This might be OK if all these people we are talking about were the crazed Snidely Wiplash child molester types. But many aren't. People have been labeled sex offenders for being 18 and having sex with a 15 year old, for urinating in public, for skinny dipping. Our sex crimes system is so out of wack that people are being branded for life for petty offenses. We now have draconian restrictions on sex offenders making it almost impossible for them to find a place to live. In many communities they can't live within 1000 feet of churches and where children congregate. That can make almost an entire community off-limits. Sex offenders in Miami are now homeless living under a bridge. Do we really want this? Public officials are so scared of being soft on sex offenders that they pass laws with ever harsher punishments.

It is true that the worst sex offenders, forcible rapists and child molesters, have some of the highest recidivism rates and some of the lowest rehabilitation rates among the entire criminal population. But our justice system has always been about serving your time and being reintegrated back into regular society. That is not happening with sex offenders. Instead we are painting ever more people as sex offenders for life with no hope of ever being rehabilitated and going back to a normal life. Once you are labeled as such there is no way to get out of the system. This is punishment for life. 

There is no evidence that letting the community know where sex offenders live and restricting where they can live and congregate makes the community any safer. In fact, there is evidence that it leads to harassment and intimidation of the offenders even if they are leading normal quiet lives. It makes parents feel better, but their kids spend at least one third of their day out of their sight. Only proper communication and education can teach kids how to be safe. Our current system just teaches children that retribution and banishment are the answers to problems.

We need to stop being hysterical about this and find better solutions so that real sex offenders get the punishment and help they need, and petty offenders are not caught up in the dragnet. A first start would be to better define what a sex offense is. You can be sure that these labels have been used by crusading prosecutors against people they don't like to inflate their own sense of power and importance. Apple should also consider pulling the app from the app store.