And Lisa Demaree said, "As crazy as it may seem, what you may think are the most beautiful innocent pictures of your children may be seen as something completely different and completely perverted." 

I've said it before and I fear I'll have to say it again - governments are reaching into families and parental decision-making to an outrageous degree.  If the state and federal governments are better at being parents, fine.  We can turn the whole job over to them and be done with it.  But just in case anyone thinks that parents should be the default position for childcare, we need to start behaving a little more rationally than we are now.

And here's a case in point (San Francisco Chronicle, 9/21/09).  But before I go any further, please be aware that the following may not be appropriate for younger or more sensitive readers.  Proceed at your own risk.

It seems that A.J. and Lisa Demaree, of Peoria, Arizona, took photos of their three daughters, all under the age of five, naked in the bathtub.  Yes, that's the brutal truth.  I hate to hit you with it so tersely, but there it is.

Now, when the Demarees took the photo stick to Wal-Mart for developing, the employee was alarmed and called the cops.  The cops viewed the photos and decided they constituted "child erotica" and "sex (sic) exploitation."  In passing, I should mention the obvious - that anyone who believes that photos of naked five-year-olds in the bathtub constitute erotica has a lot more issues than the parent who took the pictures.  He/she needs to get psychological help.

But that didn't stop the police and "child protective services."  The Demarees had their children seized and placed in foster care for a month.  The parents' names were placed on the state's sex offender registry.  Lisa was suspended from her school job for a year.  They spent $75,000 in attorney's fees to get their children back.

A.J. Demaree said, "Ninety-nine percent of the families in America have these exact same photos."  He's right.

And Lisa Demaree said, "As crazy as it may seem, what you may think are the most beautiful innocent pictures of your children may be seen as something completely different and completely perverted."  She's right too.

Combine those two true statements and here's what you get: According to police and "child welfare" authorities, 99% of American parents should be placed on sex offender registries, because they photograph their unclothed children.

The Demarees have their children back.  They've filed suit against Wal-Mart and the State of Arizona.  I hope they win big.  It's the only way these zealots will learn the difference between a parent and a pervert.

This entry was posted on Monday, October 5th, 2009 at 1:35 pm and is filed under Child Protective Services/Child Welfare System, Parenting. You can trackback from your own site.