Earlier this week, I was asked to comment on a blog. It was the first time I'd read anything about this case, and I was appalled, to say the least. I know that a great number of parents are aware, and sensible about their children's use of the Internet, and some have monitoring programmes installed. Nevertheless, there are obviously some who are not as conscientious. So, I'd like to bring this story and product to your attention...

It was the first time my attention had been drawn to the case of William Joe Mitchell, a 46 year old sex offender who was accused of running off with a 15-year-old Alyssa Frank. Fortunately, they caught up with him, and he was arrested last Saturday by Virginia State Police at the Flying J Truck Stop in Winchester, Virginia.

I quote from Pandora's Blog, at...

http://blog.pcpandora.com/

"Mitchell was wanted in Alabama on allegations including rape and kidnapping and Florida officials accuse him of enticing a child via the Internet, violating his probation and other allegations.

State police were notified that the U.S. Marshals Service had tracked Mitchell to a truck stop on Interstate 81, near the West Virginia border. Four state troopers surrounded Mitchell and took him into custody without incident around 11:30AM on Saturday, October 7th, four days after the manhunt began.

Mitchell had 14 prior arrests ranging from burglary and bomb threats to lewd and lascivious conduct, police said."Now, this doesn't only happen in America... it happens worldwide, and I fear for the children who use the Internet unmonitored, because kids start off playing a game, which they can't see a way out of when it gets this serious. I would urge any concerned parents to have a look at this blog, and the comments therein, several of which were written by me. It grieves me that pedophiles are allowed to prey on kids. I know the kids egg them on, but they're oblivious to the dangers, within the anonymity of the Internet, and powerless to get out of the web, once caught.

Ken, the guy who writes the blog, offers a programme called Pandora PC, with which parents can monitor their kids' time on the Net with or without the kids' knowledge. That is indeed up to the parents. I have asked Ken if he can get a banner to me for this, so I can advertise it in my websites, and I would urge as many of you who care as passionately as I about offenders preying on kids, to perhaps do the same, and contribute their bit towards quashing these cases.

Please, please help here. It costs nothing to post a banner to your website, but it could save a child a very traumatic if not life-threatening experience. I am not being remunerated for this... I volunteered, so this is not spam, merely a concern for our children, as a Grandmother and Childminder.