When using facebook, or any other social website, this is not what you want to read when you open up a facebook page: your name being libelled.

"A Prayer for Children and Blessed Saint Columba to keep you safe from Sorcery and Witchcraft practiced by Sandra Lynn Sparks to harm your minds and steal your souls."

This is just one of the many, truly many comments, that made my last week just too interesting for words.

I was also accused of being a female predator, a child abuser.

Why?

Because I support the show Psychic Kids on facebook, and belong to the A & E fan page for that show.

I'll tell you more about that personal side of this issue later, but first, I have to reveal that I have discovered something about facebook that is a real eye opener. This is the important point.

If you report abuse, you are not given the option of giving the details of the harrassment. You can only report a post as abusive. Then - facebook only blocks the posts from YOUR view. No one else's. Facebook apparently does not remove the account of someone who repeatedly violates the social site's terms and conditions. Facebook does not always remove a page that is a false representation of someone, or keep new posts from being added to that page by an outsider. If someone wants to libel you, they can do it anywhere on facebook, and, at this time, facebook is not going to do a reasonable job of protecting you from that libel.

This is what happened in our case: a small group of people decided they wanted to harass people off the Psychic Kids fan page because they just KNEW people interested in that show wanted to be  child abusers. A few of us stood up to the abuse and showed our support for the show. Then the child abuse accusations were connected to our names, and... the posts claiming this keep on piling up.

That was my hot button issue. I was an abused child - you do not accuse me of that crime. It was horribly difficult dealing with the issues and aftermath of the original abuse, but as one of the other people affected by the harassment told me, "it's like being raped again." I'm trying very hard not to think of it that way, because, she's right - and I don't want to be caught up in a victim's fears again.

So I stood up against the harassment, and people banded together and supported the stand - only to be whacked by the harassment themselves. Some of it has been very bad.

Facebook gives us no real option to stop this.

I've been a moderator for discussion groups for many years now. Discussion groups can shut down any problem. We can ban members, we can ban their isp ranges, we can re-ban them if they try coming back on with another name and e-mail address - we can wear them out. On facebook, if a person is determined to harass others, that person is, at this time, perfectly free to continue doing that and wear the victims out. Or worse - ruin their lives.

Facebook needs to step up and change its policies and practices. Members being bullied, harassed and libeled should be able to get real help, not just a Band Aid only one person can see.