My Child Dialed 911

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

i think kids who cant maintain a 3.5 gpa in college should not be left alone

man yall probably all some shitty parents up in here imo etc

Is that a 3.5 at MIT or 3.5 at Southwest North Central Arkansas State Tech Community College?

SI

[Greyroofoo]

Don't be dissin' SNCASTCC

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by wade moore

There's a big difference between 9 and 12 imo. The 12 year old watching the 9 year old doesn't bother me much, it's the 9 year old by themselves.

that being said, I wouldn't have to hover over a 9 year old constantly, but I would want them within basically eyesight of the house or with someone (older child, other parent, etc) that I trusted.

Hm... I was thinking about this one. If your kid gets sick at, say, 9- a lot of parents don't have that luxury to stay home and watch the kid. It's one of those- do I stay home and watch the kid who's going to sleep through the day or make sure we can pay the mortgage and get food this week? Hell, in 4th grade, which would have been 9- I got this disease they never quite could figure out what it was and I was out of school for 2 straight weeks and it kept recurring for a couple of months until my doctor found the right antibiotic to treat it (looking back many years after the fact, I think it might have been lyme disease as those symptoms closest match what I had). I got to find out what a 106 degree fever and the emergency room were like and everything- but that's another story. But I was left home alone that entire time- what were my parents to do? They didn't have 2 weeks of vacation to sit at home and watch me sleep most of the day and watch tv (The Price is Right, Cubs games, etc) nor is it fair to ask that.

SI

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Greyroofoo

Don't be dissin' SNCASTCC

Fightin' Sister Cousins represent!

SI

[Solecismic]

I think my parents would be arrested in today's society.

When I was 9, we spent the year in London while my father did research on his sabbatical from teaching. I went to a school across the city from where we were living.

One day I got up very late and was definitely going to miss the bus to school. My dad handed me about a pound in change and said, "you can get there on your own, can't you?" We lived near Sloane Square (Circle/District) and the school was near St. John's Wood (Bakerloo). Almost beat the bus there.

On weekends, I would often go to the Oval to watch cricket matches on my own. I don't know why cricket appealed to me at that age. I can't watch it for it five minutes now, puts me to sleep.

Kids can accomplish a lot when you expect them to handle it. I know the response to that is, "sure, most of the time, but what if something unexpected happens?" My parents would have said that learning these skills and gaining that confidence would prepare me much better for life, and that it's worth a tiny risk. Or maybe I was just so obnoxious as a kid that they didn't want me around.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by Greyroofoo

Don't be dissin' SNCASTCC

Heh...read that in my mind as "SNACKS".

[Schmidty]

Originally Posted by Solecismic

I think my parents would be arrested in today's society.

When I was 9, we spent the year in London while my father did research on his sabbatical from teaching. I went to a school across the city from where we were living.

One day I got up very late and was definitely going to miss the bus to school. My dad handed me about a pound in change and said, "you can get there on your own, can't you?" We lived near Sloane Square (Circle/District) and the school was near St. John's Wood (Bakerloo). Almost beat the bus there.

On weekends, I would often go to the Oval to watch cricket matches on my own. I don't know why cricket appealed to me at that age. I can't watch it for it five minutes now, puts me to sleep.

Kids can accomplish a lot when you expect them to handle it. I know the response to that is, "sure, most of the time, but what if something unexpected happens?" My parents would have said that learning these skills and gaining that confidence would prepare me much better for life, and that it's worth a tiny risk. Or maybe I was just so obnoxious as a kid that they didn't want me around.

I agree with you.

I also think that it's less about age (to a point), and more about that particular child's intelligence and maturity.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Solecismic

Kids can accomplish a lot when you expect them to handle it. I know the response to that is, "sure, most of the time, but what if something unexpected happens?" My parents would have said that learning these skills and gaining that confidence would prepare me much better for life, and that it's worth a tiny risk. Or maybe I was just so obnoxious as a kid that they didn't want me around.

