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No Longer Turning a Blind Eye

No Longer Turning a Blind Eye
Perhaps your child came home from school this week wearing a red ribbon as a reminder to say no to drugs. While Red Ribbon Week has become a commonplace annual occurrence in schools nationwide, not as much attention has been paid to another addiction wooing many of our children. This week is also White Ribbon Week, a week set aside to alert the public – and parents – about the increasing dangers of pornography. Unknown to many parents, most children come into contact with pornographic material before age 13. 
Addiction
The presumptive message of our sex-crazed media – television, print, and Internet – is that pornography is harmless and people don’t care, anyway. On the contrary, pornography is extremely addictive. According to experts, pornography has a chemical effect on the brain that leaves the viewer wanting more. Similar to other addictions, most who view pornography regularly find they need to increase their habits to maintain the same level of satisfaction. Its harmlessness is a myth, as it often leads to more aggressive sexual behaviors and the targeting of women and children as victims. When one researcher interviewed defendants convicted for possession of child pornography, all defendants asserted that they only viewed material and “[they] didn’t harm an actual child.” Yet continued research with polygraphs caused 85 percent to later admit their physical offenses – often multiple times – against real children.  
Online Danger
The explosion of the Internet and technology has been a boon for purveyors of pornographers. Between 1998 and 2003, the number of pornographic Web pages increased 2,000 percent. Adults who once may have been too embarrassed to walk into an adult-oriented business can now access materials online in the privacy of their homes. If a child were to wander into an adult business in town, he would promptly be ushered out; yet online, he can click onto a commercial pornography site with little restraint. While filters may slow down access for some, an unsupervised friend with unrestricted access may lead to exposure for many. (Morality in Media)
Younger and younger
Kids are encountering unwanted filth on the Internet at younger and younger ages. In a 2005 study by researchers at the University of New Hampshire, 42 percent of youngsters had encountered online pornography in a year’s time – and two-thirds of those had not purposely done so. A 1999 study found one-quarter of all minors had been inadvertently exposed to sexually explicit material that year. More than 80 percent of children using e-mail report receiving inappropriate messages, and 47 percent say they receive pornographic spam daily; One in five report opening and viewing spam e-mail. (Children and Pornography Online, Citizenlink)
As younger children are besieged by graphic sexual images, they become more accepting of such denigrating behaviors. MTV – long criticized for its problematic programming – has found it can push the envelope with its online fare. The Parents TV Council reports that MTV’s online content – available 24/7 to anyone of any age – is pushing sex and graphic language to kids. 
What you can do
Pornography leads to the ruin of marriages and families and to the exploitation of children. Children deserve to grow up with their moral compasses intact – not cheapening their self-worth or their ideals of sexual relationships and family life through exposure to smut.
Parents, become knowledgeable about the subject of pornography by consulting some of the resources below. Talk to your child openly about what he is exposed to online – and the dangers that lurk there. Caution him about online “stranger danger,” and not to post identifying information or photos available to the general public. Monitor their Internet exposure and place the computer in an open family room – not a sheltered alcove, den, or bedroom. Investigate blocking software and determine if it can be part of a workable solution for you and your family. 
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