Match.com and Sex Offenders

So Match.com agrees to screen for sex offenders only after a lawsuit by screenwriter Carole Markin. WOW!  They claim “1 in 5 relationships begin online”.  If this is the case, why haven’t they been background screening?  Come on people, our sons and daughters are on these sites.  These companies should have been screening all along.  I know it’s not a traditional brick and mortar dating service, but they are facilitating the encounters, they need to be accountable.  Let’s think about this, if pedophiles go where the children are, i.e. schools, playgrounds, sports, etc.,  wouldn’t it make sense that adult sex offenders go where the “available victim” pool is?  These companies just made it very easy for these individuals to find their prey.  I’m sure if we had true and accurate numbers of how many people have been assaulted by someone they made a date with on one of these online dating site we would be appalled. 

The same issues arise with our kids.  How many organizations that we trust to look after them do a good job screening?   Doing a background check tells us about previous history, but what about future behavior?  Organizations in the know use a screen that shows the level of risk adults pose sexually to our kids.  It looks at boundaries.  One study showed that 16% of volunteers  at a youth organization should not be near our kids.  It showed that 4% admitted prior inappropriate relationships. 

 Ok, so maybe we are to blame for the level of morals portrayed in society today.  We as parents don’t do enough to speak out against these moral atrocities and create effective change with the ever changing available technology.  Too many prime time shows have too much sexual content today.  What happened to the shows like Family Ties, Growing Pains, The Brady Bunch, etc.  We as parents and grandparents need to request, if not require an immediate about-face in the way we and the companies we do business with conduct our everyday lives.

You can find out more about a thorough background screening including the boundary screen at  http://www.singlesourceservices.com/