Not interested in arguing with you very PC types, just saying......

[cosima]

I went to a school fete today, there were two men there that I felt could have been paedophiles. NOW, of course this thread could go in to a laborious discussion about How did I know? / How could I be so judgemental? How dare I? What a terrible world when people are so narrow minded! etc etc, but actually the only action I am taking is to say to a mums website

Please remember that school fetes are open to the public, parents feel very safe in the environment, Paedophiles go to school fetes on saturday afternoons, and PLEASE KEEP YOUR CHILDREN SAFE AND IN VIEW.

I know. I'm serious! It was so amateur. I did spend about 10 mins ( I reacted very slowly) thinking to myself it was odd that Kew Gardens would do a "naked day" promotion but none of the other mums seemed concerned. I was there on my own with two kids so was just idlyly watching him. Seriously, he spent ages looking at one tree.. Kew Gardens is massive, why didn't he move on? He was definately there for the kids. And the Restuarant Manager whipped the signs away very quickly. It was definately him that made them!
anyway, I go there loads and have never spotted such behaviour again!

Were you there on Naked Day (Friday), Molly? Anyone fall for it?
If this is the type of cunning the UK paedophile employs then I don't think we've got much to worry about..

You can always spot a paedo. They wear long socks.

They just can't help themselves.

lol desi

Paedos wear long socks with sandals, I think you'll find Desi.

Also, 8 of 10 convicted Paedos have whiskers.

Fact

So, if you go to a park whose target age group is under 12 and there is nearly always the same guy there, sitting on his own with a camera, cleaning the lens at the water park section. He is without children definitely, he is known to the park staff yet they can do nothing. Do you not think that is weird and that this guy might be - in this particular instance - be doing something he shouldn't/

As for calling them paedos and pervs, I don't give a sht that its not constructive, I would hang the lot of them

the long socks are invariably white

I am not saying I KNOW, I am saying that if a man chooses to buy a season ticket or pay £20 plus to get into a theme park aimed at under 12s and sits in the water themed area time after time, this is not normal beahviour and would arouse suspicion.

You know what - if you think everyone is good that's great. There are perverts out there who are doing this, going into parks and public places and taking photos of kids and getting off on these. These people exist, FACT.

Gosh are we seriously going a-lynching of all men wearing brown polyester trousers and long socks?

I mean just rushing up to someone like that and stringing them up from the nearest tree might be a bit precipitate. I mean they might just be autistic or something.

I suppose if a few innocents get killed, what does it matter if we get all the paedos?

Probably off the subject but I used to worry about poor old Mr Bean.

Exactly Kerrymum - infact next time I go to the water area, let's encourage kids to be naked when there are people around with cameras.

Honestly, instinct, suspicion and warning signs are all overrated.

OneLieIn - apologies if you said this already, but did you raise your concerns about the men at the park with staff/police?

Why do you keep going to this waterpark, OneLieIn, if you are so convinced this man in particular is sexually interested in your children? I don't get it.

I'm not disagreeing with anyone that there are predatory paedophiles in society who take indecent photographs/abuse/abduct children, and that this can happen in public places or between strangers. But I would have concerns about focusing on this when these risks are far more likely to be presented by family/friends. It tends to skew things. I feel reasonably confident in saying that all of us have probably met someone who's made the hair stand up on the back of our necks, or whom we just haven't felt 'right' about for some reason. These instincts/suspicions etc have their place, but we can't always be sure about why we feel them - we can't separate our 'instincts' from preconceptions/stereotypes/images fed to us by the media, I mean.

LOL Quattro...I think polyester trousers is reason enough for a bit of light hanging...

I think we also have to think about civil liberties. Some people are different from other people. Some people have no friends and go train spotting alone or even to theme parks. Some adult men have a mental age for 12 and go to theme parks,. Some people are eccentric and some are mentally ill and some are not like yo but that doesn't mean they're going to have sex with your children. Of course use your common sense but most abuse of children is at home anyway.

There have always been strange men hanging around parks. I remember in the 1960s my mother warning us from time to time and there was one regular flasher in the local park. I don't think we ever came across him but her advice was to laugh at them and tell them how small it is, because that deflates them apparently.

The best thing you can do is make your children emotionally robust enough to deal with things they come across. I remember daughter 2 encountered in the sixth form a naked flasher (on a cold day - silly man, entirely naked so not sure if that counts as a flasher) in a park near school. She thought it was really funny. Her friend was traumatised. They had to describe him to police which was quite hard as he had no clothes on.

On nudity, people have different views and hangups.

I saw a flasher on a cross country run at school when I was about 13 (lagging behind!).

I thought it was just about the funniest thing I had ever seen.

Friend was v upset and had a couple of days off school, which I suppose is fair enough really but at the time I was very about it...

Xenia - agree - difference doesn't mean paedophilia

Quite, Xenia.

There's a fella in my village who totally fits the script. Long white socks, wild hair, nervous tic, never been married, hangs around the children's section of the library.

Do I think he's a paedophile? I really couldn't say. He's never been convicted of anything .. but he sure as hell sometimes looks and behaves like one.

I like him. I prefer to think that he's simply an oddball.