The Internet is a powerful tool, but with this tool comes a commitment to personal responsibility. This is never more true than when operating social-networking sites like www.thefacebook.com, or www.myspace.com.

According to a recent Associated Press article, four families have sued News Corp., the company that owns the MySpace social-networking Web site, after their teenage daughters were targeted and sexually abused by adults they met on the site.

The lawyers for the two 15-year-old girls and the two 14-year-old girls filed suits alleging negligence, recklessness, fraud and negligent misrepresentation by the companies.

At what point does personal responsibility come into play in this scenario? Where were the parents? Suing MySpace for facilitating a relationship between an adult and a teenage girl is ridiculous. Why not sue the mall where the girls met the adults? That mall facilitated the meeting at least as much as MySpace. While we're at it, why not sue the creator of the Internet as well?

The fact that thousands of children each year are sexually abused by adults is horrible. The fact that the Internet is a tool for these predators just adds to the problem, but personal responsibility is the most important tool for combatting these predators.

We were all taught as children not to talk to strangers. How is this different for the Internet? In this day and age, when children are so technology savvy - sometimes more than their parents - why not include classes at the elementary school level on Internet safety?

Teach children at a young age how to use the Internet responsibly and correctly, so more children aren't victimized by adults.

At its core, this is an issue of parental responsibility. Parents need to know what their children are doing, who they're talking to and what Web sites they frequent. It's not enough to slap some Internet restrictions on the computer and think you're doing a sufficient job as a parent. Parents should be monitoring their children's MySpace sites, or just not allow them to have one at all.

Yes, because of these incidents and other complaints, MySpace is heightening the security features on the site to make it safer for children. But the fact of the matter is that if more parents were taking responsibility for their children, these measures wouldn't need to be taken. Of course, anything that makes children who use the Internet safer is of paramount importance, and MySpace should be doing all it can to make its Web site as safe as possible.

Sexual predators are sick, disturbed people and will do anything necessary to prey upon children. They'll find ways to get around technical roadblocks. Therefore, being pro-active must start with the parents.

Parents, you wouldn't encourage your children to talk to strangers at the mall. Don't allow them to do so on the Internet.