I have two kids, 6 and 4, and I am a victim of child sex abuse (stranger at camp) myself–this conversation needs to be had with your children, at whatever level you and they are ready for. I spent years and years trying to get over what happened to me; I had no idea who to talk to, what to do, anything. My parents weren’t bad parents, they just didn’t know either. It’s a shame that our kids have to be wary of something like this, but believe me–it could make a huge difference.

And hearing Sandusky’s interview–he could’ve been they guy who assaulted me 25 years ago. Same lines: “horseplay,” “innocent touching,” “affectionate”–he’s a predator through and through. This whole thing has dredged up a lot from my memories,which sucks, but it’s also been gratifying to see the response in terms of people being held accountable and justice beginning to get done. That never happened in my case, and it doesn’t happen in a lot of other peoples’ cases either.

Being assaulted is like being vandalized–I can go for a while without thinking about it, but then something happens to open the curtain, and there’s his name, carved into me. It never gets completely better, and it never goes completely away.

I hope this never happens to anyone else’s kids. All of you who have had the talk, or are planning on doing so with your children, please know that it may be awkward, but it’s one the most important things you can do for them. Knowledge is empowering.

Lisk, thank you for posting this. Commentariat, thanks for what you’ve said as well. It helps restore my faith in humanity.

/Sorry so serious
//My next post will be a fart joke or something.
///But go hug your kids.

There is where you are mistaken in your analogy: Penn State football is an organization that revolves around a sports team. It is not a ‘family’.

It is a profit-making enterprise that includes a strict hierarchy of managers of adults who have NO true familial bonds. They are more akin to a business than a true family.

This is nothing more than a dysfunctional organization where people were afraid to upset the benevolent king or be cast out for what they suspected or knew, which was that children were being sexually abused.

Please don’t make Penn State football to be anything more than what they are: simply a group of people who thought more of the myth of their organization than protecting children.

The people who say they would go in there and break it up? They’re wrong. Nine times out of 10, that’s just not how the human brain works.”

Great point, and to all the people asking for statistical evidence there is a reason self defense schools tell women to yell “Fire” and not “help”. People talk a big game but most people fail to act.

Fantastic post Mr. Lisk.

google with the safe search off is so awesome.

Home computer, so I have no problems.

Just googled a porn star, try it with safe search on, 63k results, safe search off, 13M.

All pictures and first two links are about a Disney kid, then the third link is a twitter profile of an adult film star…so…

google with the safe search off is so awesome.

I was curious as well, just not curious enough to google it.

All pictures and first two links are about a Disney kid, then the third link is a twitter profile of an adult film star…so…

I had to google who Jake Austin is

I was curious as well, just not curious enough to google it.

My wife asked my son what he wanted for Christmas. Reply: “I want to hang out with Jake Austin, ask him his secrets with the ladies.” /facepalm.

I had to google who Jake Austin is…still have no clue.

same goes for any emergency really. my kids will stop drop and roll if someone breaks in the house

Hilarious.

btw – he doesn’t know where the S&W 3906 is. (I hope he doesn’t?!?)

Being a father is awesome, yet exhausting.

The abuse talk wasn’t even the low point of the week.

My wife asked my son what he wanted for Christmas. Reply: “I want to hang out with Jake Austin, ask him his secrets with the ladies.” /facepalm.

unless there’s a cure coming up, it ain’t going away

Yea, there really isn’t any time I want to be a father at this point, except for those awesome father/child moments.

Fantastic.

same goes for any emergency really. my kids will stop drop and roll if someone breaks in the house