Stranger Danger

So, there is a guy in the HRM right now, white male, 45ish, dark SUV, asking random children to get in his truck. Halifax Regional Police have put out a bulletin and are reminding parents to teach their kids to not talk to strangers

But I have a crazy idea- how about, instead of "Don't talk to strangers" we teach them "don't talk to sketchy people who ask you to get into their truck, if you've never met them and your parents or guardians don't know them"?

We need to talk to strangers- police officers are often strangers (ironic), bus drivers are often strangers, if you have never spoken to the lady who walks her dog past your house everyday, she qualifies as a stranger. But these are the people who may be able to help your child get home safely if they are in trouble. So, instead of "don't talk to strangers- end of discussion" how about we sort out the different types of strangers we may encounter, and who and who isn't a potentially safe person to talk to.

Because the notion of Stranger Danger is, well, dangerous.

We know that the majority of sexual assault are committed by someone known to the victim, we know the majority of kidnappings (of kids) are committed by a parent (of said kid), we know that when a women is murdered, their intimate partner is usually suspect #1. Strangers don't seem to be the problem.

Helping our children develop good instincts and allowing them to trust those instincts are good things. Teaching them that the world is not a scary place, full of terrible strangers is a good thing. The world is a good place and most of the people in it are good people. Most of the people in it are also strangers.