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calgal · #13 (**permalink**) 11-18-2007, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshua

Quote:

Originally Posted by calgal

I do not mean this to be rude but Joshua would you be comfortable with some random stranger yelling to your kid in that same manner? Even if they claimed affiliation with some church? I would be livid if it were my nephews or cousins accosted by a stranger. ALL THE GUY HAD TO DO WAS EXPLAIN! His reaction would make the cops even more suspicious and rightfully so!

Incidentally, affiliation with a church is NO guarantee that the person is safe. There is a time and place and way to witness. His method was NOT appropriate (and would send up red flags IMNSHO).

First, Ma'am, I conceded a bit in one of my previous posts by saying:

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshua

...maybe I'm just too jumpy about Big Brotherism

As my kid being a girl, I wouldn't have her out by herself, etc. She would go inside the building and avoid/ignore the guy...or tell people there. I wouldn't encourage her to call 911, but me...particularly in light of the fact that the guy didn't make any threats. I never alluded to the fact that he was affiliated with a church. Such plays no part in my paranoia, and I'm certainly not foolish enough to think that ties to a church automatically make a person safe. Nor did I ever say what he did was appropriate. But the cops had no evidence or anything to stand upon in order to justify pulling the guy over, demanding he get out of his car, etc. etc.

I readily admit that he could/should have been smarter. He could have easily identified what he wanted to tell them. Maybe he didn't want to yell it. However, he didn't approach them and make any threats. Furthermore, I don't know these 13 yr old boys. For all I know they could have been like I was when I was 13. A punk. I just find it odd that we Americans are so willing to give up private freedoms in the name of supposed security. I am not saying that this guy wasn't going to do anything wrong. But we don't know. Nor do we know if these 13 yr olds were innocent little boys, away from mommy and daddy, only wanting to safely spend their evening outside their favorite restaurant skateboarding on the parking lot.

It's just my opinion that the boys could have taken other measures, and the police could have handled there end of it much better as well.

That being noted, I'm willing to concede that my sensitivity can be chalked up to my distrust of Big Brother.

I understand but want to give a couple more things to ponder. Kids are taught about "stranger danger" at an early age these days and are a lot more paranoid than we were as kiddos. Of course the statistics that state family/friends and clergy are more likely to molest a child than a pervert in a pickup would be are ignored....but back to the topic:The questions I would have are why did the pastor not leave but hung out by the exit (major red flag) and why did he not take care of the fellow being driven to detox first? Something in the story is just not adding up for me. Did the cops overreact? Probably but this pastor was not exactly being smart: his hanging out by the entrance waiting for the kids to come out bothers me even more than the initial "come here!" I would have called the cops if 2 scared kids told me a guy approached them and was waiting for them. I hate to say it but he is acting strangely and that is something I would rather the cops sorted out.