what's this - "your usual yellow press comments for videogames" or destructoid.com?

everyone who uses some instant messenger is pedophile and there's only kids playing a ds...?

Were you saving that headline and decided to waste it on a crappy instant-messenger theme story? Too bad.

Holy shit, this is great news for me. I might have to check this out. If there are gonna be a bunch kids around to talk to. I can't wait!

My friend is obsessed with that show!

But wait, I don't see how this is 100% right/legal. Granted it is good to get the pedophiles behind bars where unseenly things will happen to them but...they didn't do anything wrong at that point and like DeusPayne says, she is 18.

I feel it is like saying you are going to illegally park in an IM and you are right next to a no park zone and cops bust you and arrest you. Granted it is an exaggeration but even giving a ticket. You can't give a ticket unless you actually do something wrong, not think about it. I mean who hasn't thought about doing something illegal?

But it is another story when on that show they have someone BRING something mention in the convo which kind of shows their intent, but without that I feel it could be missing something.

But back to the topic...who cares about a yahoo theme? That doesn't make it harder or easier for pedophiles to get kids, just gives them decoration.

This is a good example of how Minority Report happens in real life. Is it enough to think about a crime? Or does the crime itself need to occur? In the case of pedos, I'd say the intent is usually good enough. However, when they're being roped in my police (or "narcs") that are of legal age, I don't see where the crime is being committed. I can say I'm 13 all I want, but that doesn't make my girlfriend a sex offender. The fact of the matter is that the target in question is not under age, regardless of what persona they used online.

If they haven't commited a crime they shouldn't be arrested. I truly believe that. The guy MIGHT have touched her and done something, but she is 18. Its technicalities and what not, the sad thing is that any possible sexual predator is gonna be found guilty due to the strong bias. I know i pretend to be a rapist, but i am not and it is a very serious subject. But if the guy didn't do anything then they shouldn't get in trouble for anything, probation at the most. just watch them so they don't do anything again. What they probably need is psychological help. A lot of times it really isn't their fault, to a certain extent. Their brains work differently and often times real sexual predators cannot stop themselves from doing those bad things that they do.

Destructoid gamers send angry hate letters to dateline! HAHAHAHA

I was overexageratting slightly but my point is that pedophilia is a disgusting thing and I think that these people should be arrested based upon the conversations they are having with these supposed kids. Let alone actually showing up at their house.

Everyone who loves the internet for what it is: a bastion of free thought and freedom of expression should feel the same way. If something isn't done about online predators the government will find a way to step in and do it themselves. Don't underestimate the power of protective parents. And once the government gets their greasy hands on internet censorship it's over johnny.

Just because I'm a stickler for language and words, sex with someone who is thirteen isn't pedophilia. Pedophilia would be sexual attraction to prepubescent or peripubescent children. Attraction to a postpubescent adolescent is ephebophilia. As far as nature is concerned, ephebophilia is probably entirely natural, because that's exactly what puberty is; the switching on of sexuality. However, nature isn't law, thus the age of consent was instituted to keep the balance of power in check. We believe anyone under the age of 16 or 18 (depending on the state) isn't well-informed enough to make a decision on whether or not to have sex, so it's illegal; sometimes just for people over a certain age (i.e. sex at 16 is fine as long as your partner is under 21). Similarly, we have sexual harassment laws, which although they usually apply between people over the age of consent, are still in place to keep a balance of power.

I agree with DeusPayne, this is the first step towards the "Minority Report". You don't know what anyone's intention is until they've actually gone and done it. Saying, 'well, you were _going_ to do it' doesn't seem very just in convicting someone of such a serious crime. Nothing is so bad you can arrest someone just for thinking it. Until the crime is at least _attempted_, then I see nothing illegal about this. The internet, and most of what goes on in and through it, is bullshit anyways.

Did I say James Cromwell? I meant Max Von Sydow.

They're charged with a lesser offense, child solicitation (which is illegal in all 50 states, the cut-off age is usually 14). They're not actually charged with child molestation. They've gotten people on other charges too, such as having an unregistered firearm or drug possession depending on the situation. All the chat logs are saved, and a lot of the sickos had already sent stuff like child porn. These people have already broken the law by the time they show up to the sting.