I think this is more likely

SI

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by lungs

Is it really that much different? I doubt that people with a tendency to molest children as a percentage of the population has increased one bit. But thanks to things like sex offender registries we know more about them. Many cases of molestation occur between an adult and a child that know each other well anyway.

I'd say you are just as likely opening your children up to sexual predators by letting them spend time with somebody you think you know compared to letting them spend time on their own.

I kind of wonder that. Is it just that the media puts it in the spotlight now?

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by Greyroofoo

Don't be dissin' SNCASTCC

I hate to ask what their nickname is.

[Marc Vaughan]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

That was said a bit tongue-in-cheek. I tried to work in a "back in my day" line but I just couldn't formulate it.
That said, I think saying leaving a 12 year old at home is crazy is, well, crazy.
SI

I actually think NOT letting kids have some responsibility is part of why a lot of them have problems managing themselves and acting in a responsible fashion when they're older.

At the age of 12 I happily let my kids stay home alone for periods of a few hours (with contact numbers for me and my wife), I'll let them cycle around the neighbourhood and do various other things.

This is all part of letting them grow up and take responsibility for their actions imho.

[Marc Vaughan]

One day I got up very late and was definitely going to miss the bus to school. My dad handed me about a pound in change and said, "you can get there on your own, can't you?" We lived near Sloane Square (Circle/District) and the school was near St. John's Wood (Bakerloo). Almost beat the bus there.

Sounds like something I'd have done myself

My daughter (15) threw a temper tantrum about a month back because I was going into my youngest sons class to listen to him read before taking her into school.

She wanted to be in school earlier, I told her it wasn't possible and that she'd still be there in good time - she threw a tissy fit so I told her if she was so eager she could walk the mile or so to school but otherwise she'd have to fit in around the rest of the world.

She walked into school, she had a mobile phone and its a quiet area so I wasn't worried at all - in fact I think that sort of thing is important for kids, it taught her a few lessons imho:

* She isn't the most important person in the universe and while I love her, the world does NOT revolve around her.
* She does have control over her life and can do things herself if needs be (ie. it gave her a sense of independance).
* Gave her some exercise (which lets face it a lot of teenagers need).
* Contrary to most scaremongering she isn't going to get raped and pillaged in all likelihood walking down a street in a nice neighbourhood (sadly she is very aware of paedophiles and suchlike from newsreports and is far more concerned about such possibilities than she should be imho, such attacks are very rare - rarer today then they were in previous generations believe it or not).

Am I ashamed of having encouraged her to walk to school - heck no, I'd be a heck of a lot more ashamed if I gave in and spoilt her ....

[Marc Vaughan]

Originally Posted by tarcone

+2

Why would you leave a 9 year old alone? Maybe a little Mommy and Daddy time would fix this problem.

When I was about 8* I was not only left at home but had to run the phone for my parents taxi service (taking bookings etc.).

Was this cruelty or dangerous? - no not in my opinion, I was reasonably intelligent and mature for my age (although not overly so) and it taught me responsibility and consequences (on those occassions when I screwed things up ).

In my opinion many kids today don't get ENOUGH responsibility or consequences generally ..... given the chance kids will thrive and grown when given the chance to.

*No idea what the law is over here, but back home the ruling is that its up to the parents to judge if a kid is old enough to be left home (within reason obviously) - there are some 8 year olds who can cope and be fine on their own and undoubtably there are some 13 year olds who probably couldn't - its up the parent to know their kids and help them grow by giving them the opportunity to do so by slowly giving them responsibility and encouragement to develop imho.

[Marc Vaughan]

Originally Posted by tarcone

BUT Society is much different then it was 30 years ago. My parents didnt have any concerns of a child molester grabbing me. Adults actually looked out for kids and protected them. So running around free was a different animal back then.

Just to go for the 4 in a row post ...

