Comments on: You’ve Got to Fight, For Your Right… to Take Photos of Your Own Kid at a Public Ice Skating Rink?

By: Dan

Dan — Sun, 14 May 2006 09:06:00 +0000

And along those lines, I prescribe decapitation to treat your next sinus infection. I beginning to think the Chinese have more freedom.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 13 May 2006 14:40:00 +0000

It doesn’t matter if it’s your kid our not if your out in public you can take pictures of anything or anyone and you have the right.I have read this as a law.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 11 May 2006 21:05:00 +0000

If this person is harassing others then there are already laws in place regarding harassment. No need to create more laws and regulations which abridge everyone's freedoms.

I for one also photograph in public and I have photographed children in public and I am a single male. OMG!

Here is the problem, how do you know that the photographer from the local news photographing your little son or daughter isn't a pedophile? We know that pedophiles come from all walks of life. They are found in all classes, all levels of income and education. And I bet this manager of the rink would never deny a "news" photographer from taking pics or video.

It's all about people imagining pedophiles as some greasy looking freak hiding behind the bushes, when often times they are trusted and respected family friends and relatives. So should we stop family and friends from taking photographs because they might be closet pedophiles? Give me a break! Doing everything because of pedophiles is just people allowing their own prejudices and fears to be unwittingly played upon.

Not too many years ago in America, the land of the free, a black man taking an interest in a white woman was considered a threat to her purity. People don't generally think that any more, but not long ago it went unquestioned as being fact. So much for "facts".

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 10 May 2006 20:13:00 +0000

Sad how you assume Jean Hetman is correct. The truth is that Jean Hetman is a typical “little league” type of skating parent. Jealousy is a big issue with her and she is not innocently videotaping her daughter. She is harrassing the other skaters, coaches and parents in this rink by openly and conspicously taping them to make them feel uncomfortable. How do I know this? Because I know some of the people she is harrassing. She is harrassing children. And this isn’t the first rink she has done it in. She is also responsible for the Clifton Park Arena adapting the same policy. Please find out both sides of a story before forming an opinion. This woman portrays a very poor example for her daughter and the other children in the rink. I hope she gets banned so the rest of us can skate in peace without her camera staring us down constantly.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 10 May 2006 13:35:00 +0000

Little by little they take away our rights until we have none. It’s just like the frog in the tub of water. Slowly bring up the heat and it will be boiled alive.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 10 May 2006 12:32:00 +0000

I attend college in Troy, NY. I am not at all surprised that such a shithole of a town would maintain a policy like that – distributing photos of Troy would quickly drive away those foolhardy few who might consider visiting.

By: Bill Pytlovany

Bill Pytlovany — Wed, 10 May 2006 09:53:00 +0000

This topic barely made the local news and I was surprised I heard about it first here when I live 20 miles away from this rink.
I wrote more about it today and included a link in my Blog to a local news story I TiVo’d.

http://billpstudios.blogspot.com/2006/05/public-photos-not-allowed-in-troy-ny.html

By: Uncle Roger

Uncle Roger — Wed, 10 May 2006 07:13:00 +0000

Assuming it is a public place, the policy is illegal, I'm pretty sure. IANAL, but this guy is and he's written about this very subject. An important read for photographers.

By: Kaur

Kaur — Wed, 10 May 2006 03:25:00 +0000

Given the stories one hears about pedophiles

- and I think THIS is the real problem: too much HEARING about pedophiles. The panic-spreading media is creating paranoia about issues that are politically correct to be paranoid about, and then everyone feels the need to save his poor ass. I am not saying that such crime should not be published or discussed, but the focus should be on real problems, not the pseudo-problems that cause 0.0001% of cases but have high media sales potential.

Who can link to some statistics for pedophile crime in US (or elsewhere)? And compare it to estimated figures of in-family harrassment, incest and child abuse? We hear about high-profile cases and then base our actions on those - instead of looking at where are the real risks, and things to be changed and done.

By: John

John — Wed, 10 May 2006 02:42:00 +0000

Given the stories one hears about pedophiles taking "snappies" of children in public places and using them for other nefarious purposes, one can't really blame another for wanting to somehow govern it.

However, in the act of banning photography, although it may *in theory* help limit the number of photos pedophiles may take, it also infringes upon the basic rights and freedom that other people... innocent people have a right to.

We can all safely assume that banning photography will not stop pedophiles, just make them sneakier and more discrete. In the end, a measure designed to stop pedophiles, it only ends up serving to piss off people who AREN'T pedophiles.