Parents should watch closely when kids use Web

Wednesday, December 7, 2005

Patrick Armstrong is an accused murderer at 14 years old.

While no one probably could have predicted this, Armstrong might have provided clues as to who he was -- and what he was thinking and feeling -- before being charged in the Nov. 26 murder of Marlee Johnston, also 14, of Fayette.

Armstrong's arrest reinforces the need for parents in the cyber age to keep close watch on what their children are doing and posting online.

The problem, however, is not only for adults to address. Young people who see the personal information that friends or acquaintances provide on Web sites should also speak up if they sense someone is in trouble.

While some might find it a nuisance or unnecessary to supervise what children or friends are doing with computers, it comes with the turf -- and with the new millennium.

Parents and friends need to speak up immediately if they see Internet posts that seem troubling or menacing. It could be the best thing they ever do for a child or a peer.

With millions of users, many of whom post under pseudonyms, it would be unreasonable to expect Internet sites that allow kids to create personal Web pages to monitor every post and to report when someone writes something that should not go ignored.

Parents should be the first to fill this role.

The pages have become immensely popular among teenagers and adults who use them to post profiles of themselves. Information can range from photographs and basic biographical information to personal writings, including diaries, and other information that reveals posters' deepest thoughts and most revealing attitudes and fears, likes and dislikes.

In many cases, people of all ages create personal Web pages to connect with others online and, perhaps later, in person.

In some cases, posters share powerful and sometimes disturbing information that might mean nothing or could be reason for worry -- and action.

The latter seems to have been the case with Armstrong, who is believed to have provided chilling information about himself and his thoughts on personal Web pages.

Following Armstrong's arrest, state police discovered a Web page at www.Myspace.com on which a writer expresses fascination with school shootings.

Police said the writer, who identified himself only as Patrick, described himself as a 14-year-old from Fayette. He listed Eric Harris, one of the two teenage shooters at Columbine High School in Colorado in 1999, as one of his heroes.

He also listed "offending people" under general interests, and wrote that he found it "hilarious" that some of his peers were bothered by his interest in school shootings and serial killers.

The creator of the Web page at Myspace.com last logged on to the site Nov. 26, the day Marlee's body was found in shallow water on the shore of Lovejoy Pond, a short distance from her family's home.

No one knows if Marlee, an eighth-grader at Winthrop Middle School, might still be alive today if closer attention were paid to what Armstrong was posting on the Internet.

Police say Armstrong's use of personal Web pages warranted close monitoring.

While parents will never be able to keep track completely of what children are doing -- and posting -- on the Web, they can have frank discussions with their kids about the Internet, chat rooms and personal pages.

The Web, after all, is not a sacred space where adults relinquish authority over -- or responsibility for -- children.

Parents need to know where their kids are going on the Internet and how they are using -- and contributing to -- it.

Adults should ask questions and expect answers.

Parents with concerns should also move home computers from private locations, such as bedrooms or basements, to visible locations, such as kitchens or family rooms.

The Web is huge, yes, but this does not mean parents, with some effort, cannot keep up with it or know how their children are using it.