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That is insane. I know some single parents or parents without other choices allow this to happen, but I can't think of a better way to have a child abducted to be later found carved into pieces.
Totally dangerous IMO.
I would have neighbors or parents close by take turns walking kids back and forth.
I mean, why have children if they have to fend for themselves in kindergarten? Something is wrong for that to happen IMO.
Oh my goodness. I walked home alone in kindergarten. You know what? I, and all the other kids who walked home, were aware of our surroundings. If a random car had pulled up alongside us, we wouldn't have remained there long enough for anyone to grab us. Kids these days are given no independence and are not aware of their surroundings at all. It's scary.
there was a recent story somewhere in florida where kids were walking home from school on a sidewalk. A bunch of kids actually and one little girl decided to skip ahead of the others, including her twin, when she was grabbed by a stranger. They eventually found her body. The kids actually saw the whole thing.
That mother was so guilt ridden she could barely go on. it was heartbreaking and for people to trivialize this nightmare possibility is unbelievable to me.
sure we have to let our kids grow up and be independent but there are enough dangers in everyday living so why take a chance on something as crazy as leaving a child alone in the park.
Also I expect a lot of it has to do with expecting other adults to be looking out for your child and that is wrong.
I wish I had jumped in sooner. I'd leave my 8 year old at the park. I trust his judgment and I don't believe there is a lurker around every corner. Even if you are nervous, you can't let that rule your life or your child's. Independence breeds confidence and trust. Holding your child back because of your fears is wrong IMO.
My childhood was in Brooklyn, my son's is in Beverly Hills. In BOTH cases I would never let kids at age 8 out to do anything by themselves or with their friends.
I really think the best way to think about it would be the legal age that they are allowed to stay at home. Let me look it up on google now.............
12, no law but children's services come after you if they are under 12.
Does this sentiment scare the **** out of anyone else?
there was a recent story somewhere in florida where kids were walking home from school on a sidewalk. A bunch of kids actually and one little girl decided to skip ahead of the others, including her twin, when she was grabbed by a stranger. They eventually found her body. The kids actually saw the whole thing.
That mother was so guilt ridden she could barely go on. it was heartbreaking and for people to trivialize this nightmare possibility is unbelievable to me.
Who is trivilizing that there are people out there who harm children? No one. What people are saying is that statistically your child is much more likely to be harmed by someone known to the child, friends or family, or in a motor vehicle accident on the way to the park.
Quote:
Originally Posted by no kudzu
sure we have to let our kids grow up and be independent but there are enough dangers in everyday living so why take a chance on something as crazy as leaving a child alone in the park.
Because the statistics do not support the hysteria here. And I will add you are always posting here about how shy and nervous your younger girls are. This event is about teaching kids to be a bit more independent, developing common sense. This is a parent sanctioned event, as in parents would obviously choose the park wisely. Parents who participate have talked over safety with their children, given them tips, not send them to a park where they don't know the other kids, etc
Quote:
Originally Posted by no kudzu
Also I expect a lot of it has to do with expecting other adults to be looking out for your child and that is wrong.
Actually this has absolutely nothing to do with that beyond the fact that I enjoy living in a community, and I impart the importance of community on my children, mostly in the form of how they can help and give back, but their are many benefits.
Last edited by JustJulia; 05-18-2012 at 06:37 AM..
Reason: removed reference to deleted comment
there was a recent story somewhere in florida where kids were walking home from school on a sidewalk. A bunch of kids actually and one little girl decided to skip ahead of the others, including her twin, when she was grabbed by a stranger. They eventually found her body. The kids actually saw the whole thing.
That mother was so guilt ridden she could barely go on. it was heartbreaking and for people to trivialize this nightmare possibility is unbelievable to me.
sure we have to let our kids grow up and be independent but there are enough dangers in everyday living so why take a chance on something as crazy as leaving a child alone in the park.
Also I expect a lot of it has to do with expecting other adults to be looking out for your child and that is wrong.
That statement just makes me flat out angry. Allowing your kid to do stuff out of the house for an hour when you know where they are and when they are prepared for it, is not expecting other adults to look out for your child.
I understand if the thought of it gives people the willies, but there's no need for you and others here to say that people who have a different outlook on it are bad parents and wrong. That's just highly offensive.
You're all acting like kids are being abandoned alone in the woods. It's a park. Did you never ever play in a park with your friends without your parents present?
That statement just makes me flat out angry. Allowing your kid to do stuff out of the house for an hour when you know where they are and when they are prepared for it, is not expecting other adults to look out for your child.
I understand if the thought of it gives people the willies, but there's no need for you and others here to say that people who have a different outlook on it are bad parents and wrong. That's just highly offensive.
You're all acting like kids are being abandoned alone in the woods. It's a park. Did you never ever play in a park with your friends without your parents present?
Plenty of posts on here telling those of us who would never leave our kid alone in the park are bad parents by not letting them learn how to be independent. There are lots of ways of letting our children learn independence. I simply do not chose letting a kid alone in a park to be one of those ways. Everybody seems to think if we don't let a kid alone in the park we are against independence. Simply isn't so in my case.
And quite frankly there are many people who have little experience with public parks. I NEVER played in a public park. And I don't think my kids did either except for a park birthday party or sporting event.
Where i grew up and where my children grew up was in neighborhoods where everybody played in each others yard or house. No "Let's go to the park". I can certainly imagine that would be common for many people but not in my experience.
I see public parks on TV and in the movies where lots of people congregate, nannies and parents all sitting together watching kids playing, kids running all around. Totally alien concept to me. So the idea of kids playing unsupervised in a public park simply look very dangerous to me. And I don't see a predator behind every tree but what a great hunting ground a public park would be...especially on a day nationally advertised in the media.
Notice that only 10 percent of the child sexual abusers report that they molest a child who is a stranger.
Let's put the facts together:
Child molesters exist in every part of our society.
They molest children close to them, mainly children in their family or children in their social circle.
Most child molesters, 90 percent, report that they know their child victims very well.
To save the greatest number of children in the shortest possible time, we must turn the current focus of our efforts upside down. Right now, 90 percent of our efforts go toward protecting our children from strangers, when what we need to do is to focus 90 percent of our efforts toward protecting children from the abusers who are not strangers - the molesters in their families and the molesters who are the friends of their families.
Most children who are not where parents expect them to be, are “missing” for a very short period of time and reappear on their own, with no evidence of foul play. However, some children are missing against their will. The great majority of those children, even though they have undergone a traumatic experience, are not harmed seriously and are returned home alive. Many of them are taken by estranged parents or other family members. A small group is victimized by more predatory abductors, who want to make money by ransoming the child, to sexually molest the victim,and/or to kill the child. The list of children who are abducted and killed each year by someone who is not a family member is relatively small, compared to the number of missing children or to other types of child murder.
Of all children under age 5 murdered from 1976-2005 --
31% were killed by fathers
29% were killed by mothers
23% were killed by male acquaintances
7% were killed by other relatives
3% were killed by strangers
I understand the above is for children under 5, they didn't have a statistic for 8 year old and thereabouts age group - but it's quite plain to see that kids are in way more danger from people you know than strangers lurking in a park.
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