MA - dad breaks into daycare to get daughter

[JeannaT]

Yes when you look at the world as a WHOLE you realize in some cultures parents eat first and their children starve in front of their very eyes, and the parents don't have a problem with that.

In some cultures mothers that give birth take the advice of an astrologer as to when to start breast feeding their child, and if the man says "feed the child sugar water for 3 weeks" they do just that!

In some cultures dowries are in force, and if a baby is female and inconvenient it is culled.

In some parts of the world people do not think/feel like those in western society. I am quite proud of the values shown in the West. You can choose to go with the lowest common demonimator and be PC, I choose not too.

Hmm, not quite sure what cultures you're talking about that do that. There are crazies in the US who starve their kids to death while the adults and maybe some of the kids are obese, but I wouldn't call that a cultural thing, but rather a few crazies.

Most of the world values their kids every bit as much as we do, some more. Some cultures in the world will sacrifice MUCH more than we do for their children.

I've never heard of a culture sanctioning asking an astrologer whether to feed sugar water to babies, either, but okay.

All I'm saying is, when you look at a news cycle, ALL the stories that must have been going on in Boston that day - the medical successes or failures in hospitals, the acts of heroism or feel good stories or quiet tragedies - really, it's worth time on their website to choose to report some dad whose child was left alone for 15 minutes? It just seems that we have become a culture that has unbalanced, irrational fear for our children and the fact that this makes national news points that out to me.

 

[jjenny]

They weren't leaving this child alone for "15 minutes." They all left and child would have been locked in overnight since they apparently had no clue they left the child alone. In fact they were claiming grandma picked this child up.

 

[The Farm]

Yes, lies abounded here. That daycare is also on a very very busy road. This could have turned out so much worse and I am glad it didn't.

 

[eileenhawkeye]

I don't see why it's such a big deal that the media picked up the story. Who cares? Human interest stories make the news all the time. We have 24/7 media and thousands of news websites; they need something to report on. It's one of those stories that gets a day of coverage, people comment on, and everyone forgets about it. The media is filled with flash in the pan stories; sorry they can't all be about events that will go down in history.

 

[Soulmagent]

“I had no idea where she was. I didn’t know if someone took her. I didn’t know if she had run off. I didn’t know if I was going to see my daughter again at that point. It was a horrible feeling,” Paquette’s wife Paula said.

So the dad didnt even know the daughter was in the building until he heard her crying. I am taking it?

 

[LadyL]

if the child had choked on something or tripped on something and gashed her head open, people would be blaming the dad for not breaking through the door

I'm glad to read he cares enough about his daughter to get to her as quickly as possible, regardless of whether she was 'just' traumatized

this is not a trivial issue IMO - this is a huge issue in a country where many parents rely on daycare

does it pale in comparison to other third-world events? of course it does, but everything is relative and right now it is a big issue in this family and in the local news and possibly one that affects many other families in that area (or even nationwide if it's a chain daycare)

btw, this brings me to a more general discussion of why don't daycares and schools install thumbprint technology - it's not that expensive and it would ensure that children are only released to approved guardians - it would also prevent this kind of ridiculous & unforgivable mistake IMO

 

[gitana1]

I think this makes us, as a culture, look silly for putting this in the news.

When you look at the world as a whole, and the danger and fears many cultures have for their children that are real, not a kind of careless procedure that leaves a child in a childproof building alone and safe for 15 minutes, It just strikes me as trivial.

Reminds me of several years ago, there was this huge hurricane (I forget which one) that wiped out whole towns somewhere south of the US, and it hit the US with a much reduced force and there was this man out in his front yard moaning that he had just put in this hedge of shrubs and now THIS happened (showing the hedge a little disheveled) and it was embarrassing.

This is a lesson for the child. Its okay. You're fine. Good as new.

A lesson for the child? Hey, any daycare that leaves a child there for the day and closes and locks the door has some serious problems. I echo what others say who state that in a country where many working people have to rely on daycare or where many parents enroll their kids in preschool, this is a very important story.

Who is watching our kids? Are they safe? A school that leaves a child and closes for the day is the same caliber as a school who left a child in a hot car, not knowing she was there (child died) or a school that allowed a child to get out and cross a major road of traffic (child lived).

Not okay.

And while daycares and preschools do their best to keep the facilities child proof, there is always the possibility of danger, which is why we don't just shove our kids in a locked room for the day, with toys and t.v. or whatever.

I was a preschool teacher for years. I know what could happen. A small child could try to climb up something and fall from something high, trying to get out and find mommy or daddy. A child could find a way out and wander aimlessly on the street.

Dad had no idea what was happening when he heard that his kid was wailing away. He did what good parents do - he rescued his kid.

I hate the culture of bubble wrapping baby. Kids can't get a scraped knee or learn any sort of independence from parents. Kids can't resolve a fight on their own or deal with a teacher they don't like without parental interference. Everything has to be over-the-top when it comes to child proofing.

But, I'm sorry, being upset about a facility that is PAID to care for one's most precious treasure, staffed by workers who are ostensibly trained to care for them and protect them, that is able to leave a child there, close up and go home for the day, is not an example of bubble wrapping baby.