Actually if you look into things historically (in England at least) things are much SAFER now than they were in prior decades.

However people hear much more about such problems than they did in the past so they believe things are less safe and over-react to problems which really aren't there.

Its a bit like the rumours of 'poisoned' halloween candy - lots of parents I've spoken to express 'concern' about such things, but the chance of it happening is practically nil.

(yeah I get excited about this subject - sorry but I've always been intruiged by the way the media influences society)

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Galaxy

I kind of wonder that. Is it just that the media puts it in the spotlight now?

I think it has less to do with the relative number of predators and more to do with neighbors not looking out for each other like they used to. If a kid was in trouble another parent would step in and help out; now you have stories like the guy in the pickup having to run interference for the toddler walking by himself until a cop showed up for fear of getting arrested himself. If a kid was misbehaving, another parent on the block would make sure the kid's parents knew about it; now if you call you're told to butt out and you're lucky if the parents will do something about it. If you're lucky you and your kids know your neighbors and trust them well enough that if there is a problem while they are home they know they can call or go next door for help, but that's not all that often in this society (I'm actually very fortunate in this respect; we know both neighbors well, one has sat for our child a couple of times when we had to take the other one to the doctor, and our children play with the children of the other family). So you're on your own with your kids in a neighborhood (typically), and that means it's much riskier than it used to be to leave them at home.

That's what has changed in our society since the 50s. Well, that and the move to city/suburban living from farm/argrarian living and the move to both parents working from stay-at-home moms.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Marc Vaughan

*No idea what the law is over here, but back home the ruling is that its up to the parents to judge if a kid is old enough to be left home (within reason obviously) - there are some 8 year olds who can cope and be fine on their own and undoubtably there are some 13 year olds who probably couldn't - its up the parent to know their kids and help them grow by giving them the opportunity to do so by slowly giving them responsibility and encouragement to develop imho.

The law here is that if social services think there is a problem, you're screwed...

[judicial clerk]

I had a case about a year ago reporting a young child wandering around in the street unsupervised. This was especially concerning because the call came in at 12:30 am on a Saturday night in a high traffic/ high crime area. We get there and find the kid who is probably just under 3 years old on the sidewalk. He is unharmed and in good spirits except for for being cold (only wearing diaper on a cold night). The kid, however is not verbal and can't communicate with us.
Nobody had called to report a missing child. We start trying to find where he belongs. Eventually a neighbor comes out and takes us to where they think the kid lives. apartment is unlocked. Inside we find a dirty apartment. Something indicates that the kid belongs there (I cant remember what). Two notable things in the apartment are baby food on the floor and a stovetop burner is left on. we get some clothes for the kid and take him to cps intake. i forget to leave paperwork at the apartment saying cops took the kid.

Another cop goes back to apartment to leave paperwork while I drive kid to cps. Parents are home when he gets there. They tell him we are glad u are here. We just ran to the store for five minutes to get groceries while our son was asleep and now he is gone, we were just gonna call you. The problems with their story were that they had no groceries, they were both drunk, and the kid had been in police custody for about 2 hours at that point. Dad later admits that they left junior alone asleep while they went to the bar. Apartment had no heat so they left burner on to keep apartment warm. Later, I overhear mom and dad arguing from their holding cells. Dad tells mom, "You cheap bitch, I told you we should get a babysitter!"

[Icy]

I guess as we all are seeing, times have changed, and we are becoming more and more protective with our kids that our parents were in the past. Of course we can say that there are more risks now than in the past (can we know for sure or is it just that we see those risks now as we are older? or just that all those risks are more known now because media but have always existed?)

When i was 9, both my parents worked until 8pm as we owned a bookstore. I came back home from school at 5pm, so i stayed home those 3 hours alone. I did my homework and then played with my toys or watched TV. Also I was always curious about cooking, so my mother taught me some basic dinners and i usually cooked something like a hotdog or omelette's for myself before my parents came back home.

