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 A
friend of mine recently shared with me some of the new activities he and
his family had been enjoying on their new family computer. He amusingly
told me how his 11-year old daughter and her best friend wrote a song,
produced music on the computer using special software, recorded a music
video using the family video camera, synced it to the already-produced
music, edited it using video software, and put it on a DVD for the
family, complete with a menu screen. The result was what he said to be a
rather respectable music video. Being fairly computer-savvy himself and
typically unafraid to chart the newest online territories, my friend
admitted that he never thought he'd see the day where his daughter knew
more about computers than he did.
It’s true – technology is changing rapidly and our children are learning
more computer skills than we could have imagined. As parents, it is
often difficult to keep up amidst our already busy lives. And when our
11-year olds know more about computers and cyberspace than we do, the
task of online parenting can seem somewhat intimidating. How do we
establish rules when we feel we don't completely know the territory? How
do we instruct our children when we don’t know the names of the popular
Web sites or terminology they are using online? How do we find the time
to keep up and set appropriate ground rules with the online world
changing so quickly?
No matter how sophisticated technology may become, task forces,
monitoring laws, firewalls, and privacy software alone will not keep
children safe online. It is important for parents to know where their
children are going online, who they are communicating with, and what
information they are giving out about themselves. Furthermore, it is
important that law enforcement officials and lawmakers know the dangers
that online activities can pose to the safety of our children so they
can take the steps to not only reduce these threats, but also to support
and educate others. Achieving online safety will take an intentional and
cooperative effort between parents, elected officials, and law
enforcement.
In an effort to educate you and your family on ways to protect your
children online and to begin to build an effective partnerships in our communities, I am
hosting Online Safety Forums throughout the Fourth District of Virginia.
These forums are free and open to parents in the Fourth District who are
interested in learning more about how to best protect their children
online.
A representative from the Virginia Attorney General’s Office, local
officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), and a
representative from the Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce will
be on hand to explain to parents the threats to children online. They
will provide examples of social networking sites like Facebook and
MySpace, provide parents with tools to protect their children, and
provide detailed information on what parents should know and look out
for online.
The forum will also feature testimony of Alicia Kozakiewicz, a victim
of an online predator, who will share her story and how she became an
online victim. In addition, I will share what Congress is doing to
prevent threats to online safety.
I invite you to join the nearly 100 parents who have already registered
to attend one of our Online Safety Forums next week:
Chesterfield
WHEN:
Thursday, May 28
7:00 p.m. - 8:45 p.m.
Check-in will begin at 6:45
WHERE:
John Tyler Community
College, Chester Campus
Bird Hall – B124
13101 Jefferson Davis Highway
Chester, VA 23831
Chesapeake
WHEN:
Wednesday, May 27
7:00 p.m. – 8:45 p.m.
Check-in will begin at 6:45 p.m.
WHERE:
The Lifestyle Center at
the Chesapeake Regional Medical Center
800 North Battlefield Blvd
Chesapeake, Virginia 23320
For additional information or to register to attend, visit my
Web site.
Click the photo below
to download a flyer about the event to give to friend or family member.
Honoring the Members of Our Armed Forces
 While
we can never fully repay the men and women of our Armed Forces, we can
honor
them for their many sacrifices. We can say thank you for what they have
done for freedom and what they have done for America. As a country, it
is our privilege to celebrate and honor the members of our Armed Forces.
We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude for those who have bravely served
this nation.
This weekend on May 16, we celebrate
Armed
Forces Day. Armed Forces day was established to serve as a
single-day celebration to honor all branches and members of the Armed
Forces. This year the Armed Forces Day theme is "United in Strength."
To pay tribute to our men in women in uniform, I have cosponsored
H.Res.377, which recognizes Armed Forces Day and the exemplary
service of the members of the United States Armed Forces.
This weekend, if you see a member of our Armed Forces in the grocery
store, at church, or in your neighborhood, I encourage you to take the
time to express gratitude for their service and sacrifice to our nation.
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