse. As the previous posts indicate, the parents should be talking to their kids about this stuff. Not, oh you molested that kid and you also sent naughty emails so we will now tack 5 years onto your sentence. The kid was still abused and that cannot be taken away. A hotmail or yahoo account can be obtained in 2 minutes without any verifications of identity. Only a subpeona AFTER an offense has occured will help determine who the person is, unless they prey from a cafe or open wireless network.
- Ted L., Manchester

Melanie, I applaud you for being an involved parent. Sounds like you've done a great job in teaching your daughter how to protect herself and know when something is not right, and it sounds like you are right there to protect her too. I have a daugther who has no interest in these websites which is totally fine w/me, but we talk to her anyway about what could happen on these sites, we even let her watch Datelines To Catch a Predator. I feel she needs to know what kind of people are out there, and what can happen if she meets someone online if she ever goes on one of these websites. It's also good to teach kids, that even though they may not give their name, address, or any other personal information they think is important to be easily found, these perps are quick thinkers and can easily trick a child into giving them information that the child think is harmless. Like, what sports do you play? What's the name of your team? what's the name of your school? Do you walk home from school?questions like these can narrow a perps search if they know what questions to ask without sounding like they are asking for personal information. We teach our daughter that any information can be easily traced thanks to the internet! I support this bill 100%.
- Tammy, Manchester

I COMPLETELY agree.. the first line of defense is SUPPOSED to be the Parent. My daughter has been visiting a well-known and often-visited website for kids/teens. We are talking over 100,000 kids/teens at one time which is tracked. My daughter has been going to this specific site for a couple years now, and she started getting concerned about this particular person who kept bothering her in her email account she had on this site. It really is a great site and I actually joined to be amongst the PARENTS who sign in to keep watch over their kids. So, I joined, met some great fellow moms and joined the parent-guilds they have from which hold a "Parenting Guild: Making our kids safe"... and from time to time, I get to enjoy chatting with my daughter online with her and my friends and people from around the world... until one person went overboard...Right away, she brought the offending emails to my attention. My daughter sent me the emails this particular person was sending which were just vicious and controlling. Thankfully we both managed to report this person with all the emails as proof of possible stalker to the website owners. The owners acted quickly on our concerns which is why this website we go to is PHENOMINAL! ZERO TOLERANCE!

My daughter read that safety book and sure enough, this person was doing the SAME tactics that were described in the Internet Safety Book that my daughter came home with. She showed me the examples... I said to her how proud I was that she was able to identify this after we had reported the emails. You NEED to be an involved Parent. If you dont have time to spend with your kids while they are on the internet, then you need to reconsider the fact of getting rid of it. These sickos are out there... and letting your kids jump online without supervision (or for most, its the babysitter) is asking for alot of trouble. Keep the internet out of their bedroom and in a public room so you can keep tabs on your kids. Make the time happen that you sit there with them... Its a great way to share time together but also its a parent's responsibility from the very beginning, to make sure your kids are safe.
- Melanie, Manchester, New Hampshire