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Rant: To the woman sipping coffee outside Starbucks at 8:30pm . . .


SKL
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There's no way that I'm going through 12 pages to point out specific posts where I'm pretty sure posters are posting *just* to dick with someone else in the thread. I think we're all smart enough to see it, if we want to. I was simply commenting (I guess I wasn't detailed enough) on how funny it is that some of the most innocuous threads here end up being 12+ pages of contention or debate. 

 

I guess SKL should have put JAWM in the thread title. 

 

She did say it was a rant.  You did read the title, didn't you?  I don't think you need to use the kind of language you did in your post either.

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She did say it was a rant.  You did read the title, didn't you?  I don't think you need to use the kind of language you did in your post either.

 

Awww, so you don't have me on ignore after all. 

:001_wub:

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So interesting find last night. While the legal age to babysit is 12 given the number of deaths an injuries to children left in cars this summer they are now charging parents who leave any child under the age of 16 in a car with abandonment or failing to provide the necessities of life or causing a child to be in need of intervention depending on the caseworker. It is not illegal to leave them but the cops are sending every complaint about it to CPS and they are charging every parent who does it this way. Yesterday a 2year old was left in a parked car in an underground parkade for a extended period (dad says he was running errands and lost track of time). Cops had to smash out a window to rescue the boy. I get charging parents who leave toddlers but parents of 15 year olds??? They can get a learners permit at 14, they can hold a job. They can be left home alone and babysit other children but they can't sit in the car when mom runs to pay for gas or pick up a jug of milk. So ridiculous.

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So interesting find last night. While the legal age to babysit is 12 given the number of deaths an injuries to children left in cars this summer they are now charging parents who leave any child under the age of 16 in a car with abandonment or failing to provide the necessities of life or causing a child to be in need of intervention depending on the caseworker. It is not illegal to leave them but the cops are sending every complaint about it to CPS and they are charging every parent who does it this way. Yesterday a 2year old was left in a parked car in an underground parkade for a extended period (dad says he was running errands and lost track of time). Cops had to smash out a window to rescue the boy. I get charging parents who leave toddlers but parents of 15 year olds??? They can get a learners permit at 14, they can hold a job. They can be left home alone and babysit other children but they can't sit in the car when mom runs to pay for gas or pick up a jug of milk. So ridiculous.

Wow.

 

Not only is it ridiculous, but I can't help but wonder how many parents are going to get in trouble for this simply because they had no idea there was such a law. I mean, who would ever think that it would be a police matter if you left a teenager in the car for a few minutes???

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Wow.

 

Not only is it ridiculous, but I can't help but wonder how many parents are going to get in trouble for this simply because they had no idea there was such a law. I mean, who would ever think that it would be a police matter if you left a teenager in the car for a few minutes???

No kidding.  There was one case cited last night where an 11 year old didn't want to go in with mom, so mom left the windows down with the child in the car with instructions to come into the store if they got too hot.  Someone saw kid and called cops, mom came back out and left before cops got there so the person FOLLOWED the mom and son home and called the cops to update with the home address of the family.  CPS is investigating, as of the report I am hoping they have enough common sense to see an adolescent it old enough to decide if they want to come in or not.

 

ETA: I would be more scared of the stranger following us home playing vigilante than of my child sitting waiting for me for a few minutes

 

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So interesting find last night. While the legal age to babysit is 12 given the number of deaths an injuries to children left in cars this summer they are now charging parents who leave any child under the age of 16 in a car with abandonment or failing to provide the necessities of life or causing a child to be in need of intervention depending on the caseworker. It is not illegal to leave them but the cops are sending every complaint about it to CPS and they are charging every parent who does it this way. Yesterday a 2year old was left in a parked car in an underground parkade for a extended period (dad says he was running errands and lost track of time). Cops had to smash out a window to rescue the boy. I get charging parents who leave toddlers but parents of 15 year olds??? They can get a learners permit at 14, they can hold a job. They can be left home alone and babysit other children but they can't sit in the car when mom runs to pay for gas or pick up a jug of milk. So ridiculous.

 

 

So they get their learners permit.  They want to put in some hours.  Mom says okay, drive me on my errands.  Kid pulls up, mom runs into bakery, deil, bank, leaving kid in the drivers seat of the parked car that they drove.  But yet the parents can be charged???

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So they get their learners permit.  They want to put in some hours.  Mom says okay, drive me on my errands.  Kid pulls up, mom runs into bakery, deil, bank, leaving kid in the drivers seat of the parked car that they drove.  But yet the parents can be charged???

exactly.  It is ridiculous.  Charging parents like that is not going to stop the idiots from using the car as a babysitter for toddlers and under, it's not going to save the lives of toddlers to charge the parents of preteens and teens.

