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No, there isn't more to it than that. How many kids go missing every year? Look it up. There is no excuse for stupidity. I don't care what the kid wants. Either the parents are smart & know where they are at all times or they are inexcusably stupid. I see a lot of stupidity, & I personally detest it.
Every time there's a new missing kid, I wonder if the parents were actually neglectful, by allowing the kids to run off, in the store....with no supervision.
And the comparison doesn't hold water. People shopping are really not paying attention, whereas in a park more than likely the kids are the only thing to pay attention to.
How long do you keep this up? Until they're 21?
The best thing you can do is teach them how to defend themselves. Even adults go missing. You owe it to your kids to teach them what to do in a bad situation, so they are able to defend themselves when they're 4 and when they're 40.
Watching them every second is physically impossible, and not the safest route.
The best thing you can do is teach them how to defend themselves. Even adults go missing. You owe it to your kids to teach them what to do in a bad situation, so they are able to defend themselves when they're 4 and when they're 40.
Watching them every second is physically impossible, and not the safest route.
The kid here is 7. That's not an age to let them wander off.
And 21- only if they're mentally handicapped.
What child wouldnt scream? I would think any child over the age of 3 maybe even 2 would scream if some stranger came up and grabbed them, its basic human nature to survive even children have that.
tell that to John Walsh and the parents of children killed by scum.
YAY!! Great story! The little girl was just on Jane Velez Mitchell...she did a great job getting away from this monster. Her parents and the school taught her well! It is still so shocking to see that these monsters will do this in BROAD DAYLIGHT in the middle of a store!!! I heard he just got out of prison for voluntary manslaughter.
My sister, cousin, friend and I were almost grabbed on a Halloween night many years ago (we were between the ages of 7 & 9). My sister, friend and I ran off screaming, my cousin froze and the monster was able to grab her, I ran back to her grabbed her as hard as I could and we all got away. We ran home told our parents and we never saw this man again!
The kid here is 7. That's not an age to let them wander off.
And 21- only if they're mentally handicapped.
So, where's your cut off? And what if you are human for a second and lose sight of your child? Or if you let them walk to the bus stop, or a block home from school? They can still be in dager at 11, 12, 16.
Things happen, it doesn't necessarily mean a parent is stupid. It means there are opportunistic predators, that children need to be able to do their best to fend off themselves, if they have to.
The kid here is 7. That's not an age to let them wander off.
And 21- only if they're mentally handicapped.
I think 7 is old enough to give them some independence. 7 is 1st or 2nd grade. If someone is stupid enough to try to grab the kid in the middle of a busy place like Walmart, they are stupid enough to try it anywhere including places like schools or playgrounds.
The important thing is to teach our kids how to defend themselves against people like this. This man was stalking the little girl through the store. That means he was waiting for an opportunity.
Every parent has turned away from their child for at least a second to grab something off of a shelf. That is all it takes. Teach them how to defend themselves as early as you can.
Talk about damned if you do and damned if you don't.
Watch a kid incessantly and you're accused of being a helicopter parent, let a kid walk into another aisle and you're a "what kind of parent" parent.
Geez.
The child was taught what to do if grabbed by a stranger. Which was exactly the right parenting action.
this
Quote:
Originally Posted by believe007
No, there isn't more to it than that. How many kids go missing every year? Look it up. There is no excuse for stupidity. I don't care what the kid wants. Either the parents are smart & know where they are at all times or they are inexcusably stupid. I see a lot of stupidity, & I personally detest it.
Every time there's a new missing kid, I wonder if the parents were actually neglectful, by allowing the kids to run off, in the store....with no supervision.
And the comparison doesn't hold water. People shopping are really not paying attention, whereas in a park more than likely the kids are the only thing to pay attention to.
I beg to differ. I see moms at the park all the time talking to other moms, reading a book, playing with their phones, running while their kids play on the playground. It is quite the norm, especially for kids, say 6 and up who don't need help climbing or a push on the swing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by num1baby
I think 7 is old enough to give them some independence. 7 is 1st or 2nd grade. If someone is stupid enough to try to grab the kid in the middle of a busy place like Walmart, they are stupid enough to try it anywhere including places like schools or playgrounds.
The important thing is to teach our kids how to defend themselves against people like this. This man was stalking the little girl through the store. That means he was waiting for an opportunity.
Every parent has turned away from their child for at least a second to grab something off of a shelf. That is all it takes. Teach them how to defend themselves as early as you can.
So here's my take on this. I would not allow my child out of my sight at the age of 7. Oh, I might ask my child to go somewhere to get something for me, but in no way would my child leave my sight.
But for myself: at the age of 7, my dad was teaching my the value of the dollar by giving me chores and having a very small business in mowing a few neighbors grass every week, though my dad would watch me and he would weed eat, which was able to start and grow my own bank account.
My parents were comfortable enough to let me stay home alone starting at the age of 12, but I was mature for my age.
So it's different for every person, just like everything in life. Certain children might be able to have more independence at 10, while other children may not be able to have more independence until 14.
"We'll have to agree to disagree here. 7 is too young to be unsupervised.
The legal age to leave your kid home alone is 14, & I know of many parents that don't follow that either.
And since we're not talking about my kids, it doesn't matter what my cutoff age is now, does it?"
Not in my state. There is not legal age to leave a child home alone. It is up to the parents view of how responsible the child is and if they are able to stay home alone.
I agree with everyone else who has said that teaching your child to defend / protect themself is a better idea than never letting your child out of your sight. Despite your best efforts, your child WILL be out of your sight at some point (how about Dad at the mall with daughter... won't she have to pee at some point?).
My other comment was that some people are saying to teach your daughters to protect themselves, etc... please don't forget that boys go missing also. I taught all my kids to defend themselves and run away, not matter what their gender.
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I heard he just got out of prison for voluntary manslaughter. 
