<p>You were traumatized because you were given a used toy?
Are you in therapy?</p>
<p>You were traumatized because you were given a used toy?
Are you in therapy? </p>
<p>Ha. I was being sarcastic/joking. Putting myself in the shoes of kids who receive broken toys. But it was annoying to always have to pick carefully through toys for my children to make sure there were no missing part. I attribute that to people who don’t watch their young kids in stores. </p>
<p>Are you always so mean?</p>
<p>Remember my post above about not having the whole story? I found the answer:
Source: <a href=“Police: L.I. Woman Arrested After Son, 7, Left In Lego Store Unattended For Nearly 90 Minutes - CBS New York”>http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2014/08/06/police-l-i-woman-arrested-after-son-7-left-in-store-unattended/</a></p>
<p>Bottom line: the mom was arrested because there was an outstanding warrant for her arrest on another charge. The warrant would have come up as soon as they got the mother’s ID, and once that showed up the police pretty much had to take her into custody. (Not a whole lot of discretion with arrest warrants).</p>
<p>So they tacked on the child endangerment charge as long as they were taking her into custody. </p>
<p>“Petit larceny” usually equates to shoplifting, so it’s possible that the police also figured that the mom’s “shopping” expedition was not entirely legit. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, this scenario is not at all unusual:</p>
<p>See:
<a href=“Tucson police: 2 women left child in car to shoplift at mall”>http://tucson.com/news/blogs/police-beat/tucson-police-women-left-child-in-car-to-shoplift-at/article_a6f933de-c115-11e3-be8f-0019bb2963f4.html</a> </p>
<p><a href=“http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/police-dad-caught-shoplifting-newborn-tow/ngr6X/”>http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/police-dad-caught-shoplifting-newborn-tow/ngr6X/</a></p>
<p><a href=“Police: Nanny Locked Child In Van, Shoplifted From LI Target Store - CBS New York”>http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2014/06/25/police-nanny-locks-child-in-van-shoplifts-from-li-target-store/</a></p>
<p><a href=“http://www.whec.com/article/stories/s3503631.shtml”>http://www.whec.com/article/stories/s3503631.shtml</a></p>
<p>Are you always so mean?</p>
<p>If someone who is concerned about your mental state, asks if you are getting help, you think that is " mean"?
You really do need therapy!</p>
<p>Ha, kidding!</p>
<p>I don’t know where the lines should be drawn for any of these things to the point that authorities get involved and it becomes a neglect issue. When I was a chlld, most kids in our community were “sent outside to play” with parents not having much of an idea as to where we were. Yes, most of us were told what the family limits were as to where we could not go, but no one was watching, and yes, we often disregarded the rules. If a three year old or younger were just let loose like that, I can tell you with certainty, that the parents would get told this is not permissable. Too dangerous. A three year old with a seven year old watching him, sort of ? Well, that was me, not really keeping close tabs on my brother and so it was with a bunch of little ones. Thank goodness, nothing bad ever happened in our group or community–didn’t hear of any either. My brother got his finger stuck in a hole for a safety chain once, and his head caught within some rails (popped it through, couldn’t get it out, both cases). We went to local stores, crossed streets, into others’ homes with impunity. </p>
<p>When this changed, I have no idea as I don’t live there anymore, but with my own kids, they were simply never in unsupervised situations until they were much older I was a SAHM so I went with them to the playground, pool, and they had to say where they were going in the neighborhood, not just roam it like stray dogs as I did as a child. By the way, the stray dog packs of days of yore are pretty much gone too. My brothers used to have to carry billy clubs when they ran, because they would get chased and attacked by loose dogs when they were in high school. Those packs are no longer in existance in those neighborhoods even though they’ve gone down hill. </p>
<p>My friend is very upset because her grandson who is 7 is left alone in his home this summer while parents work. They can’t afford child care they say. So they just leave him at home, checking up on him remotely with skype, and smartphone. When grandma said she’d pay for a sitter, the parents said they can’t find anyone. Clearly, they don’ t think this is a problem and are not bothered to change the situation. Whether this is legal, or not, I don’t know. I have no idea what the laws say in areas regarding this. I think many leave “neglect”, 'abuse" “endangerment” as judgement issues. Usually, it’s ignored until, unless something dire happens or someone calls in a complaint, report. </p>