At 12 years old, my parents moved me to another school that was at 10 miles from home. They gave me some cash daily, i took the bus alone both to school and back home as a lot of kids did too, and i'm not talking about an school bus but about and standard one full of adults, workers etc (child molesters were not something as known as they are now, but probably existed exactly the same).

Never had an issue, in fact i think it helped me to grow up as an independent person (and to learn to cook pretty well )

On my parents "defense" i must say they were educated that old style too. Both started to work and left parents home at 16 years old as both came from low income families, but of course those were different times as Spain was just out of a civil war and everybody was having a hard time just to find something to eat.

Probably due to those hard times our parents had after the civil war and dictatorship in Spain, they wanted their kids to have a better life, and now i see our society (specially the Spanish one) really becoming too protective and creating too dependent (and stupid) kids. The proof is something that is to be ashamed off, that is the current average age for the Spanish "kid" to leave parents home is 31 years old... once they have a job, a car and an own home. Nobody can think about leaving parents home without all those commodities provided by your parents hard work.

A close example to me is my wife's brother. He is 27 years old, lives at his parents. When they go away a weekend for holidays, they need to leave the meal already cooked for him just to heat in the microwaveable or he comes to our house to eat, they call him daily to see if he is fine etc. If he has any paperwork to do, his father always goes with him or even does it himself, etc WTF?? you are just creating a disabled guy who will be hopeless if he is ever alone. Sadly is not only him, it's the 90% of our society. Our kids are adult enough to have a cell phone at 9 years old and to wear expensive branded clothes paid by parents that probably can't afford them, they have all the commodities they want, but have zero things to be responsible for.

There is a joke said here that sadly is becoming a reality, that translated would be like "live from your parents until you can live from your own kids".

[Icy]

With my long witting about current situation in my country, i forgot about the thread matter

About the kid who called 911, i wouldn't tell police to scare him for two reasons:

- I don't want anybody telling my kid how to behave, it's my job to do it and it will probably grow his respect for me.

- I wouldn't want him scared from police, but to respect them and see them as persons who can help him if needed. I saw something related 2 days ago, and liked how the cop acted. A mum in our neighbor was talking with my wife, while her kid was shouting and running around. The mum saw a couple of cops walking around, and told him to stop or she would call the cops to get him in jail. One of the cops heard it, came to us and told the mum to please do not ever say that again to her kid, as he has seen a lot of kids running away scared when they see them, when kids should see the cops as friends that want to help them if needed. I was thinking the same and was happy to see the cop giving the mum that lesson.

About the psychologist, if it's only for that reason, i think it's exaggerated and non needed. Just have a talk with him and try to know why he did it. If he was scared of being alone, probably means is is not mentally mature enough, so you will have it on mind next time.

I'm not telling you if you should have left him alone or not, as i don't know your kid, your neighborhood, etc so i can't judge your parenting style just from your thread.

On a related note i have also same question that Jeeber, why did the babysitter leave before the 12 years old brother came home? even if it means a few minutes for her to work without extra money, or even if you pay her that extra time later, i think she should be responsible enough to stay there those few extra minutes. Babysitting is not like working in a factory with a fixed time to check out. Maybe you should talk with her and make an agreement about waiting those extra minutes for his brother to came home.

[JetsIn06]

Icy reminded me to actually make a point about the kid

I think therapy is totally the wrong way to go. Kids do shit like this. My little sister did it once, my parents told her that 911 is only for emergencies, and eventually she matured enough to know not to do it. Do I think 9 is a little old for it? Yea, but there are 12 year-old's who still wet the bed at night. Some kids just take a bit longer to get past that stuff.

I really think it comes down to kids getting curious. They hear all about 911, so they want to see what happens.

Hell, I can remember when I was like 5 or 6, and still believed in Santa. Of course, I learned that good kids get presents, and bad kids get coal. So, I was curious to see if it were really true.

