Cyber Bullying Suicide Forces Small Town to Step Up After The FBI Failed

Few saw the effects Cyber Bullying would have on our children nor how the power of the web could be used to intensify this socially tramatic experience. This story opens a lots of questions about legislation and another case for prevention education.

DARDENNE PRAIRIE, Mo. (A town of 5500 residents)— City officials declared online harassment a crime Wednesday, fewer than two weeks after they learned of a 13-year-old girl who killed herself after receiving hurtful messages on a popular social networking website.

The FBI and St. Charles County Sheriff's Department investigated the Meiers' allegations over the past year and could find no appropriate criminal charge. Prosecutors didn't see a crime either, and high-profile law firms did not pursue a civil suit.

OnLine Bullying Suicide
Download online_bullying_suicide.pdf

"Especially concerning, youth who reported being targeted by Internet harassment were eight times more likely than all other youth to concurrently report carrying a weapon to school in the past 30 days," added Ybarra's team, who interviewed 1,500 10- to 15-year-olds.

They found that 64 percent of those who reported having been bullied online were not victims of physical or verbal aggression in person. That makes for a whole new population of victims, the researchers agreed.

Teen Bullying Thrives OnlineDownload teen_bullying_thrives_online.pdf

Share with us what the children in your life are experiencing and what you are doing to fix the problem.

Babies Learn To Tell Friend From Foe Before They Talk

Our natural instincts for safety are alert from birth and it is social behavioral norms that often squelch children's natural ability to protect themselves, i.e. "Always be polite to adults." "Do as you are told."

Babies can tell friend from foe long before they can talk, according to research which suggests that the ability to assess other people’s motivations may be evolved rather than learnt. A study in the United States has shown that, at both 6 and 10 months, infants clearly prefer people who help others over those who obstruct others or ignore them.

Babies Tell Friend From Foe Article: Download babies_tell_friend_from_foe.pdf

Have stories of children "trusting their instincts"? Share them with us.

Manhunt 2 Video Game: Lessons In How To Become A Sociopath

Have you been following The Yelly Dyno Memo Series, The Recipe for Making Kids Into Killers?, Monthly_memo_10_07.html

You will want to keep the kids in your life away from the "game" Manhunt. I also wonder about any adult who would want to play ManHunt? Not sure I'd want to count them as one of my friends.

At a press conference in San Francisco, Calif., James Steyer, CEO of the children's advocacy group Common Sense Media, called Manhunt 2, "one of the most horrifically violent games that we've ever seen. It features a variety of different executions and is really a very, very violent almost unwatchable game."

Manhunt 2 had previously been rated "Adults Only," for players 18 and older, which would marginalize the game since many major retailers refused to sell games with that rating. Rockstar made some tweaks to the game -- removing a graphic scene of castration, for instance, and received a new rating of M -- for players 17 and up -- paving the way to the big-box stores like Wal-Mart and Circuit City.

“The impact of the revisions on the bleakness and callousness of tone, or the essential nature of the gameplay, is clearly insufficient,” the BBFC wrote. “There has been a reduction in the visual detail in some of the 'execution kills,' but in others they retain their original visceral and casually sadistic nature.”

Manhunt 2 Article 1Download manhunt_ii_2.pdf

Manhunt 2 Article 2 Download manhunt_ii.pdfDownload monthly_memo_10_07.html

Megan's Law: Will It Be Struck Down?

A number of lawyers representing sex-offender plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit seek to declare the entire registry law unconstitutional. That case is now pending before U.S. District Judge Clarence Cooper in Atlanta.

The Georgia Supreme Court on Wednesday declared unconstitutional a provision of a 2006 state law that prohibits registered sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of day care centers, schools, churches and other places where children congregate.

"Obviously, it's extremely disappointing, he said. In throwing out the residency requirement in total, based on one situation, the effect of their ruling is that now convicted felony sex offenders are free to live anywhere they want to in Georgia, whether it's a park, playground or day care center next door."

Georgia Supreme Court Declared Law Unconstitutional Download overturn_jessica_law_ban.pdf

As society has imposed restrictions, it becomes almost impossible for them to find places to live. The problem is worsening in Florida as about 100 local ordinances add restrictions to the state's 1,000-foot rule, said Florida Corrections Department spokeswoman Gretl Plessinger. Sixteen homeless offenders are now living under a Miami bridge, while another took to sleeping on a bench outside a probation office.

California State figures show a 27 percent increase in homelessness among California's 67,000 registered sex offenders since the law took effect in November 2006. Since August, the number of offenders with no permanent address rose by 560 to 2,622.

Around Jessica's Law Download around_jessicas_law.pdf

Pedophile Playground Discovered in "Second Life" Virtual World

Every lifestyle group has its own place in the virtual world "Second Life" — including, apparently, pedophiles.

Britain's Sky News TV channel on Tuesday uncovered a virtual playground hidden away behind a strip mall in "Second Life" — a playground where little girls who looked about 10 years old offered the Sky reporter's avatar, or virtual representative, a variety of sex acts.