This should not be a lesson for the 3 year old toddler, who relies on the grownups in her life to care for her. I think the lesson is for the adults. :moo:

 

[JeannaT]

I don't see why it's such a big deal that the media picked up the story. Who cares? Human interest stories make the news all the time. We have 24/7 media and thousands of news websites; they need something to report on. It's one of those stories that gets a day of coverage, people comment on, and everyone forgets about it. The media is filled with flash in the pan stories; sorry they can't all be about events that will go down in history.

I guess you summed up exactly what I'm saying, Eileen - this story sells. It sells. It resonates with the consumer and they suck in air and comment.

That's all I'm saying.

From a worldwide point of view, if this is the worst thing that happened to these parents that week, that was a DARN good week by world standards.

That's all I'm saying.

 

[eileenhawkeye]

I guess you summed up exactly what I'm saying, Eileen - this story sells. It sells. It resonates with the consumer and they suck in air and comment.

That's all I'm saying.

From a worldwide point of view, if this is the worst thing that happened to these parents that week, that was a DARN good week by world standards.

That's all I'm saying.

So if someone gets a terminal illness, and they have to spend months in the hospital, in a lot of pain, are they not allowed to be angry about what has happened to them...because there are worse things happening in the world? After all, you have people in 3rd world countries who don't even have medical care. And I have a hard time believing that you have never been angry or annoyed or upset about something that would be considered trivial on a world standard.

 

[LaLaw2000]

He heard his child crying. He had no way of knowing what was going on with the child. That is not overreaction.
I'd do the same thing in his shoes.

So would I, jjenny!

 

[JeannaT]

So if someone gets a terminal illness, and they have to spend months in the hospital, in a lot of pain, are they not allowed to be angry about what has happened to them...because there are worse things happening in the world? After all, you have people in 3rd world countries who don't even have medical care. And I have a hard time believing that you have never been angry or annoyed or upset about something that would be considered trivial on a world standard.

If someone had been misdiagnosed for 15 minutes, so they sat there for 15 minutes in anguish believing they had some horrid disease, and that made a major market media story, yes I'd think that was silly.

The situation you bring up is in no way the same. My scenario, of being misdiagnosed for 15 minutes, IMHO, is what happened here with this hiccup in the daycare situation.

And now, I'm out of this thread. I'm not here to argue and argue, I'm just mystified that so often we in the west don't recognize what incredibly blessed lives we live, how incredibly easy our days are, what a gift to be in the US - so wealthy, so lucky, a result of purely an accident of being born in the US. Gratitude is the attitude, imho.

 

[Sonya610]

I've never heard of a culture sanctioning asking an astrologer whether to feed sugar water to babies, either, but okay.

Well now you have heard of it. Seems like a subtle way for the father (or his mother) to cull those babies that may pose a problem without having to get their hands dirty, they will just tell the mother to starve the baby for weeks on end and let her deal with it. And no, they aren't buying formula for the first 30 days.

The agencies that raise foreign aid to feed the hungry children do not want to talk about "unpleasant practices" because it could lower donations -- they want everyone to believe all parents are just the same.

If India is booming, why are its children still starving?

In many places, a father or his mother will consult an astrologer for an auspicious day to start breastfeeding - which could be as many as 30 days after the child's birth.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...-children-still-starving/article504723/page3/

 

[southernnana]

:wave:

I wouldn't care if the national guard were onsite, if my child was experiencing trauma, I'd throw MYSELF through the window. (snipped)
I stand behind the dad and his reaction.

:rose:
Thank you notmykids ... I feel the same as you do and others concerning that situation!! It was actually very important that this incident was reported to the news media. It is far more than a human interest story ... it is my opinion that the report has a criminal element to it. :moo: :moo: :moo:


A few things to be aware of in this potentially serious incident:

If dad contacted LE and requested a written report/complaint be taken ... the complaint should have been forwarded to DHS for an investigation by that agency ... this in turn should show as a violation of some type in the daycare records with the state. This could be their first violation. Or, it could contribute to the owner losing their license to do business. Who knows?
Do parents usually check for violations prior to placing their child in a day care center? I really don't know.

The other problem is the daycare center's liability exposure with their insurance carrier. Closing for the day and leaving a child locked up alone in their facility and then lying about how it may have happened, is not a "good thing" for an insurance carrier to learn!! If the daycare even reported the incident.

A claims representative from their insurance carrier would normally contact the parents right away to determine what it was going to take $$$$ to help this child and her parents recover from this "regretable incident."

And, guess what happens to the daycare's insurance rate after that ... additionally, if the insurance carrier decides to cancel their coverage ... they will pay a much higher rate for having been cancelled when they approach another carrier for coverage as well as having a "regretable incident" in their claims history with the previous carrier.

They better count their blessing that this child was not physically injured or worse ... God forbid.

I pray that the little girl and her family will recover from their trauma soon.
I am proud of you dad. :heartbeat: :blowkiss: :heartbeat: