Psst! Did you hear….

Did you play that game as a child where everyone sat in a circle, then one person whispers something in the ear of the person next to them, and that whispered thing is passed by whispering around the circle? And the funny part was how the whispered thing changed through the group?

A few years ago, there was an incident in town where a man in a car tried to follow a teenage girl home. The girl was smart and aware and went to the closest trusted house and called the police. The police stopped the man, questioned him (read: put the fear of God into him), but let him go as he had technically done nothing. The man was (is) a local. Eyes are on him.

Shortly thereafter a series of emails went around town. One woman had the presence of mind to email the police department and ask if it was true, and if so, what can we do. The police were responsive and supportive. Overall, though scary, it was a reassuring series of emails. We knew our police department was on top of things and we were reminded to talk to our kids about safety.

I think I received email on the topic seven or eight times. What was most interesting/amusing/disturbing was how the story of the actual incident was embellished.

By the time I received the last email, someone had added, “I heard that when they stopped him, he had kitty porn in the car!”

No, I did not spell that wrong. That is what it said.

What happened next did not win me any fans around town. I emailed back and said, “Disturbing as it may be, “kitty” porn is not illegal. However, had he been caught with “kiddie” porn, he would have been arrested on the spot. Let’s please keep our focus on the greater lesson here and not embellish what is already a scary thing. We need to talk to our kids about safety and be aware as a community.”

And people in town want to cut our education budget??