When I was alone, I would mutter as many cuss words as possible. Eventually, I ended up getting presents, and from then on knew I could do whatever I wanted!

[MacroGuru]

I haven't read through the entire thread, but basically when we first moved out here to Buffalo we were paranoid about going out, because we knew no one and had zero leads for a baby sitter or a nanny for our kids (I own a business as does my wife out here).

We started interviewing sitters / nannies and we could not find anyone that fit what we had when we lived in Utah as far as maturity, respect and just plain old taking care of themselves.

The wife dialed back her time at her business in the summer last year so the kids were here with her, but we have also decided the 12 year old is more than mature enough to help with the kids a few hours every other day here and there. She is paid for it, and she has also received a cell phone for it so she has the means of contact either one of us in an emergency.

Guess what, the house is safe, no one has been killed or broken bones or molested. It's just like it was back when I was 12 watching out after my 2 younger sisters or my wife and her two younger siblings.

And the money my daughter makes is teaching her fiscal responsibility, we talk about money almost weekly and she is wanting to invest it into getting her own business going when she feels she is ready for it, and I am supporting her every step of the way, but if she wants to spend it she can.

[Celeval]

Originally Posted by Solecismic

..told to do chores if we got bored.

Good way to make sure kids don't get bored.

[Pumpy Tudors]

When I was 7, I called 911 as a goof. Five minutes later, a cop came to my house. He discovered that there was no emergency, so he beat the shit out of me. Then my mom came home and he beat the shit out of my mom. Then my dad came home and he beat the shit out of my dad. I was devastated. My big sister (who was 9 at the time) recorded the whole thing on a Super-8 camera from the cage that my parents locked her into before they left the house.

MSNBC will be airing a special about it on Thursday. Don't forget to tune in.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

When I was 7, I called 911 as a goof. Five minutes later, a cop came to my house. He discovered that there was no emergency, so he beat the shit out of me. Then my mom came home and he beat the shit out of my mom. Then my dad came home and he beat the shit out of my dad. I was devastated. My big sister (who was 9 at the time) recorded the whole thing on a Super-8 camera from the cage that my parents locked her into before they left the house.

MSNBC will be airing a special about it on Thursday. Don't forget to tune in.

The important question of course being, did you have the mustache at 7?

SI

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

When I was 7, I called 911 as a goof. Five minutes later, a cop came to my house. He discovered that there was no emergency, so he beat the shit out of me. Then my mom came home and he beat the shit out of my mom. Then my dad came home and he beat the shit out of my dad. I was devastated. My big sister (who was 9 at the time) recorded the whole thing on a Super-8 camera from the cage that my parents locked her into before they left the house.

MSNBC will be airing a special about it on Thursday. Don't forget to tune in.

Behind the 'Stache: The Life of Pumpy.

[flere-imsaho]

My opinion is that it depends on the kid. I was an exceptionally responsible kid, but it wasn't until I was in junior high (age 12) that my folks would start leaving me "in charge" of my three younger siblings without a baby sitter. So, it also depends on the situation, I guess.

Having said that, I don't know if 9 is too young to be left home alone, but my feeling is that a 9-year-old who has already had some disciplinary issues probably shouldn't be left at home alone (and possibly shouldn't be left in the care of a 12-year-old, depending, again, on that 12-year-old).

Originally Posted by tyketime

I read something online that you don't want to punish a child for calling 911 for fear they may not call it if a real emergency was to occur. I can understand what they are saying with it.

I'm not sure I agree. At some age (again, depends on the kid), the child should be able to distinguish between a legit emergency and a non-emergency. Of course, in this case I'd imagine the child can distinguish between an emergency and calling 911 as a prank, but hasn't been dissuaded from calling 911 as a prank. That's probably the route you want to investigate.

[Autumn]

I agree completely that while some things have changed in our society (less sense of community) the largest change is simply in our sense of fear, disconnected from how things are. I don't think things are as dangerous as we're made to feel they are. Nowadays we hear about every kidnapping and murder in the country, and that inflates our sense of danger. I mean this is a studied and researched fact.

