Community Magazine May 2012

BIG SUBJECTS FOR LITTLE KIDS? I wanted to thank you for your publication. My family and I enjoy reading it. In particular, I enjoyed this month’s Shaatra files with bedtime suggestions for children. Thank you. I also wanted to comment that there are times when I find some of the content inappropriate for children, especially the jokes and advice columns. My nine-year-old son loves to flip through the pages of your publication over and over throughout the month, and this month, there was a joke about divorces, which I thought was inappropriate. Firstly, why introduce this idea to the unknowing? Or present it in a way that pokes fun at the splitting of possessions when a couple divorces? And secondly, it was insensitive to make a joke out of divorce when so many children are suffering miserably because of their parents’ divorce Additionally, I found the letter for “advice” about marijuana totally unnecessary. How could that be printed in a family magazine? Yes, there are people struggling with these issues. But I find that it would be more appropriate to address that in a teen/young adult magazine–as opposed to a family magazine. Please consider that your audience includes young, impressionable children for whom we try to limit exposure to things which we don’t approve of. Let’s preserve their innocence as much as we can. Jennifer Seruya EDITOR’S REPLY: a handful of readers expressed concern over illicit drugs being the subject matter of last month’s sage advice column. Parents certainly have a responsibility to protect their children from corrupting influences, but there are different schools of thought regarding the best way to go about doing that. after countless studies and research, the vast majority of experts recommend that already from the age of seven or eight – well before they even know how to pronounce the word marijuana – children should be warned by their parents about the dangers of illicit drugs and the possibility that they may be offered drugs by someone they know. Experience suggests that the best defense is not simply insulation, but conversation – even with fairly young children, and perhaps especially so. at a younger age, parents can create within their children a more permanent aversion to drugs, just as they establish an aversion to accepting rides from strangers. Children who don’t learn about drugs from their parents will almost invariably learn about them from other, less responsible, sources well before their teen years (when most parents first consider talking to their kids about this subject) – and that means that their first impression may be that it’s cool or somehow exciting. This notion of early education and parental engagement was the rationale behind Community’s December 2006 cover article titled, ”The hard Problem of soft Drugs.” and it continues to be this publication’s policy to attack the growing problem of drug use throughout our community, responsibly, through appropriate education. of course, every parent must decide what strategy is right for their family and so, to that end, Community will honor any subscription cancellation and refund request from parents who object to the cautionary references to illegal drugs which have appeared on our pages. PATROLLING CYBERSPACE I came across your site from reading a Google news alert regarding safe surfing. I work at CyberPatrol and we recently offered a free software giveaway. CyberPatrol LLC, a leading developer of cloud- based web filtering solutions announced that SiteSURV 4.0, its highly awarded cloud service, is available for free to the first 100 companies that contact CyberPatrol. The offer was intended to help customers taken by surprise at OpenDNS’s decision to begin charging for its once free content filtering service. Unlike OpenDNS, CyberPatrol’s SiteSURV 4.0 contains no advertising. To take advantage of this offer, visit www.cyberpatrol.com/freebee. Barb Rose VP Marketing, CyberPatrol THE BIGGEST EVENT FOR WOMEN TOO Your article about the upcoming worldwide Siyum Hashas event, which graced your cover last month, failed to mention a crucial fact about this momentous gathering – that it’s for both men and women! Though it is men who actively learn in the daf yomi program, the credit for their efforts is shared with their wives and mothers, who encourage and support their learning. That’s why organizers made sure to reserve close to half of the stadium for women. And, as anyone who has seen the seating plan can attest, women are not being relegated to the bleachers; some of the best seats in the house are in the women’s section. So when some 90,000 men, women and children come together on August 1st at Met Life stadium to celebrate the commitment of an entire nation to daily Torah learning – where will your wife be? Sarah Cohen WRITE US A LETTER Letters submitted become the property of Community Magazineandwillnotbereturnedunlessaccompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope. Letters may be edited and revised for length, style and grammar before publication. All submissions are considered for publication unless otherwise requested. Preferential consideration is given to brief comments and insights that relate directly to published content. EMAIL: letters@Community M .com WEB: www. Community M .com MAIL: COMMUNITYMAGAZINE 1616 OCEAN PKWY BROOKLYN, NY 11223 FAX: 718-504-4246 Just scan the Quick Response (QR) code at right with your tablet, smart phone or other mobile device. LETTERS 10 Community magazine