Invisible Stop Signs

I've been having this thought and I hope that it doesn't offend. I've been trying to think of anything that can have a worse effect on a child than being sexually offended by an adult. I wasn't trying to trump it. I was just thinking, what things happen in a child's life that tests their famous resiliency. Then it occurred to me. I think, living in the constant fear of being a victim of a pedophile is worse than being a victim of a pedophile. Hear me out. Children are resilient. Amazingly resilient. They are resilient to practically any and everything that HAPPENS to them. The psychological and emotional toll that living in adamant paranoia can have on a child is too much though. You can get past something that happens, but it is impossible to move past the heavy weight of a perception when it stops your human growth, and never reveals itself. I'm not directing this to your average everyday concerned parent. Just the ones that watch the news, and To Catch A Predator, and tell their kids all about how there are evil adults waiting to attack and do terrible things to them. Those parents aren't doing their kids a favor. My daughter knows not to talk to or go with strangers. When I asked her why she shouldn't do these things, she said "Because they will take me from you and mommy." That was good enough for me. She doesn't need to know the intricate details of things that could, but odds are won't, happen to her. Innocence is becoming a rapidly vanishing resource amongst our youth and we should do our best to make sure it doesn't get depleted by our zest for awareness. Again, I believe in the resilience of children. I also believe in the mental erosion of fear. No one is immune. Not kids. Not adults. Not even Chuck Norris. Living under constant fear will turn scared children to paranoid adults. Not concerned adults, not cautious adults, but paranoid adults. A child's resiliency is confined to things that happen to them; not things that linger in their minds which may or may not be real. That's why they struggle with the Boogieman. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?