<p>A lot of parents have absolutely no common sense. And honestly some parents have no business raising children. However, just because a few ding dongs have a lapse in judgment doesn’t mean I think everyone needs rules and laws on how to raise our kids. </p>
<p>I think many times there isn’t hard and fast rules because kids have different levels of maturity. One child of mine was fine being left home alone in 4th grade, another was nervous being alone to an age so late I won’t share here 
</p>
<p>One thing comes to mind though. I was shopping once in a kmart at the christmas sections looking for some things. My daughter who was about 5 at the time was there with me but went to the end of the aisle to look at some decorations. I could see her. A store employee came over, took her by the hand and was walking away with her. She didn’t say a peep, she was willing to go with this total stranger. </p>
<p>I never felt comfortable taking my eyes off of her again. </p>
<p>Some malls, parks, shops, other places have specific rules on the minimum age a child can be left alone in those places. Actually our mall’s age is really up there due to the issues they’ve had with teen gangs and problems. </p>
<p>Few states or communities have laws on their books on minimum age, however. SAFEKIDS recommends age 12, but it’s not a hard and fast law in most states. These things are taken on a case by case basis as to whether endangerment were involved. As I said before, it’s when a complaint is lodged or something dire happens that the law gets involved. When something happens to the kid that having supervision clearly could have prevented, and that kid was left alone, that’s when the law tends to get involved. </p>
<p>The truth of the matter is that many, many kids are left alone at home, or come home to an empty home these days. Most people can’t afford child care or can’t even find it, get it in place in many places. They have to work, so if there is no family to step in, the kids will be fending for themselves. Those of us who have hovered over are kids tend to forget what it’s like for those who don’t have that luxury or just can’t manage to do it.</p>
<p>I actually think that the paranoia about child abductions has done more to cause childhood obesity than fast food. Parents would rather their child sit and watch tv and play video games than play outside. In my neighborhood, where nearly every house can see the bus stop out of at least one window, all of the children are driven the 2/10ths of a mile to the bus stop where the minivans sit in a line idiling. And I live in a very safe exurban neighborhood. </p>
<p>Yup, DEfour. Weirdly enough, a lot of the same parents who kept their kids smothered in an unending round of structured activities and parental supervision then gave those same kids – with no experience managing much of anything on their own – a vehicle and keys at 16. </p>
<p>The aghast reactions I got at D taking a public bus home in late elementary school still astonish me. </p>
<p>Bad things happen. But the public’s understanding of relative risks is way out of whack with reality. </p>
<p>The other part – which is so hard to codify into law – is that kids have radically different self-care and maturity levels. I saw as a GS leader how a troop of girls had some that never paid attention to rules/limits and who needed eagle eyes on them all the time, some who were nervous to do anything, and some that were rule abiding but confident. I suspect that one of the first group is probably going to make a mighty fine tax lawyer some day – that kiddo could parse any restriction and find the loophole. ( I was just jumping from rock to rock along the edge of the raging river, not in it. You only said don’t go in the river.) I wouldn’t have left her alone until 16, and even then, I’d have shuddered.</p>
<p>I used to have a neighbor who, before we had met, used to send her children who were then about 4 and 7 to open my gate and use my kids’ swingset every Sunday morning for hours without supervision. We didn’t even know about this for months because we were at church and had never seen these people before in our lives. When we did find out and object, the mother was stunned. I see the toy store situation from the perspective of the store’s employees. They have jobs to do which don’t include providing babysitting services. They have the right to have that liability taken off their hands and if that means calling the police in that private establishment, so be it.</p>
<p>It is so sad that a family has to leave a 7 yr old home alone all day. Most could handle it, but it certainly isn’t ideal. In our state, I think you have to be 12 to stay home alone. I would never leave a child that age in a store unattended, even though the odds are against an abduction, still doesn’t seem like a good idea. </p>