[Jaine Perotti]

I don't think it is at all appropriate for the parents to put the blame on myspace.com for their daughter's poor choices. I think the responsibility rests on their shoulders because they, as parents, should have laid down the rules and expectations from the get-go that would not have allowed her to develop such poor behavior. If some parents feel that not allowing their child to get a myspace account (because myspace would help them continue their bad behavior), then by all means they should do so. However, an outright ban should not be considered a solution to the problem. Unfortunately, the problem lies in the origins of the action itself (bad parenting techniques, emotionally disturbing experiences, etc.).

As for banning the myspace url at schools, my school (a regional public high school) has chosen to block it (as well as facebook, xanga, and any other social networking sites). Personally, I don't feel that blocking the url is going to protect anyone from sexual predators. If kids want myspace, they will do it at home instead of at school. The only real benefit of blocking the url at school is that it prevents students from being distracted by it while they may need to be doing other work.

I have both a myspace and a facebook account. Oftentimes I wish I had never gotten either. Not because it makes me feel unsafe - I never share personally identifiable information that could lead someone to my front doorstep, nor do I ever arrange to meet someone I met online. The only time I will ever meet someone I met online is if the person met me through chiefdelphi, and I am meeting them at a competition where there are lots of people around or I am with friends of mine who already know the person.

However, I really wish I had never gotten a myspace because of the fact that it is extremely distracting and potentially addictive. Also, conflicting social situations arise because of things that are said/done on myspace. Many times people vent their frustration when they shouldn't, treat myspace as if it is some sort of rating system for their friends, or broadcast information and PDA which should be kept private because it upsets others.

Why don't I delete my account?
I am tempted to... almost every day. But now its one of those things that I can't stop paying attention to, even though I wish I didn't. One of these days I am probably going to hit that "delete" button soon though, and I will be happy to rely on email, phone, or IM for communication. I have an account here on CD because it does some good for me and the world. But myspace has never helped me in any way... it has only frustrated me and wasted my time. Not to mention how quickly I got sick of whoring bulletins and chain bulletins. So, if you are contemplating getting a myspace... my advice is to JUST NOT DO IT.

-- Jaine