It's one thing that a few people at the venue see your child but quite another if the whole internet has that access.
These are not my views - just explanations as to why these restictions are in place. I too like taking photo's of my kids as they grow up and came across this same restriction only 10 days ago. I took my camera but it stayed in my backpack when I saw the sign forbidding photography at the pool.
Let's look at a slightly different scenario - you take a picture of your child at the pool. You like the photo and put it online in you personal gallery. In the background but still in focus and clearly recognisable is someone elses child in an unflattering situation. The parents of the child find out that this image that shows their child is on public display and are not happy so decide to sue you. How would you feel, waiting for the police to decide whether to bring charges or drop it. Being investigated as a suspected paedophile. Your name would be tarnished even if nothing came of it or the court ruled in your favour. People would remember you had been nvestigated and would always be wondering if there is some truth in the allegations.
The following is a true story......
A work colleague of mine was investigated as a suspected paedophile. Through no fault of his own he was found in possesion of one dodgy photo. It was on a cd containing MP3 files. The disc was part of a language tutoring package. He simply played it while learning a foreign language.
Someone by chance discovered the cd contained a hidden folder which in turn contained 3 hidden images. One of these images was dodgy and the guy who owned the cd was reported and the police were involved.
His life was hell for 6 months while the police searched his house from top to bottom and his computer was confiscated and searched for similar images. Even though nothing was found, the case has not been formally dropped and now nearly 12 months later he doesn't really know if the police are going to bring charges against him. He hasn't had his computer returned to him and he still has to be very carefull what he does if he uses any other computer. After 6 months or so he decided to try and forget what was happening and try to continue as if nothing had happened. The whole situation put him and his wife through the mill. Fortunately, it did not break them up but merely rocked the boat and their marriage is just as strong if not stronger as they have gone through this situation.
A photo you see as being innocent, taken in all innocence could lead to trouble down the line. This is why local authoroties put these rules in place - not just because they find it amusing to prevent you taking family snapshots.
I have in the past, taken photo's of my children when they were babies while having a bath. Jokingly said things like 'This will embaress him when he brings his first girlfriend home'. These were taken a long time ago before all this PC bull**** came in. We dare not let anyone else see these photo's now in case they think we abused our kids.
As I said earlier , physical offences against children have not risen
I never suggested anything to contradict that statement. It is simply people protecting themselves against any POSSIBLE problems that could theoretically arise if they didn't put these restrictions in place.
Each argument has two sides. Your view and an opposing view. If you can sit back and look at it calmly and without any personal opinion getting in the way, you can see the other side and understand the reason for their stance. You may still not agree with it but at least you understand their reasons for their actions.
