All-Star Creep

Sterling von Shimmer said:

Yeah, but by that logic you shouldn’t even let your kids outside lest some pervert with an impulse control problem sees them. You really should be able to post pics of your kids doing what they love without some pasty, bloated jackhole objectifying them. It’s kind of victim-blamey to suggest otherwise... along the lines of, “Well ladies, if you don’t want to be assaulted then don’t go to parties.” He was the one who crossed the line; it was his fault he made the obscene remarks about the girl, NOT the girl’s fault or the fault of her parents. They were just doing what others do every day: posting pics on social media. They shouldn’t be punished for it because their daughter loves cheer.

And unfortunately you’re right about the creeps; they will always be out there. But it’s their responsibility to check their behavior and be decent people, not the responsibility of their victims to alter their lives so as not to “tempt” them. No one should have to live their lives in such a way.

And also, even if parents do set up their kids as a “business,” so what? Does that make them fair game for sickos? Of course not. This guy offered that excuse right around the time he said, “Well she’s clearly gone through puberty so it’s cool guys.” This guy had an unbelievable sense of entitlement and no sense of responsibility. He never once apologized. He just kept going on about how her parents posted the pic of their adolescent daughter in her cheer uniform, so clearly they were all asking for it. That’s what rapists and sociopaths say, and that’s what he is. He was in the wrong here, nobody else.

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MissCongeniality said:

By what logic? The logic that there are tons of creepers out there that aren't as obvious as this guy? I certainly am NOT blaming the "victims" and or suggesting that anyone should forgo the skirt or the party... I am just advising that everyone should pay more attention to, among other things, their social media accounts and possibly reconsider whether even having a publicly viewable social media account is necessary. If I, as a parent, allow my kids to run in traffic and they get hit by a driver texting... who is at fault?

And I am not speaking as a person with no experience here. I spent my fair share of time in the public eye (pre-social media thank goodness) and have had quite some experiences dealing with some interesting people out there. I learned that I needed to take some precautions to protect myself even though it wasn't "my" fault. I did the same for my daughter when she started getting some eye raising followers on her account. She was the one who made the call to actually shut it all down.

So, no it isn't our fault that there are creepers like this guy out there, but that still doesn't mean we should wantonly make choices that put us at greater risk (as unfair as that is!)

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Sterling von Shimmer said:

I guess I just try to not let creeps affect how I live my life. I try to impart that to the girls as well: do not bend to the will of your harasser, make him bend to you. So whenever they get unwanted attention from pervs (usually while we’re traveling) and they become embarrassed and uncomfortable, I just yell at the perv. I let him be the uncomfortable one. I don’t like doing it because I’m not a confrontational person and would much rather “just ignore him,” but I cannot let the girls think there’s something wrong with being a teenage girl in a public space, or that they deserve to be harrassed because they made the mistake of wearing a tank top outside. I need the girls to see that HE’S in the wrong for harassing them and that HE needs to change what he’s doing, not them. They should not bend to his will; he should bend to ours.

That being said, the girls are old enough to at least understand why they sometimes receive this attention, even if they find it distasteful. I’ve never coached younger girls and I don’t have kids, but I imagine if/when I have daughters my views might change. There is something to be said for protecting yourself; you just shouldn’t have to.

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alpaca said:

Interesting that I came across this thread on Reddit Exploiting and sexualizing your 6 year old for Instagram likes is pretty trashy.

While this particular thread is going one here at FB.

Fair warning, Reddit can be pretty vicious and there is NSFW language. I haven't scrolled thru the entire thread (over 2k comments).

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hrodwulf123 said:

As someone who reported and helped take down several online pedophiles and creeps on social networks (dA, Twitter, etc), I can tell you that once these people are exposed they'll go into hiding, but they return soon after, usually under a different name (their modus operandi always gives them away). They will almost always resort to portraying themselves as victims, and might resort to threats and cyberbullying (we had a case on dA where one guy who was 60 years old at that time was hitting on 13 and 15 year old girls via roleplays (and sometimes with just commenting on their selfies), and when he got exposed (we found out that he's a convicted pedophile) he went into hiding, but when he came back, he started spewing death threats all over the place - he's in jail again).
The only way to be truly safe from these people is to be ever vigilant.

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tuckxandxtwist said:

Facebook reviewed my report of his "amber alert" video, and told me that it's within the rights of the community and just suggested that I block it.

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