by Endymion » Thu Mar 06, 2014 1:06 pm
I'm protective of my daughter, and my son. Most people these days are a little overprotective, to the detriment of their children's well-being (teaching them by example that all adults are not to be trusted, for instance). I have caught guys checking out my daughter, and I just take that as a compliment and move on. They won't get anywhere near her while I'm around, and I'd beat the living cr*p out of them if they tried, but you can't stop people from looking at people they find attractive, so no point in getting stressed about it. Once I caught a guy photographing my daughter and I called the police. At the end of the day, all the police could do is have a word with him (strictly speaking it's not illegal to take photos of people in a public place, and though it could qualify as a 'breach of the peace' offence, the police basically told me that 'breach of the peace' is so minor it's hardly worth the effort). Nonetheless, it scared the guy, and he now has a note on his record so that if any related offence (e.g. if he's found with CP on his computer) crops up they will be aware of that incident.
Ive been extremely cautious and selective with child-care providers, and lucky to find the very best in this regard. But there's more to being a good dad than just preventing the threat of sexual abuse. There are other dangers out there: traffic, bullying, physical and emotional abuse, etc. etc.