Other friends and family who were not there scolded us and told us we were wrong to allow our son to have this valuable learning experience. They went as far as to tell us about people they knew that had been killed by bulls and ask what we would have done, if he had been trampled. I explained I would have called the ambulance, if needed. This was the risk level and countermeasures that we as his parents chose. When we were kids I have seen my own brother laid flat by a horse. I know and understand the risks and can chose what risk level is appropriate for my child.

I then told about how he and his grandpa walked down the country row by themselves for about a quarter to half mile. When they did not get upset about that I told them that they had captured some feral coyotes on that road the other night. I then tried to get them to explain why that was not an issue, but petting the bulls was. They were still stuck on the bulls, but coyotes with rabies as expectable.

When it comes to the internet there is an expectable risk level for my son and I talked to him about it and help him learn about what is dangerous and where and when he needs to be extra careful. Why is it that we as parents forget that “TRAINING” is the most effective security measure you can ever provide? Analysis, reports and parent provided controls will never be effect unless you also empower your child to make educated decisions.

The internet is not too risky for my child. There are dangerous traps there and I am cretin that he will fall into some of them. When he does I will be there to remind him why we fall. We fall so that we can learn to pull ourselves back up. An over protected child will never learn to pull himself back up.

The biggest risk for childern on the Internet is there own parents. Parents must learn to start taking responsiblity and setting their own accetable risk levels for their own childrens activities.

Thanks…

http://www.dwaynetanner.com/blog/2009/02/09/are-we-all-so-easily-confused

Now on to my comment: If there is less of a threat to children by online sexual predators, and numerous studies back that up, I think that’s useful information. If bullying is a bigger threat, I think that’s useful information, too.

Knowing this stuff allows me as a parent to make better choices about how to protect my child. It also allows us to focus resources where they matter most.

Using basic risk analysis, even if children are not as vulnerable to sexual predators as we once thought, these types of predators are probably still bigger risks because of the potential impact. We can account and plan for that.

Information is power. Knowing the truth allows us to make good choices.