I read an article on CNN.com today about a group of sex offenders that are currently living under a bridge in Florida. It seems each of the 5 men is convicted of crimes against a child and they can no longer find a place to live that doesn't violate the state's laws regarding how close to a child they can reside. Prior to living under the bridge they were sleeping in an empty lot that just happened to border the yard of a home for sexually abused children. Go figure. Luckily the state stepped in and made them all move to their current bridge abode.
The reporter for this story spent some time talking to the men and shares the sex offenders hardships and how they have nowhere to go and they are sleeping in chairs to stay away from the rats that might chew on them while they sleep. You know – sort of like the children they victimized got "chewed on." Sounds like a little bit of karma to me.
Maybe I am a heartless person, but I have to ask why exactly I should care. Maybe the perverts should keep their hands off little kids and then they wouldn't be in this predicament. Why should they get to sleep comfortably in a nice warm bed while the child they victimized has to live with what was done to them? So they got out of jail and they "paid their debt." I don't care. What about the debt that poor kid has to pay for the rest of his/her life?
The State of Florida is fully aware these men are living under the bridge and they even send a parole person by to check on them every day just to make sure the offenders aren't violating the law stating they have to be in a "residence" from 10 pm to 6 am. The state literally has nowhere to house these men that is not further than 2500 feet from where children might gather. (For the record – 2500 feet is about half a mile.) One of the offenders had a nice, cozy apartment, but had to move because the state parole board determined that the apartment complex swimming pool was a place for kids and he could no longer live there.
Give me a second while I wipe away tears for our friend the sex offender.
I say "thank you" to the state of Florida for making the offender move. If someone had paid more attention in Georgia the poor boy that was abducted, abused and murdered by the family of sex offenders across the street...well, he might still be alive today.
It is our responsibility as adults to truly protect our children from those people who want to harm them. We can not just sit back and do nothing until it is our own child. There are people picketing in the streets to stop global warming and treat illegal immigrants better and bring back the Beatles, but you rarely hear about the country as a whole rising up to rid our world of child molesters. Child porn is a billion dollar industry and nothing is done. We can sure as hell stop people from trading music on-line, but we can't stop people from hosting chat rooms that provide live feeds of adults sexually abusing children, and in many cases, infants. Seriously – I know I feel a lot better since the government courageously put a stop to the evil that was Napster.
There is something seriously wrong here. If there were true consequences for these atrocities maybe there would be change. Let's stop putting these people in treatment. Let's castrate them. Better yet – let's give the victim's parents half an hour alone in a room with the offender with no limits on what the parent can do. I bet there would be far fewer offenders and far less taxpayer money spent on trying and housing them.
So, to the child sex offenders under that bridge in Florida…look up at your concrete ceiling and thank your lucky stars that you are still alive and kicking. Oh…and you might consider relocating because now all the parents of your victims know exactly where you sleep at night. I hear Hell is nice this time of year
