There are two ways of dealing with the bad news we hear about wrongdoing and crime. One is to hear what happened, express our disgust/rage/righteous indignation etc. etc. and then move on with our day. We are right, the perpetrators of evil are wrong. End of story. What is the weather forecast and have the Mets been eliminated from the playoff race?
Another way is to learn necessary lessons and apply them to our lives.
The second way is preferable by a long shot.
So a middle school principal in a Modern Orthodox day school has been caught by the FBI doing terrible stuff. [He actually went to the Yeshiva in the Old City where I once learned and like most perpetrators of such sickness - one would never have guessed.] Assuming the charges are true - what is the lesson?
To me it is simple - How on earth are kids allowed on social media where they can meet predators who will convince them to send nude photos of themselves?? Why doesn't this school [and those of its ilk] get together and say to the parents and kids - NO MORE. You don't need Facebook and all that other garbage. When you are a mature responsible adult you may reconsider but not as a child. But they won't say that - even though this is not the first story, there are countless others going on as we speak and there will be countless more in the future.
To my readers I say - If you love your children, consider very carefully what the BEST approach is for them regarding social media, given the dangers and numerous other problems.
On that note - I found out at the end of my return flight to Israel that I was flying together with hundreds of people attending an SAA ["smartphone addicts anonymous"] convention. How did I know? Because the minute we landed, hundreds of smartphones appeared [besides those that were already out because they were used for playing games in order to kill tie on the flight] and people started frantically calling and texting....