• Click here to see the Sky News report.

Be sure to watch this video clip. It shows you in a "PG" format why pedophiles are attracted to this site.

Sky reported the playground, called "Wonderland" in possible reference to an Internet child-porn ring broken up in 1998, to British authorities.

But Linden Lab, the San Francisco-based creator and operator of "Second Life," doesn't plan to take any action for now against the non-age-specific sex playground.

It seems that everyone in Wonderland says they're over 18, despite the much younger-looking avatars of some members.

Role-playing and sex are two common activities on "Second Life," where users frequently select avatars of different genders, races, ages or even species, and then do what adults are prone to do.

Linden Lab is currently testing a system that would verify users' ages before they could enter areas deemed to contain adults-only content in "Second Life."

Download Wonderland Article (PDF)

Young David vs. Lone Wolf

Four stories, all terrifying yet thrilling, and clearly illustrating the value of teaching children to protect themselves from lone wolves - child predators. In every instance children, not adults, battled the predators. These small warriors put the three core fundamentals of The Yello Dyno Method™ into action. They (a) Recognized Deceptive Behavior, (b) Trusted Their Feelings, and (c) had the Self-Confidence to act to stay safe.

1. Five-year-old Kasey was asleep when a man whispered, "You are my guardian angel. Your mommy and daddy want you to come with me..."

2. Dave Silva was staying at the resort with his family. Bishop, a grandfatherly looking man, blended in, but something wasn't right. Dave pointed him out to his eleven-year-old son, David. While swimming at the hotel pool, David spotted Bishop chatting with his younger sisters...

3. Tied up and stuffed in a closet by her mother's boyfriend, this four-year-old girl could hear her mother screaming...

4. Walking home alone is no big deal for a nine-year-old boy, except today...

Just the Facts

What we often want but can't get - Just the Facts! In response to the questions you've been asking me at the workshops I've presented in the last year, I created a new section on the Yello Dyno website to provide people with a good source of information - without opinions - Just the Facts, Jack!

"Just the Facts" will serve as a repository of important resources, articles, laws and more, starting with the first section, "Sex Offenders". This section includes:

1. Frequently Asked Questions about Sex Offenders - special info for Texas, New York and Washington State

2. An alphabetical list of all states' links to their Registered Sex Offenders websites

3. Juvenile Sex Offenders articles, laws and links

4. The Adam Walsh Child Protection Act

5. Links to Registered Sex Offenders websites to learn who is near you

6. Warning from a Convicted Sex Offender

Need questions answered? Let me know what other resources and information would be beneficial to you.

The Yello Dyno Community Features Your Stories

There's a new community center and you are welcome to stop by. The "In the News" section of the Yello Dyno website is home to "The Yello Dyno Community." Visit and experience uplifting and inspiring stories with photos of heroes from across the street and around the world. Your new friends will encourage you and spark ideas on how to reach our shared goal - safe children.

This website page has a link to email your stories and photos. As a member of the Yello Dyno Community, I look forward to your stories, too!

Self-Proclaimed Pedophile is Surprised at "Pedophilia Hysteria"

A unique situation has caught the media's attention. Will this trigger mass hysteria nationwide? Will it be the tipping point that puts pedophiles at the top of our Most Wanted List, even ahead of Al Qaeda? It is certainly personal. This man is fantasizing about our children. He is teaching others how to abduct and molest our children.

For a complete perspective, be sure to watch the videos (including an interview with the pedophile) provided on the FoxNews.com (PDF) site, after reading their article. MSNBC.com (PDF) has also provided an excellent report on this topic.

Here are a few "lowlights" from the FoxNews.com article:

An admitted pedophile, chased out of Seattle for running a "how-to" Web site, defended his right to post pictures of little girls, telling FOX News that he is considering a possible lawsuit against the Santa Monica, Calif., police department for posting his picture on their Web site, after he recently surfaced there.... When pressed, McClellan, 45, insisted he was doing nothing wrong by posting photos of children as young as 3, even admitting that he would have sex with little girls if it weren’t against the law.

MySpace Removes Sex Offenders - Where Will They Go Next to Hunt Online?

After reporting in May that 7,000 registered sex offenders were found on its site, MySpace now announces the removal of 29,000, according to an article by BBC News (PDF). Two other articles, one on SFGate.com (PDF) and the other on MSNBC.com (PDF), report that the focus is now being turned toward a similarly problematic Web site, Facebook.

It's encouraging to hear that online predators are being rooted out, but it's also apparent that they simply move from one location to another to continue their pursuits. That's why it's so important for all of us to continue being diligent, sharing information and keeping this topic "top of mind" with those who have the power to help.

Of course, we all know one of the best ways to protect our children is through the power of education - teaching children how to protect themselves, whether they are online, on a playground, in the mall or at home. That's why I founded Yello Dyno, and why I'm grateful to all of you for your various efforts to keep our children safe from harm.