Dateline NBC is on and they've got "To Catch a Predator III," wherein they work with Perverted Justice and local law enforcement to lure would-be child molesters to a home where they are caught on camera and arrested. Does anyone see anything wrong with this? I can't think of anything. What boggles my mind is how many people they can catch with this. It seems like they can catch as many pedophiles as they want to. 14 men the first day! 21 the second! Any thoughts on this? I don't normally go in for vigilantism, but this seems all right.

Do a search for the so-called "Candyman Cases". Mind-boggling stuff.

i have more of a problem with the fact that people watch this for entertainment than the actual manner in which they catch the guys. i mean c'mon, that's like pantsing someone in public and putting it on television. pretty low-brow stuff.

Linus Van Pelt wrote:Dateline NBC is on and they've got "To Catch a Predator III," wherein they work with Perverted Justice and local law enforcement to lure would-be child molesters to a home where they are caught on camera and arrested. Does anyone see anything wrong with this? I can't think of anything. What boggles my mind is how many people they can catch with this. It seems like they can catch as many pedophiles as they want to. 14 men the first day! 21 the second! Any thoughts on this? I don't normally go in for vigilantism, but this seems all right.

I actually know an individual who helped out Pee-Jay.......what this individual, and I in turn, found astounding is how many of the trickledicks go after boys (or what they THINK are boys) rather than girls............hmm.....

instant_zen wrote:i have more of a problem with the fact that people watch this for entertainment than the actual manner in which they catch the guys. i mean c'mon, that's like pantsing someone in public and putting it on television. pretty low-brow stuff.

I don't have a problem with this at all. If these were adults dealing with adults and it was aired on TV, I would, indeed, have a problem with it. (See "COPS" prostitution stings).

However, the best way to create a shitty adult is to sexualize them as children and that's exactly what these "geniuses" are doing.

They deserve to be "pantsed" on tv and publicly humiliated. There's really no question as to whether or not they're guilty, no? They show up looking for hot, 13 year old action and instead get a camera crew. Good for them.

Have these guys ever heard of masturbation? I mean, really..........going through all of that hassle for a 13 YEAR OLD GUY/GIRL?!! Wtf?

Not trying to stick up for the kiddie fuckers, but from a general civil rights perspecitve:

doesn't this seem like borderline entrapment?

When you create an opportunity for someone to commit a crime and then pinch him when he bites, that's pretty much entrapment.

It's similar for the female cops posing as prostitutes so they can bust the johns: They have to be very careful not to insinuate that they're selling sex and wait for the johns make the incriminating statement about money, or else the case is likely to be thrown out on entrapment.

Granted, in the particular case of pedos on the internet, there's going to be a lot less sympathy for those caught in such a sting-op, and rightfully so.

But keep in mind that the sting-op tactics can be applied in just about every sphere of crime imaginable, anywhere from the sale of sex to 3 grams of marijuana to a stolen car.

Yeah, it's not a good precedent to set.

doesn't this seem like borderline entrapment?

When you create an opportunity for someone to commit a crime and then pinch him when he bites, that's pretty much entrapment.

It's similar for the female cops posing as prostitutes so they can bust the johns: They have to be very careful not to insinuate that they're selling sex and wait for the johns make the incriminating statement about money, or else the case is likely to be thrown out on entrapment.

yes but if they take the same care when talking to the guy online than it's the same deal. if they wait for some guy to start talking to their "kid" and then that guy makes his intentions known and shows up to follow through than i don't think it's really entrapment.

Perverted Justice is very careful with their standards. They never bring up sex before the guy does. And I'm pretty sure they never even initiate the conversation with the guy. Anyway, I don't see what's unfair about it. Could they entrap just anybody with this? No, they could not. In a hundred years, I could never be entrapped by a prostitution, drug, or child-raping sting operation. I hope all of you can say the same about the last one (I don't care if you like to whore or smoke down). So, I don't really see the problem if these fake little boys and girls bring it up first, but they don't, so that's an added layer of legitimacy, I guess.

And I don't expect Matthew to understand this (and I don't understand why I'm responding to anything he writes anymore), but men who molest boys are not necessarily homosexual, nor are men who molest girls necessarily heterosexual. Oh, I'm wasting my time, I know.

Hmm, interesting... this. I've always hated the idea of a sting. But I've only really thought of it in context to drug or prostitution. I think the whole car with a master kill switch is quite a bit different however.

Now as for this child molestation sting; I automatically think good because... well, it's obvious. But saying stings are bad only for the things I personally approve is just not fair.

Child molesters have the right to be "pantsed" on tv because they're child molesters? No. I wouldn't take it there.

I guess if they're not setting up anything themselves, making the guy in the clown suit sitting at his computer do ALL the moves... yeah I'd say that's good.

Basically I guess it boils down to I would approve of stings that aim to incriminate people committing things I consider a real crime. So, Not Crap.