Whatever.

[Indiana Rose Lee]

goherd, what an awesome kodak moment!

 

[PEANUT1]

I see both sides...if you felt uncomfortable, your feelings are valid.

Under normal circumstances, I see nothing wrong with photographing a stranger even if it is a child....there are so many reasons why he may have been doing it. too many to even speculate.

Sorry if this thread has turned so bad that you want it to be closed.

 

[Tigger-Lover]

Just think if they had a digicam. 1 minute video of a kid can produce 100 photos. I'm sure if they wanted pics of kids, they'd video tape it.

But why would a pedophile go to a park and take pics of regularly dressed kids when he/she could go to a waterpark and see them almost naked?

 

[MariDisney]

I do think you need to go with your gut. That said, in this particular situation, I don't know if it would have alarmed me as much. (of course, I wasn't there, so who knows) I'm one of those that isn't too nervous about pictures of my kid and creeps. Of course I would never WANT some creep to have a picture of my kid, but I don't see that there's any actual damage to the child as long as we're not involved.

 

[wtccheermom]

This topic always boggles my mind. I have to seriously wonder what planet some of you are living on sometimes.

I have to think that the parents here who are going off the deep end about pictures of kids being taken at Disney World ending up in sex chat rooms and such is just SO far into left field. I mean, seriously.

Yes, child molesters and perverts exist. Unfortunately. However, they are not lurking around every corner, just waiting with baited breath for YOUR child to walk by so they can snatch her/him up.

Yes, sometimes pictures do end up on the internet and are used for nefarious purposes. HOWEVER, unless your child is naked, why would you care? If someone is going to get off on an image of your child fully clothed, having fun at Disney World, what's to say he/she is not going to get off WATCHING your child fully clothed, having fun at Disney World? These people don't need to be behind a computer, in their own homes, to get their rocks off, if you know what I mean...and a picture of your child is hardly considered child porn unless, like I said, he/she is naked...

If someone wants to take a picture of my child, so be it. My boys are extremely cute (if I do say so myself). They do a lot of funny things. I have seen kids do some really funny things too, when I've been on vacation without my boys and have been missing them, and I've taken pictures of strangers' kids before, because I thought they were doing something cute, and I was missing my boys. The parents never cared (maybe because I'm a "mom", who knows).

What I pride myself on is my OWN vigilance about my own kids personal safety. I am always aware of where they are at ALL times, EVERY single day (they are little still, and one has special needs, so I worry more about him). I do the best I can to protect them, WITHIN MY ABILITY. This world is dangerous, and my job as a parent is to teach them that, and give them the tools to navigate it safely. Dangerous people have always existed. WE are all here as adults, though. We made it just fine. The odds are always in our children's favor. The chances of a tragedy are extremely slim.

Live your lives and stop sweating this stuff.

Very well said and ITA. I am the mother of two very blonde blue eyed children in a border town where we are definitely not the norm and they draw lots of attention because of the fact that they look different. We cannot go anywhere without an elderly Mexican couple wanting to rub their heads and give them good luck which is fine by me. As a parent I know when to draw the line.

 

[squirrlygirl]

Look, guys. It was obvious I was not interested in continuing this conversation any further.

If you weren't there, you cannot with any authority tell me I read the situation wrong.

If you're not my child's mother, you cannot say whether what he was doing was okay.

If you think all criminals are such experts that you'll never notice and there's no point in being aware of your surroundings...I only wish I were that oblivious.

My concerns were not that this guy wanted to get his jollies from her picture; at this point I won't even go into what they actually were.

But by all means...go ahead and continue posting. It's obvious that my opinion doesn't matter I just won't be coming back to this thread.

 

[Tigger-Lover]

Are you mad that people don't agree with you? If you post a topic for discussion, not everyone will agree. If you don't like others that don't agree, chances are you are better off not posting it.

Sorry.

 

[MiniGirl]

Are you mad that people don't agree with you? If you post a topic for discussion, not everyone will agree. If you don't like others that don't agree, chances are you are better off not posting it.

