[Artemisia] background checks

Thu May 10 21:40:09 CDT 2007

Greetings to all from Viscount Sir Thomas the Diminutive

  I guess it is time for me to enter this forum. Sorry for the length but as to the seriousness
  I hope Understandable.  And yes the previous levity By David in my name I was standing over his shoulder the whole time.

  I fortunately or un,  trust my SCA brothers and sisters.  At one point I did lose a child at 
  a major event.  Imagine looking through Estrella War for a 3 year old. Looking for a child
  in every encampment under every tree in every portapotty.  My heart races at this time of posting just as it did then.  As to no-ones fault did this event happen (Children are but mist in our view and then gone in an Instant.  The 5 or more children playing with Anthony were all good and responsible kids one of which was his own brother.  As we Thomas and Adria
  came to check on the kids for the fourth time while they were playing we asked the kids where he was.  They all pointed where he was just a second ago. (this is usually the way it happens).  Yes if something happened I would feel so many emotions it would be impossible to describe.  And yes he was found safe in a tent,  in a Thunder encampment, with a young lady then known as Mom.  

  So that now explains how Anthony, now wanting to be known as m'lord Rashid Ahmed Omar has so much fascination with the drums and Darbuka.

  Now then Who was Ultimately Responsible for the whereabouts of Anthony.
  Obviously the parents -That would be Me.  Did I get drug by my heaes for an hour behind a horse to learn my lesson of never ever taking my eyes off of my child?  The answer is no, 
  refer to the first.  As to this point I did not turn to the nearest adult and say so weren't you watching these kids?  Where is Anthony?  (This is also absurd)  We reported the child lost and the security (my brothers and sisters) at War were helpful, kind, and all were overjoyed when he was found.  

  Another incident 2 wars ago a teen boy made inappropriate advances on my teen girl.  Nothing too serious happened but she was old enough to stop it and the dad and I had a talk.
  And appropriate action was taken.  And a severe discussion with the father on his part of this problem was also acted on appropriately.  (By the way this matter is closed !!!!!)

  So who is accountable  the World, Our Government, The State of Arizona, The SCA?  No, none of the above.  The accountability and the handling is Me the parent.  Period!

  Now then as I am at an event I also watch the (Tears are starting to come now because how I feel about this matter.) 1,000s of my children born to me when I started the SCA they are also my kids my brothers and my sisters as are all those reading this. And I am watching out for you as I go about my business.  It may not be easy to recognize inappropriate behavior but, a simple, hello how are things going. Are you and your daddy enjoying the event. Little one are you ok (in a whisper) and yes these were off the cuff.  Most of us are what we seem to be Thank God.

  There is one certainty You nor I are as smart as someone who is so sick as to 
  touch a child in the matter as we are discussing.  I am so sorry to tell you this
  but you just can't watch your kids all by yourself that well.  

  One thing is also certain is your kids are smarter than us and them.  One of the best things to do is teach your children what to do and remind them all the time this is for the mundane world as well.  If a person is doing inappropriate things, wants you to go with them, wants you to get in the car, go in a tent, and you feel funny about it. Or you go into the tent and then something happens you scream FIRE not help or just screams  FIRE moves adults faster than you can ever imagine.  Maybe think of things to teach my kids and we will all feel a little better. 
  By the way Thank you Tangle ask my why later
  Also the Lady that said,  putting tabards or favors on our young ones is just a gateway for a person to get closer to them.

  A promise     Those who are not so good to MY kids SCA or otherwise
  Beware   we are watching and our kids are getting more and more prepared.

  Viscount Sir Thomas
  This probably won't end the discussion but I would hope so. 

Richard Samul <scascot at mac.com> wrote:
  The short answer to the question is "no".

A background investigation will only reveal someone who has already 
been convicted of the crime in question (actually, it will reveal 
*any* sex crime, regardless of whether or not it involved children). 
It will not, and I must stress NOT, reveal anyone who is suspected 
of, or currently being investigated for, this type of crime. And if 
the person isn't even a blip on law enforcement radar, there is 
absolutely zero chance of them being revealed by a background check.

The only thing a background investigation does is to reveal known sex 
offenders. In most (not all) cases, these are people who are trying 
to get on with their lives after their conviction and prison term. A 
very small percentage of convicted sex offenders are simple 
predators, who lack the ability to learn from a mistake and correct 
their lives. Yet, these are the ones who grab the headlines, and have 
the country in a panic that "something must be done" (see: the Shasta 
Groene case).

So. Background investigations = good. Keeps the known where you can 
see them. Should it be a glaring spotlight? Not in my opinion. 
However, background investigations <> total security. Just because 
someone passed a check doesn't mean they're safe. The government and 
the SCA can't do it all for you, nor should they. You must, at some 
point, take responsibility for the safety of your children.

The case in question is a perfect example. The SCA simply could not 
have known anything was amiss, despite claims from the plaintiffs to 
the contrary. The SCA had no reason to investigate or have concern 
until the matter was brought to their attention. The abuses happened 
at a non-SCA-sponsored, private event outside the control or auspices 
of the SCA. Even under the proposed rules for background 
investigation, there wouldn't have been one, because of the nature of 
the gathering. And, the investigation for his holding office wouldn't 
have shown anything, anyway, because he wasn't a convicted sex 
offender at that point.

The responsibility here rests squarely on the parents of the children 
to (a) know the person they are leaving their children with, and (b) 
be approachable by their children. Sadly, it appears that neither 
happened, and the SCA is being blamed as a result.

-- 
Earc
2 pence

On May 10, 2007, at 8:10 AM, tangl wrote:

> Excuse me, but would that have even shown up on a background 
> check? He was involved in the SCA for 10 years as a youth group 
> minister, but didn't get caught during the entire time he was a 
> predator. Background checks, even the extensive kind done by the 
> Idaho State Patrol, only shows up investigations. If this guy was 
> sucessfully abusing these children for a decade, no background 
> check would have shown his evil side. Was this predator actually 
> investigated and cleared several times or something? Or did this 
> conviction happen all at once, with a flood of children brave 
> enough to step forward once the first one(s) did? A situation like 
> that wouldn't have shown up on a background check, even if we 
> required them at the First Garden Party. I guess I don't want the 
> SCA held responsible because we didn't utilize the mind-reading 
> software we so obviously have been hiding from the 
> government.Maitresse Tanglwyst de HollowayBarony of Arn HoldKingdom 
> of Artemisia-Chuck Norris can
> believe it's not butter.
>
> _______________________________________________
> No banners. No pop-ups. No kidding.
> Make My Way your home on the Web - http://www.myway.com
> _______________________________________________
> Artemisia mailing list
> Artemisia at lists.gallowglass.org
> http://lists.gallowglass.org/mailman/listinfo/artemisia

_______________________________________________
Artemisia mailing list
Artemisia at lists.gallowglass.org
http://lists.gallowglass.org/mailman/listinfo/artemisia

---------------------------------
Ahhh...imagining that irresistible "new car" smell?
 Check outnew cars at Yahoo! Autos.