Teen, mom sue MySpace.com for $30 million

According to an article published in yesterday's Austin American-Statesman newspaper, a 14-year-old girl and her mother have filed a lawsuit against MySpace.com over it's "utterly ineffective" security for under-age members.  The girl claims to have met a 19-year-old boy through MySpace who claimed to be younger, accompanied him to dinner and the movies, and then was sexually assaulted afterwards in a parking lot.

My take on the story?  Blame the parents, not MySpace.  It's her parents that should be watching out for her and teaching her how to be safe in today's changing world.  MySpace does have safety measures in place to keep underage profiles private and inaccessible by anyone 16 years or older, but it shouldn't be a replacement for quality parenting and involvement in your child's life.  On top of that, the girl admitted that she willingly went with him to the movies and dinner and then with him afterwards to his home.  Come on, a guy goes out with a girl on a date and then invites her home with him... what else do you think he was planning on doing?  This family is just looking for someone else to blame for their problems and hoping to make a lot of money off of it at the same time.

Here's hoping the judge for this case is like Judge Judy (yes, despite how much I dislike her), tells the mother to be a better and more involved parent, and dismisses this frivolous lawsuit altogether.