And as someone pointed out we're all afraid of pedophiles but the vast majority of those attack children they know and that trust them. You're much more likely to deal with molestation by letting your child stay with Uncle or the family friend than by letting them stay home alone or even take a walk down the street. The numbers are also in on this issue.

Someone asked me if I thought it was every okay to let a 9 year old stay alone. And I would say yes, very much depending on the kid, the setting and the situation. Some places are safer than others, some kids more mature than others, some people have more support than others. There's a lot that matters, between whether you have helpful neighbors and freinds in your community, whether the kid has demonstrated maturity and safety while you were home with them in slowly increasing doses of responsibility. Taking care of yourself is something you have to let a kid learn, you don't just flip a switch one day.

[Butter]

So, I'm buying tickets for Disney World today for our family's impending vacation.

I go to checkout, and it states:

Persons under the age of 7 must be accompanied by an adult when attending the Magic Kingdom® Park, Epcot®, Disney's Hollywood Studios or Disney's Animal Kingdom® Theme Park. If your ticket includes admission to Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park or Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park, please note that persons under the age of 10 must be accompanied by an adult.

Apparently, if you are 7, you can wander EPCOT all by yourself. So, Disney World approves of this thread, and says everything is O-tay.

[CamEdwards]

I would just like to say that if Jon really needs to replace Dr. Laura in syndication. I would tune in every freaking day.

+3 or whatever the hell we're up to now.

[Sgran]

Thought I'd get everyone riled up again before this thread dies:

Airline sends two children to wrong destinations - USATODAY.com

Airline sends two children to wrong destinations

HOUSTON (AP) — Continental Airlines said Tuesday it has taken steps to ensure that proper procedures are followed after two unaccompanied girls were placed on wrong Continental Express flights over the weekend.
An 8-year-old College Station girl erroneously ended up in Fayetteville, Ark., and a 10-year-old Massachusetts girl was mistakenly sent to Newark, N.J., after boarding planes operated by ExpressJet, which is under contract with Continental.
Houston-based Continental said in a statement the mix-up was a "miscommunication among staff."
"I have never seen so much incompetence in all my life," Wendy Babineaux said in a story for the Houston Chronicle. Her daughter was headed to Charlotte, on Saturday to see her father. She was sent to Fayetteville, back to Houston and then to Charlotte.
On Sunday, Jonathan Kamens said he put his daughter, Miriam, on a Cleveland-bound flight at Logan Airport in Boston to visit her grandparents. He told WBZ-TV that shortly after the plane landed in Ohio, his father-in-law called saying she had not arrived.
FIND MORE STORIES IN: Continental Airlines | ExpressJet Airlines
Kamens said for 45 minutes no one could tell him where his daughter was. She was finally located unharmed in Newark.
Kamens said the number of people who failed to do their jobs is "mindboggling."
Continental spokeswoman Kelly Cripe said in an e-mailed statement that in both instances flights with different destinations were being loaded at the same time from the same doorway and there was miscommunication among staff members.
"In both circumstances the children were supervised throughout the entire process and were rebooked and routed to the proper destinations on the same day."
Babineaux has hired an attorney to help her get a full refund for the cost of the airline ticket and to present her concerns to federal authorities, the Chronicle reported.
Kamens said on his blog that the airline offered him a $75 refund.

[Logan]

Babineaux has hired an attorney to help her get a full refund for the cost of the airline ticket and to present her concerns to federal authorities, the Chronicle reported.
Kamens said on his blog that the airline offered him a $75 refund.

Unreal.

[sterlingice]

Yeah, those parents don't sound like they aren't fishing for more money

When I mentioned that I had been put on a flight with my sister at age 8 or so, I was also not stupid enough to get onto the wrong plane. I could tell the difference between signs that said Cleveland and Boston and if a flight attendant had read my boarding pass wrong, I would have asked innocently enough "I'm going to Boston, is this the right plane?"

