1 out of 4 girls are sexually molested in the USA (this is a very conservative estimate). In most of these incidences of abuse, the molester is someone known to the victim (father, uncle, neighbor). This kind of abuse never makes the news headlines. Instead, you get stories of the actually quite rare cases of stranger molestation or stories about Michael Jackson. Why is this? My theory is that people think (consciously or unconsciously) they own their kids, so they have a right to do whatever they want to them, including sexually abusing them. When someone abuses their own kids, it's no big deal because the kids are the property of the abuser anyway. On the other hand, when Michael Jackson abuses my son, he is taking my property without my permission. He is violating my property rights. (No-one will ever actually admit to thinking this, but I suggest it is part of the subconscious thinking underlying the societal outrage at stranger molestation of children). It's a form of theft, and property theft in our society is considered unacceptable. Hence the big fuss about molestation of children by strangers, but the almost complete silence in the media about the FAR more common form of abuse (which is abuse within the home environment by fathers, brothers, uncles, etc.) What do you think? How would you explain the obsessive focus on stranger molestation of kids (a relatively rare event) in the media, but the almost complete silence on the more common form of abuse (where the victim is molested by a family member).