Why do men park at Parks????

[TnKrBeLlA012]

This has been bothering me lately. When I have driven by a park I always seem to see a couple of cars with men parked in them. What or why are they at the Park? I would never let my child visit a park alone. A park is a place for children. That is why seeing adults parked in cars makes me wonder what they are doing. Does this happen in other areas??

 

[drgnfly30]

umm I could give you some ideas but I fear being banned!!! There is a rest area near here that has a reputation as a 'pick up' place if you catch my drift.. that would be my first guess!

 

[Free4Life11]

Could be up to no good, looking for young children to prey on.

 

[Breezy_Carol]

I am not a man but, I work on the road all day. Often I will stop at a park to eat my packed lunch and listen to the radio and relax for 10 minutes. I often see other men and women doing the same thing. In fact, DH just said how he left his office and went to the town park to eat his lunch today. So, it could be perfectly innocent.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Some parks around here serve multiple purposes--so it would be hard though not impossible to figure out if someone is their for a weird purpose. We avoid the parks that happens more often at.

If you are concerned, you may inquire with local police. If anything--they can be asked to moved for loitering.

 

[TnKrBeLlA012]

That is what I actually think but I don't want to believe. The world is a sick place. In a previous post someone was worried about what the government would teach their children if they attended public schools. That is the last worry a parent should have.

 

[CheshireVal]

A lot of parks around here are notorious "hook up" spots.

 

[ADisneygirl]

It is sad but oh so true that we have to assume the worst of people when it concerns the safety of our children. Maybe their own kid is out on the playground and they are watching them from the car. Or it is possible that these men might simply be eating their lunch, watching happy kids play, maybe reliving their own children's childhoods.....but of course we all know there could be a sinister reason for their being there. Better safe than sorry is the world's motto nowadays. Unfortunately I agree with the world.

 

[Danvers]

 

[gallaj0]

I also do a lot of travelling for work, and I've been know to stop off at a park or beach, and just sit and enjoy the peace and quite while eating lunch.

Or is that going to be denied us also in the name of paranoia?

If it was a kids playground or school yard, that would seem to be different, but public parks are for everyone's enjoyment.

 

[epcotfan]

A park is a place for children.

No it isn't. Around here parks are enjoyed by EVERYONE. I live in an apartment so I don't have a backyard. If I want some outdoor time I walk to the park.

 

[Princess Dot]

Actually there was a story on the news here the other day about a woman that was issued a summons for sitting in a NY city park without any children! There was a sign that stated no adults were allowed at the playground unless accompanied by a child. They said that the reason for the rule was to prevent pedophiles from going in the playground, but this poor woman was just sitting down for a rest!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

A playground and a park or two separate things though.

I can't imagine that no adult would be banned from a place such as Central Park in its entirety if they aren't accompanied by a child.

Around here--the parks are for everyone and are set up accordingly.

 

[Princess Dot]

A playground and a park or two separate things though.

That's true and while I called it a park, it really was a fenced in playground with benches around the edge to sit on. I tend to use the words park and playground as meaning the same thing.

In NYC though, aside from Central Park, many neighborhood "parks" are quite small and do contain kids jungle gyms and swings, etc. as well as some trees and benches. I have always seen adults sitting in these parks and while I understand the rationale behind the law, it just seems unfair that an adult can not sit down in a city park and enjoy the outdoors without being pegged as a potential pedophile. The woman in the story was so upset. But then there are the other stories of weirdos trying to lure kids away to look for a lost puppies, and being a mom, I do appreciate the attempt by the government to try and make kids play areas safer.

 

[jenm2878]

Um...I'm a woman but I too will go on my lunch break and sit in the park. Sometimes at a picnic table, sometimes in my car. Just nice to enjoy the day for an hour when you're stuck in a cubical the rest of the day. I would be incredibly offended if someone were to suggest I was there to corrupt kids. I go rollerblading and biking in parks too, is that no longer allowed?

 

[Blondy876]

I am not a man but, I work on the road all day. Often I will stop at a park to eat my packed lunch and listen to the radio and relax for 10 minutes. I often see other men and women doing the same thing. In fact, DH just said how he left his office and went to the town park to eat his lunch today. So, it could be perfectly innocent.

That was my first thought too. Someone just eatting lunch or doing paper work.

 

[Serena]

There are some parks in my town that this is a common occurance. The police run them all out for a few weeks and they come back.

In those circumstances, they are there to pick up other men.

 

[MScott1851]

I'm not meaning to laugh at this post, but good Lord! I think it is MUCH more likely that they are there to look for other men, not your child.

There are entire websites devoted to places to cruise if you are an, um, let's say, man searching for a like-minded man, and parks are one of the more popular places, along with bathrooms in other places like truck stops, malls, colleges, gyms, etc, or adult bookstores. They're cruising and pickup spots.

God, I can't believe I just typed that... The knowledge you come by when your best friend is a gay man!

Or, I know lots of people who go to parks on their lunch breaks, or on pretty days just to enjoy the outdoors and unwind...nothing wrong with that.

 

[Planogirl]

Eck! I've been known to go for a walk and to stop at a park to sit down for few moments. Sometimes, only the playground area has benches. I can't believe that some poor woman got arrested for simply sitting down!

 

[jgmklmhem]

I am a man and just yesterday I was sitting on a bench in a park. Not right at the playground but a little ways off. I had an interview in a town 45 miles away and left myself wayyyyy too much time so I stopped at a park to sit and collect myself. I guess now I am pedophile in most peoples eyes. I know we need to look out for safety of our kids (i have two young daughters) but isn't this profiling. I mean how is this really any different than looking at someone of Middle Eastern dissent and automatically thinking terrorist...or looking at someone who is black and thinking criminal (people will literally jump down your throat and call you all sorts of names for those two, and I agree they should)....but it is ok to look at a man alone and automatically think pedophile.