Teenage "Sexting " and hi-tech multimedia communications devices

Teens who `sext' racy photos charged with porn (AP)
Posted on Wed Feb 4, 2009 3:38PM EST

Teenagers' habit of distributing nude self-portraits electronically — often called "sexting" if it's done by cell phone — has parents and school administrators worried. Some prosecutors have begun charging teens who send and receive such images with child pornography and other serious felonies. But is that the best way to handle it?

"Hopefully we'll get the message out to these kids," says Michael McAlexander, a prosecutor in Allen County, Ind., which includes Fort Wayne. A teenage boy there is facing felony obscenity charges for allegedly sending a photo of his private parts to several female classmates. Another boy was recently charged with child pornography in a similar case.

In some cases, the photos are sent to harass other teens or to get attention. Other times, they're viewed as a high-tech way to flirt. Either way, law enforcement officials want it to stop, even if it means threatening to add "sex offender" to a juvenile's confidential record.

"We don't want to throw these kids in jail," McAlexander says. "But we want them to think."

This month in Greensburg, Pa., three high school girls who sent seminude photos and four male students who received them were all hit with child pornography charges. And in Newark, Ohio, a 15-year-old high school girl faced similar charges for sending her own racy cell phone photos to classmates. She eventually agreed to a curfew, no cell phone and no unsupervised Internet usage over the next few months. If she complies, the charges will be dropped.

Uh, Mr. Prosecutor McAlexander of Allen Co., IN I have one quiestion for you; Who is this ominous "We" who "want it to stop?" Could it be. . . . BIG BROTHER and the THOUGHT POLICE?!

Now I gotta admit, I'm a little bit old and my first reaction to this was "What the fuck is wrong with these little juvenile delinquent punks?" My second reaction was "I wish somebody would "sext" me. And then I thought, what the hell difference does it make? It's not exactly the best decision a teenager could make in their lives, but then again, it is by-far not the worse decision they could choose from the list of Top 100 bad decisions teenagers make. I'm not even sure it makes the top 100 list.

We give these kids hi-tech multimedia communications devices. We raise them in a society where nudity promiscuity and sexuality are right out there in the open (I'm not saying this is a bad thing, I'm just sayin. . . ). Then the kids turn around and do the obvious thing that is going to happen when any group of hormone infused, mentally stimulated teenagers with hi-tech multimedia communications devices would do. Now you wanna throw them in jail for it? How the hell are the thought police getting access to these kids' hi-tech multimedia communications in the first place?

The bottom line is: Who cares if these little spoiled punks with their hi-tech multimedia communications devices are sending each other nekkid pictures of each other? Get real folks. This is the year 2009. You can't apply 1940s oppressive sexual morality to today's teenagers. WE have made them what they are today. When that first bunch of pretty little acid-tripping hippie chicks took off their tops and started dancing in the mud at Woodstock in 1968 (it was a beautiful thing BTW) the stage was set for wherever we are today.

Yes, we have to teach our children well, but we also have to dig deep and decide what's really important to us. If we're going to start arresting children and charging them with sex offenses that will be like a giant albatross around their necks for the rest of their lives simply for sending nekkid pictures on their hi-tech multimedia communications devices then maybe we ought to take a look at others who perpetrate similar acts. How bout them fellers over at HBO and Cinemax that send all those tittie movies across the broad band and our space satellite system? And those criminals who have web sites completely dedicated to nudity and fornication (I heared tell theys all over the place on the innernet, but of course I aint never seen em).

So let's get real folks. This whole issue is absurd. If you don't want your children sending nekkid pictures of themselves to others on their hi-tech multimedia communications devices (damn I love saying that!), then teach them a different set of values. If you're pissed because someone sent your little Barbie such a picture, then deal with it face to face with the parents of the little hard-on monster who sent it.
Listen-up you stooges; quit trying to get the gov't thought police and other bureaucrats to raise your stupid fucking kids. Do it yourself within your own communities and maybe they wouldn't be so fucking stupid. THAT is what responsibility is all about.

Grow up and start being responsible for your own fucking pitiful little life and quit worrying about everyone else's and we wouldn't have half the problems we have today. . . not that receiving nekkid pictures on your hi-tech multimedia communications device is a problem. e-mail me if you want my cell phone#.