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Anime con may check attendees against sex-offender registries

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Morn

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http://blastr.com/2011/08/anime-con-may-check-atten.php

Anime conventions are supposed to be fun places to hang with like-minded fans, to watch videos, buy collectibles and engage in some cosplay. But sometimes things can take a darker turn.

"You get hundreds and hundreds of young girls in skimpy costumes ... and then you have older male anime fans," Katsucon media relations guru Chad Diederichs
told the Washington Post. "The juxtaposition of the two may not look entirely wholesome."

One unfortunate example—last month, Michael Allen Alper, a 34-year-old Silver Spring man who was already a convicted sex offender, admitted in federal court that he had sex with a 13-year-old girl he met in February 2010 at Katsucon.

In response to this, Katsucon told the Anime News Network that:

In light of this event, Katsucon will make every effort to check our pre-registration attendee list against local and federally published sex offender registries and will prohibit attendance from those identified as a threat to our attendees in the hope to prevent an incident such as this from ever occurring again.

But is that practical, or even possible? As Firefighter50 commented on the Washington Post article:

I would also like to point the impracticality of background searching everyone who buys a membership to check for anything that would flag them. We already have lines around the block right now can you imagine the cost and time of checking everyone. Also even if it was feasible how would you like it if just because you are an older man or woman we profile you to cut down on number of people to check.

But more importantly, as Moonchildcnb12 wrote in the same comment thread:

I'm not going to deny that there aren't any there, but I am going to say that they aren't the only ones there. You're more likely to bump into someone that loves the same show you do or someone that spent hours working on getting their cosplay to look just right and will gladly tell you what they used to make it. I guess what I'm trying to say is, is that rather then writing about the creeps and perverts that lurk everywhere, not just at conventions.

We tend to agree with Moonchildcnb12—though the Washington Post's piece seems to insinuate otherwise, conventions are no better or worse, no more or less safe, than the wider world outside.
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Wow, this and the Hello Kitty fan pedophile thread...just wow...

I don't think I can see an anime girl avatar and take the poster seriously again. :p
 
28-empty-warehouse.jpg
 
I don't understand how an anime nerd has game enough to seduce a 13 year old

I don't understand this... why would a girl give it up to a creepy old dude?
 
I know somebody who picked up an underage girl at an anime convention, took her to a friend's apartment (telling her it was his), had sex with her, and then kicked her out. Classy dude. She was like 14-15 and he was 22 at the time.
 
Jeff-DSA said:
I know somebody who picked up an underage girl at an anime convention, took her to a friend's apartment (telling her it was his), had sex with her, and then kicked her out. Classy dude. She was like 14-15 and he was 22 at the time.
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erikepperson1.jpg


??
 
bengraven said:
You're supposed to say "this is like in one of my Japanese animes"
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I couldn't post that without making it look like I was quoting something rather than actually saying it. I think I got my point across with the ~ enough.
 
Dissonance said:
I see no problem with this.
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There really isn't one. Especially if they're picking up a lot of rapists and find tiny pre-teens with cleavage statues in their homes.


Rapstah said:
I couldn't post that without making it look like I was quoting something rather than actually saying it. I think I got my point across with the ~ enough.
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Oh you were making an actual point. Gotcha.


Sennorin said:
Well, it´s pretty disgusting how the article basically equates male anime fans with sex criminals. Nothing more to be said.
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So you're saying this is profiling?
 
Probably should be argued for all conventions.

I also don't think Teens should be left alone anyways at one.
 
Vox-Pop said:
Don't Anime cons always have crazy after parties?
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I've always heard that Renaissance Fairs turn in to huge medieval orgies afterwards. Like all the wenches finally unleash their boobs after they've been mashed up all day and stuff.
 
perfectnight said:
Sex offender defense force assemble?
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Check out the other thread about the 22 year old Hello Kitty fan who raped underaged girls and had a folder on his desktop full of naked sex pics he took during the acts.

And then see the people who are saying the age of consent should be dropped.


Borgnine said:
I've always heard that Renaissance Fairs turn in to huge medieval orgies afterwards. Like all the wenches finally unleash their boobs after they've been mashed up all day and stuff.
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Dunno man, I got a friend who's huge into Faire culture and he's got a lot of bar wench poon.
 
Smiles and Cries said:
I dunno, I'm kinda mixed on this one... are they going to ban them from hanging out at malls and the local Mcdonald's too?
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I wasn't aware kids and teens cosplay when they go to malls and McDonald's.
 
My freshman year, when I was really first introduced to anime and didn’t really understand anime conventions or the shows in general, the anime club president at the time wanted me to cosplay for the first time. He took care of most of the cosplay (a big mistake, I really should’ve taken on the hardship myself) and I went as luffy, from one piece. I look very young for my age, so the cosplay went very well (I had to shave my legs, I’m embarassed to admit. Luffy doesn’t have hairy legs). The con was a blast, as a result.
If you know anything about cons, it’s the people that take the time to cosplay generally have the most fun.
At one point though, I noticed that this good miku cosplay girl was following me around. I’m really bad at reading girls, I had never had a girlfriend, so I just assumed that camaraderie was commonplace and people that cosplayed generally hung out together.
Then when we were alone in a hallway, she said that she liked me, and started kissing me. I was taken by surprise, but then I asked how old she was. She said she was 12. I was 18. I told her I had to go do something and never saw her again. That Miku cosplay was awesome though.
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http://animesos.tumblr.com/page/3
 
The only issue with this method is that it doesn't stop first-time offenders.

Sure it's fine to stop the handful to dozen or so who are willing to risk even showing up (now that it's known they will check) but what about the dozens who go with the intention but aren't on the list?
 
I'm sure this will be done discretely so I'm ok with this. Anime fans are pretty gullible and overly friendly when it comes to cosplayers and other fans.

Takuya said:
The only issue with this method is that it doesn't stop first-time offenders.

Sure it's fine to stop the handful to dozen or so who are willing to risk even showing up (now that it's known they will check) but what about the dozens who go with the intention but aren't on the list?
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What else can you do? Screen random people? Other than this its up to possible victims themselves to be aware.
 
Takuya said:
The only issue with this method is that it doesn't stop first-time offenders.
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Nah, the only issue is that they don´t seem to take into account female sex offenders. At least that´s how the article is worded.
 
I used to work next door to the Washington Trade and Convention Center.

When they have any sort of anime-CON or whatnot.. the girls are just walking all over the convention center anyways.

Made my walk from my parking garage to my building, as well as my lunch, more interesting.

I'm assuming COSplay girls are well aware that the entire purpose of these events is to see them in revealing outfits?
 
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