Posted on 12/10/2008 11:26:19 AM PST by Fractal Trader
The high school in Salem, N.H., was abuzz last month as a photograph of a topless 15-year-old girl was sent from cellphone to cellphone.
School staff intervened, and by the time they met with students in assemblies the next day they had discovered another compromising cellphone photo, this one of an eighth-grade girl. They soon found two more photos of naked or nearly naked girls on students' phones. Two weeks later, a similar incident occurred at nearby Sanborn Regional High School. The photograph in question was of a teenage boy.
A report being released today shows that these were not isolated incidents but part of a national trend. One-fifth of teenagers surveyed have sent or posted nude or seminude pictures or videos of themselves, usually to a boyfriend or girlfriend, and almost a third have received such images, according to "Sex and Tech," a new study by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unwanted Pregnancy and CosmoGirl.com.
Among young adults (ages 20-26), the numbers are higher: One-third said they have posted or sent racy images of themselves, and almost half have received them. TRU, a company that specializes in youth research, conducted the survey online with 1,280 teenagers and young adults selected from its database of research participants.
A spokesman for the National Campaign, a nonprofit group that advocates for sex education and access to contraceptives, said he is concerned about the link between what happens online and what happens in real life.
"What young people report is that this sort of online behavior contributes to a casual hookup culture," said Bill Albert, the group's chief program officer. "The overwhelming majority of teens and young adults don't do this, but when you get numbers like 20 percent and higher for young adults, that passes the threshhold of concern."
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
In our town, Ridgefield CT, the high school is in a dead zone. Not sure if that’s by design or accident (well, the HS is not near the town center, so it probably was an accident at first, but now, I don’t think the town wants a cell tower in that area because of the High School).
One thing that everyone needs to remember about “poverty statistics” -
they never include gov’t benefits as “income”. So if you’re getting your housing, food, utilities, and child support paid, and then you have a 10k “job” on top of it for your spending money, you’re poor.
Nude pics of my kids in the bath tub or running around the house? I find that hard to believe.
That would make my grandparents and parents felons. That is too broad.
There have been kids prosecuted for sending pictures of themselves out over the internet (despite what I think is a good argument that the laws were not meant to prosecute the actual, underage subject of such pictures).
Realistically, prosecutors aren't likely to go after the kids involved. There are plenty of real kiddie-porn producers that are higher on the list.
Alltel has an app online that allows parents to manage in detail text messaging or mobile web, blocking sites, sending or receiving or even allowing through specific senders, etc. Really great tool. This way you can filter it to allow text messages from yourself but block her friends.
It's her boyfriend you have to worry about.
In many states crimes by juveniles are adjuicated in juvenile or family court. If the child finishes the sentence, their file is purged and subsequently there is no conviction on record when they become adults. Also, the convictions of the juvenile court are often not considered felonies.
They know how to use technology yes.
They are however still teenagers. Teenagers do not now and never have thought much about the consequences of their actions unless warned repeatedly and firmly by their parents.
These warnings by parents usually are most effective if previous warnings that went ignored were followed up by swift and sure punishment.
Too often today parents do not follow through on their warnings.
And yet, there's a real need to prevent this stuff from becoming generally available, because there is a legitimate public interest in keeping it out of the hands of perverts. It's a tough nut to crack.
Post 9/11, I think pretty much every schoolkid should have a cell phone. Parents can disable a lot of the functions, if need be, but kids and parents being able to get in contact with one another in an emergency is crucial.
Schools should just require that cell phones be set to vibrate or silent during class time.
I had a similar experience while waiting in a courtroom recently for possible jury duty. The Clerk of Court came in and gave everyone 30 seconds to turn off their cell phones. After 30 seconds, anyone whose cell phone rang was to be held in contempt of court and escorted to the courthouse lockup by a Sheriff’s deputy. Nobody’s phone rang ... and, even better, the judge subsequently announced that the pending case had been settled out of court at the last minute and then he dismissed all of us potential jurors.
Went into WallyWorld to buy a replacement. The guy says "What do you want your phone to do?" I said, Make and receive calls, voice mail and phone book." He says, we don't jhave a phone that just does that.
I have a camera on the phone. I think the only picture I took was my knee and that was by accident.
The law allows for prosecution for mere posession.
15 will get you 20...
Probably, if they kep the picture. However, if someone sends them such a picture unsolicited and they immediately delete it, then they haven't comitted a crime.
Hydro Floric acid would do the trick. Used to etch glass.
Are cellphones thus open to being searched without a warrant?
Back in the day, so I would occasionally hear, there would be a girl or two that would expose herself if the boys begged hard enough. Then the stories and rumors would fly but no proof of course just imaginations filling in the blanks.
The perpetrator of these misdemeanors are not the cameras or the ones who use them but the exhibitionists.
Some parents still envision themselves as being 17 and want to be friends with their kids. Kids need stability, consistence, and reliable parents not more friends.
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