Burgessct - Cybercrime against children

Symbols used by pedophiles to indicate child preference

The Daily Mail recently shared symbols or codes used by pedophiles to communicate with each other within social networks. The Daily Mail, says it best, “The seemingly innocuous pastel-colored scrawls feature butterflies, love hearts, and spirals. These are the symbols pedophiles use to signal their sordid sexual preferences.” The five symbols originally released to law enforcement nationwide by the FBI …

Burgessct: Saitn Pancras

The angels look down upon us – Sandy Hook

Today marks the first anniversary of the horrific murder of the children and adults at Sandy Hook elementary and 26 new souls entered heaven via a highway of our tears. The families have had a year to process the loss of their loved ones, and their pain endures, one year is never enough to swallow the grief. Time, however, will …

Jadin Bell – Bullycide – January 2013

It was a sad day in La Grande, Oregon on 28 January. The family of Jadin Bell, took him off life-support and he passed. Who is Jadin Bell? Jadin was a 15-year old high-school sophomore who had tried to commit suicide on 19 January by hanging himself in the playground of Central Elementary school. What may have driven Jadin to take his life?

Rape – Child Custody is an Issue?

n the United States, ~25,000 women become pregnant through rape each year. In 27 states there are no laws which protect the custodial rights guaranteed to the mother of the resulting child.

Burgessct: Saitn Pancras

Tears in Heaven – 26 new souls

This morning, I, like so many others across the globe, sit with tears streaming down my face and into my lap as I think about the 26 souls who are now in Heaven on a direct path from the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.  I can not possibly imagine the angst the families of the 20 children and …

Love the Child and Look Beyond Your Front Door

As we roll into this holiday season please take a moment and think about the children who are orphans and/or foster children.  These children are in a state of flux. Those of us who haven’t experienced being a child in the house of a foster parent can only speculate on the mental gymnastics required to project calm by the child …

Rape in Liberty County – 11-year-old spider who lured men into her web

Liberty County prosecutors described Jared Len Cruse as one of a “pack of dogs” who gang-raped an 11-year-old Cleveland girl, while the defense likened the girl to a “spider” who lured men into her web.

Children as a commodity – Human Trafficking & Sex Trafficking

Those who are unfamiliar with the terms “sex trafficking” or “human trafficking” I hope will envision children being bought and sold, for the use of others – child slavery would also be an apropos term. This isn’t isolated to some poor unfortunates in a far away land. Look around and you will see it; look around and understand. The year is now 2012 and we continue to see an ever increasing number of fellow humans being trafficked and enslaved. In fact, the number of persons believed to be enslaved in 2012 is at its greatest level in the history of mankind.

Safer Internet Day 2012

Safer Internet Day 2012 (SID2012) serves as great opportunity to remind ourselves of the need to exercise a bit of caution as we traverse the wired side of life. What impresses me the most is the multi-lingual, multi-topic approach taken to spread the message of how to stay safe online.

Trust: Bad things can happen to good children (online safety)

In David Schwimmer’s TRUST, bad things happen to Annie, a good child. She is by all appearances a typical teenager – totally wired, online and available, 24/7/365. In the physical world, parents see with whom their child interacts. As the parents witness this interaction they are able to help guide and influence their child’s choices. The number one rule for every family: “The child must not engage in any personal meetings with an individual whom they have only met online without explicit parental permission.”

ABA resolution addressing Bullying and Cyberbullying

Kudos to the American Bar Association (ABA) for amending and adopting their resolution 107A which urges “… federal, state, tribal, territorial, and local officials, to prevent and remediate the existence and dangers of bullying, including cyberbullying and youth-to-youth sexual and physical harassment.” In my view this is very much a step in the right direction…

Safer Internet Day 2011 – It’s more than a game, its your life

Today, February 8, 2011 is Safer Internet Day. It’s more than a game, its your life. One can’t over emphasize how important it is to pay attention when you and your family are online. The internet is integral to our daily lives. Online is where we live and we need to stay safe online.

Here are a eleven tips to achieve that goal:

Every day is worth living

If we are able to collectively work together, we can save a life, we can save many lives and in doing so we will demonstrate to the children, every day is worth living.

Bullycide: How many are too many?

… in 2010, by my count, 30 children ranging in age from 9-19 took their own lives as they were unable to cope with the bullying which they were being subjected. These families who lost their child …

How does my child access the internet? With whom is my child engaging?

A question which every parent should be asking themselves, “How does my child access the internet?” “With whom is my child engaging?” The array of answers may startle you. So make no assumptions. Why does it matter? Knowing how your child accesses the internet and with whom they are engaging are the first steps in crafting an online safety plan for your child. I have said it before and will repeat, our family is our responsibility.

No Kid Hungry

…nearly 17 million children in America—that’s almost one in four—face hunger. And it’s likely that these children will endure lifelong consequences as a result of having limited access to nutritious foods. In fact, they’re more likely to suffer…

Let Us Give Thanks…

Let us give thanks 85 percent of the households in the United States are food secure Let us give thanks our family is not amongst the remaining 15 percent, which equates to more than 50+ million persons who are food insecure. Let us give thanks our children are not amongst the one in one in four in the United States …

Bullycide – My Time Has Come and So I’m Gone

No doubt you are aware of the tragic loss of life which occurred in Cooperstown, North Dakota late last week, when 16 year old Cassidy Joy Andel, posted a disquieting message upon her Facebook page, “My time has come, and so I’m gone. To a better place, far beyond,” and then took her life, she hung herself.  You see, she …

The Connection: Hunger & Sex Trafficking of Children

Were you aware that hunger, food insecurity is one of the root causes of individuals finding themselves victimized by Human Traffickers?  You might be asking yourself how is this possible.  In urban and rural situations both within the United States and abroad the number of families living under the poverty level continue to increase.  In the United States this number is 14.3% …

Breakfast, Did You Have Yours?

Breakfast is the meal which energizes us for the day. Unfortunately, not all in the United States have the means to provide their families with this all important meal. One in six families are food insecure in the United States – 300,000,000+ is our population, that means 50,000,000 citizens worry about their breakfast.  Did you have your breakfast?  Many didn’t, …