Decal Dangers: my soapbox

If anyone knows me they know that I love to get on my soapbox and share my opinions. And I have many opinions. When my sisters and I get together it becomes a real "hen house" and you can see the men running for cover.
Conspiracies, injustices, religion, politics, you name it.. we love to talk about them.
So far on my blog I've only posted a few of these. I've chased away a few folks in the past. But a friend of mine told me to just let go. So..

I have a pet peeve. And that's when loving parents unknowingly put themselves and their children in danger by posting all the information a predator needs to victimize a family on the family vehicle.
You've seen them. You might even have one on your car. A decal with your kids, dog, sports team, school, and sometimes even names on the back window of their SUV. It's an advertisement for a pedophile.
1. I have three kids, ages are around 15, 10, and 6. One girl and two boys.
2. My daughter go to Blah Blah elementary where she's an honor student.
3. We have a dog names Fido... he's a Husky.
4. My son, Griff plays the drums in the band at Blah, Blah High School.
5. My daughter dances at Blah, Blah dance studio.

Unknown to mom and the kids, pedophiles seek to find some way to know your child before victimizing them. Knowing a child’s name, what their house looks like or their pet’s name gives them the “in” to get close to your child.
What more does a sicko need to get to know your family? You've put it all on the back of your car so he can spot it and follow you to the dance studio, the grocery store, the vet, the kids school.... and home.

At home when Jimmy comes out to play basketball, the pedophile gets out of his car and walks up and says Hi Jimmy! Jimmy is disarmed by the pedophiles use of his name so he doesn’t react negatively to this stranger. “I lost my dog, he looks just like your dog, Fido, have you seen him?” Using his dog’s name completely brings down Jimmy’s defenses. Knowing this, the predator moves in closer to Jimmy, close enough to grab him.

Predators can also use info from a child's backpack, or jacket that has their name printed right on it, in plain view.

I know that parents can get so darn proud of their kids. And schools and sports teams make it very easy to purchase these decals. But it's also important to keep your child's safety in mind as well.

So as not to be a hypocrite I too have a decal. It's from my son's school. But after much thought I believe I'll take it off and proudly display it on the family refrigerator.