SI

[DaddyTorgo]

this thread is still going??

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by tyketime

I don't think you ever heard me say that we weren't parenting our child full-time. But with the golf course 4 miles from our house, we were never more than 10-15 minutes away. With our neighborhood right next to the school, our 12-year old was going to be home on time. He calls us at 2pm as soon as he gets out of school & rides his bike home. He called us again when he got home.

While I completely agree that society today is not the same as it was when I was a child, I don't think as a parent you have to sit at home and watch their every move. As they show greater responsibility, we slowly give them more freedom. When incidents come up to show they are not ready to handle it (like today's), we restrict some of their freedoms.

I imagine in 2 pages the thread has moved off this, but I just want to say that I totally agree with this. But then again I've always been of the school of "treat your kid like a little adult in as many ways as possible and they will grow up to be a well-adjusted adult" school when dealing with my younger brother (15 years younger than me), or my nieces, or whoever else. No kids of my own yet though, so not sure how much weight my opinion carries.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by CU Tiger

I think 9 is too young to be alone for 5 minutes for my children. However I stayed home from first grade from the time school got out til my mom got home around 8pm. And cooked dinner for both of us by age 6-7.

I a not going to tell you how to parent, but I will say that your actions, combined with your initial reactions in this post would make me re-analyze my parenting style.

Why did your son dial 911?
Have you tried sitting down and talking to him about it? Asking why? In a non attacking way. I have a feeling you might find a bunch of curiosity there.... a simple calm conversation explaining how 911 works (BTW does he often use the phone to talk to other people? He may just be trying to be like mom and dad and calling the only number he knows) maybe explain how the hone system works and explain how big the city is and how few cops there are and how if they are coming to his house they can not be protecting others.

I have a similar emotional response to this as others have said, sad. You know your kid better than us, so I wont pass judgment on a 9 year old home alone for 30 minutes. I will say that judgment combined with the immediate response to seek therapy for a minor act of rebellion or curiosity probably says a lot about your life priorities.

what'd you cook at the age of 6 or 7????

[Desnudo]

I remember dialing 911 at least once as a kid. Don't remember if it was a dare or just simple curiousity.

You've got a kid who's done it twice in three years. That doesn't really strike me as a pattern. Although I'd still inject him with some ritalin to teach a lesson.

[molson]

I admire parents more and more all the time. I can't believe there's a sentiment that grade school kids can't be left alone. I would be a horrible parent. It's just a different world today.

[CU Tiger]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

what'd you cook at the age of 6 or 7????

Nothing gourmet mind you....but I could make hamburger helper, spaghetti, hobo pizzas (a childhood favorite) hot dogs and heat stuff up...sometimes she would "build" food and I would put it in the oven so it was ready for us to eat together when she got home.

Iit was a different world then for me, I actually shed a tear the other night thinking about this thread and what it would be like if my kids had to grow up that way.....

[Greyroofoo]

Originally Posted by Sgran's Article

"I have never seen so much incompetence in all my life," Wendy Babineaux said in a story for the Houston Chronicle. Her daughter was headed to Charlotte, on Saturday to see her father. She was sent to Fayetteville, back to Houston and then to Charlotte.

I have to agree with her...

[sterlingice]

Really? You've never seen so much incompetence in all your life? You must not work where I do for the customer I work for. Have they ever put a child on the wrong plane (and then sent her back home en route to her final destination)? No, but they do things that are much more mind bogglingly stupid on a weekly if not daily basis.

Oh, but won't someone please think of the children (oh, and the lawyer's yacht boy)

SI

[jcwean]

my kid dialed 911 at when he was 16 months old! just randomly started hitting numbers that started with 9-1-1!. Yikes! I had no idea until the cops rang my bell...

[Autumn]

Talk about late to the party ...