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Perhaps when they`re of appropriate age, we should teach our children the difference between the old-fashioned pirates of fiction and the modern day pirates of reality.

Old-fashioned pirates were far from fictional, and were more prevalent and much more deadly and more of a threat during the golden age of piracy from the late 1600s until the early 19th century than they are today. Criminals will always be part of society. I don’t think it’s ever wise to whitewash history or give your kids a skewed interpretation to meet your own moral standards. Pirates are a part of history. And what were these bible-thumping idiots doing sailing around defenseless in that part of the world anyway? Missionaries who voluntarily go these messed up places should be well aware of the risks they are taking and that they are all their own

Shouldn’t we teach our children to spell well? Their last name is Adam, not “Amam.” And shame on you for capitalizing on the misfortune of this kind and loving couple who were kidnapped barely 24 hours before you used them as a hook for your narrow-minded drivel. I know Scott and Jean, and I found this while searching for information about their situation and I found this post disturbing.

Funny, there seems to be no moral quandary with teaching them to be soldiers, which as a career choice would send them far afield to kill people they’ve never met to protect an empire that will turn its backs on them as soon as they get home, but that’s called patriotism. Same for Halloween, where children are encouraged to mimic the undead, but there’s too much money in it to discourage THAT. I could go on.

Bottom line is: if you can’t teach your own children about the difference between make-believe and reality, you have more problems than can be addressed by removing all pirate-themed stuff for children. It’s your right to choose what you bring into your child’s life, however, and you are within your power as a parent to not buy pirate-themed stuff or you’re kids if you’re seriously afraid they might become pirates in the sea of Aden one day as a result of that choice. Children will learn more from the example you set by your life choices than from a paper hat, eyepatch and a plastic cutlass.

For what it’s worth, I am a friend of Jean’s and praying for her safe return.

As long as its age appropriate fantasy. Our family is full of sailors – and lets just say that the pirate motif is found, oh, all over the place. Heck, our team shirts one year were black with the jolly roger on the chest (side note: black is NOT a good color for team shirts….too hot!).