The Pusillanimous Professor

  Project Sanctuary was a year-long investigation into internet child sexual abuse images that continues to involve agencies in Canada, the United States, and Europe. As far as searches for online predators go, this sweep has been reasonably successful resulting in the apprehension of 57 men, beginning with a Newfoundland, Canada priest last year.

  The campaign was not simply one of arresting perverse stains on humanity, but a rescue operation, with 25 children removed from horrifying circumstances.

  One of the more shocking aspects is how close to home some of these men were, and at least one was a genius before killing himself on Thursday. Dr. Richard Dyde was a researcher at York University in Toronto, a published author, a guy who had serious smarts. And he was also a paedophile, suspended along with York residence don Toby Simpson following their arrests.

  I always feel ambivalent when one of these creeps kills himself prior to going to trial. In a sense, the aberrant individual has acknowledged his guilt and saved the taxpayers the money spent on prosecution and incarceration. However, there's also another element that may be more disturbing; that is the fact that we'll never know the scope of his crimes, nor will victims be able to realize true justice. It's one last act of selfishness in a life that held so much promise but too many evil secrets, an existence that involved control over outside elements ended in one last grasp for power.

  The devil is not always in the odd-looking person, nor the simple-minded one. Sometimes the most intelligent individuals lack regard for the most innocent of beings. In a self-centred life, nothing matters but personal success, even if that is channeled in unimaginably sinister ways. Regardless of IQ, the commonality amongst predators is cowardice, and Richard Dyde sent himself into Hell like the coward he was.

  Watch your children. You have no idea who may be watching them.