Sorry.

I don't think it is that at all. I don't speak for the OP, but she has said in other posts that they have been to WDW a dozen times (or more) and have seen people taking photos in the general direction of her family. Those times never bothered her, but there was something about this instance that just made her uncomfortable. Instead of getting support, however, for following her maternal instinct, she is told that she is paranoid or from another planet and crazy or going off the deep end for not wanting people to take pics of her children w/o her permission. Let's face it. It hasn't been respectful or supportive. Of course, I also understand that those who wrote those things (or agree with them) probably don't see the posts as that way. Others of us do though.

OP, if you do come back and read this, I hope you continue to heed that internal voice that tells you when something is a bit "off." In most cases, you'll never know if those suspicions were right or wrong. The one time they are right and ignored though is one time too many for the child in your protection.

 

[halloweenbaby610]

this would be so scary. it looks like you did the right thing to do. people wouldn't normally think about anything like that happening at disney world. i mean come on! its the most magical place on earth! but anyway... i hope you dont have to deal with this during the rest of your vacation... have a magical time!

 

[CLR4321]

I would certainly let security know and give a good description of the person and taken a picture of him if possible. That is definitely odd behavior that would make me pretty mad, and definitely is not normal. I would have honestly given some choice words to the guy the first time he did it.

 

[Aliceacc]

If you report it to the authorities and yours is the only complaint, it's a non-issue. They blow you off as being overly paranoid.

But if several parents are creeped out enough to complain, and someone has taken a picture, they have something to go on.

If the OP's instincts are correct and this guy really does do something, that picture may help prevent a second child from falling prey.

I agree: the odds are that it was totally innocent. But the odds are also that a former close friend, a man my kids called "uncle", and a man we trusted with our kids, would NOT turn out to be on the National Sex Offender's Registry. Unfortunately, the odds were wrong in that instance (though thankfully for us, his victim wasn't one of our kids.) As a math teacher, I can tell you: the odds don't always tell the full story.

OP: you did what you felt you had to in order to keep your child safe. If you hadn't, you would never have been able to sleep at night.

 

[CowboyCO]

I'm a shutterbug. When I go to Disney, I take thousands of pictures. I see something neat, someone cute, cool shadows, you name it - I'm taking a picture of it.

When you go out in public, anyone can take your picture. That is why it is legal for the papparazzi to hound celebrities. Public is public.

Only one time did anyone ever say anything to me. It was a guy wanting to know why I took a picture of his girlfriend. He was very hostile. I explained to him that from where his girlfirend was standing, the light was behind her, creating a highlighted halo around her hat, with the Steamboat behind that for a background. It was a cool shot. I showed it to him and offered to send him a copy. He took me up on it and I sent him a copy.

I've just come to expect that when you shoot 20,000 pictures a year, you're occasionally gonna take a picture of a tree with a nut attached.

 

[jodifla]

I'm a shutterbug. When I go to Disney, I take thousands of pictures. I see something neat, someone cute, cool shadows, you name it - I'm taking a picture of it.

When you go out in public, anyone can take your picture. That is why it is legal for the papparazzi to hound celebrities. Public is public.

Only one time did anyone ever say anything to me. It was a guy wanting to know why I took a picture of his girlfriend. He was very hostile. I explained to him that from where his girlfirend was standing, the light was behind her, creating a highlighted halo around her hat, with the Steamboat behind that for a background. It was a cool shot. I showed it to him and offered to send him a copy. He took me up on it and I sent him a copy.

I've just come to expect that when you shoot 20,000 pictures a year, you're occasionally gonna take a picture of a tree with a nut attached.

I think most photographers feel this way! To them, there's beauty in the shot.

Speaking of which, is that your picture in your tag??

 

[Leajess99]

el paso texas ?!?...i live there :0

I lived there for 2 years when I was a child and then did Advanced training there in 1990/1991. It was cool seeing one of the houses I spent part of my childhood in.