Chana took notes of the entire meeting, titled "Caught in the Web: Modern Technology and Family Safety".
My own take: Excellent job. It lays out (strongly) the dangers that are inherently part of the internet, particularly to children, then discusses what parents should and must do in striking a balance of trusting children while monitoring what goes on in their lives. It was informative, educational, and most importantly, practical. It didn't ignore the realities of 21st century technology nor pretend that a ban could somehow make the problems go away. It didn't make up statistics or exaggerate the dangers, nor denigrate the positives and often necessity of having the internet. I just read through the entire thing; I'd suggest to everyone - particularly parents - to do the same.
Speakers included Rabbi Harvey Well, Rabbi Zev Cohen, Rabbi Norman Lowenthal and Rabbi David Pelcovitz.
Rabbi Lowenthal is amazing, he gave a community wide internet lecture back in September. I know he actually will sign up and test out sites like facebook, to see how many kids will just accept random requests, etc.
ReplyDeleteSo many parents are clueless about what their children are doing online, and his presentation explains a lot of these sites and the dangers behind them. bet you didnt think there were any issues with onlysimchas, did you?
FWIW, the community wide lecture, is now available on DVD with Rabbi Lowenthal and Rabbi Pelcovitz. Rabbi Twerski is on it and I think one other.
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