 

Then again this is the same CPS agency I fought against for a year when they put in writing there was no abuse or neglect but they didn't feel done with me because I was breastfeeding and cosleeping with my 2 year old and homeschooling the rest.  They said put the kids in ps and they would close the file.  It is not illegal to homeschool, in fact the alberta gov't gives money to homeschoolers to help them get curriculum but CPS likes to stick it's nose into other people's parenting practices and threaten to remove kids even when true abuse/neglect is not there. They also tried to claim I abandoned my kids after I left them inside while I dug our van out after a major blizzard.  Apparently I was supposed to bring them out in the -30C temps to stand around watching me rather than leaving them inside the warm house because then they were not being supervised.  It's nuts.

 

 Leaving a 2 year old in a car in an underground parkade on a 30C day is neglect, leaving an 11 year old with windows down and instructions to come in if they get hot is not.  Letting the teen that drove the car wait inside said car is not.  Yet all 3 cases risk the exact same charge of child abandonment etc.

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No kidding.  There was one case cited last night where an 11 year old didn't want to go in with mom, so mom left the windows down with the child in the car with instructions to come into the store if they got too hot.  Someone saw kid and called cops, mom came back out and left before cops got there so the person FOLLOWED the mom and son home and called the cops to update with the home address of the family.  CPS is investigating, as of the report I am hoping they have enough common sense to see an adolescent it old enough to decide if they want to come in or not.

 

ETA: I would be more scared of the stranger following us home playing vigilante than of my child sitting waiting for me for a few minutes

This is ridiculous and terrifying.

 

I used to let my 11 yo stay in the car whenever she wanted (Except for the extreme heat we had this summer, but then again, she didn't want to stay in the car in the extreme heat!) when I run errands, but now I'm too nervous to do so. I really hate that my decision is guided by the dumb policy, but the risk is too great.

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charging parents who leave any child under the age of 16 in a car with abandonment or failing to provide the necessities of life

Maybe it's just me, but barring the obvious, like severe disability, if my 13 year old can't let himself out of the car before dehydration/heat stroke/starvation ensues, he might indeed be too stupid to live...

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The OP, her children, and the Starbucks woman have one thing in common. The police officer concluded that none of them had committed a crime and all were free to go! Law enforcement did not find that any law had been broken.

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So interesting find last night. While the legal age to babysit is 12 given the number of deaths an injuries to children left in cars this summer they are now charging parents who leave any child under the age of 16 in a car with abandonment or failing to provide the necessities of life or causing a child to be in need of intervention depending on the caseworker. It is not illegal to leave them but the cops are sending every complaint about it to CPS and they are charging every parent who does it this way. Yesterday a 2year old was left in a parked car in an underground parkade for a extended period (dad says he was running errands and lost track of time). Cops had to smash out a window to rescue the boy. I get charging parents who leave toddlers but parents of 15 year olds??? They can get a learners permit at 14, they can hold a job. They can be left home alone and babysit other children but they can't sit in the car when mom runs to pay for gas or pick up a jug of milk. So ridiculous.

It's also ridiculous that taxpayers have to foot the bill so officers can waste time on that stupidity. When I was in driver's ed, the teacher would sometimes have us drive him to the stop and shop ostensibly to "practice parking." He then left three 14-year-olds in the car UNSUPERVISED when he ran in to get snacks. It's a wonder we all survived.

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 Three minutes later, I came out and there was a cop walking toward my car, his vehicle blocking mine.  He explained that someone had called in a complaint of children left in a car.  I said I'd only been away for 3 minutes.  He seemed a bit perturbed himself to be wasting time on such nonsense, but he had no choice.  He called in a status update and drove away.

 

Starbucks Lady, I know you think people need to be afraid to leave their kids in the car.

 

Starbucks Lady was totally correct. In many states it's illegal to leave children alone in a car for any period of time. It doesn't matter if it's hot, cold, or somewhere in between - it's illegal. Don't play the single, working mom card. I'm a single, occasionally working and disabled mother. I've NEVER left my child alone in the car.

 

I wonder if Starbucks Lady was aware of the only current Amber Alert in the US - http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/AmberExternalFCServlet?act=retAmberCase&amberId=11320

 

For those of you not wanting to look I'll make it simple - Mom ran in to a store for a quick in-and-out. She left her two year old daughter in the car. Daphne Webb hasn't been seen for over a month. The kidnapper is a stranger and made off on foot with the toddler.

 

Instead of kvetching about the inconvenience, maybe you should thank the woman who thought more about your daughters than you did.

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Starbucks Lady was totally correct. In many states it's illegal to leave children alone in a car for any period of time. It doesn't matter if it's hot, cold, or somewhere in between - it's illegal.

 

Have you read the whole thread? If you did, you will see this isn't actually correct.

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Starbucks Lady was totally correct. In many states it's illegal to leave children alone in a car for any period of time. It doesn't matter if it's hot, cold, or somewhere in between - it's illegal. Don't play the single, working mom card. I'm a single, occasionally working and disabled mother. I've NEVER left my child alone in the car.

 

I wonder if Starbucks Lady was aware of the only current Amber Alert in the US - http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/AmberExternalFCServlet?act=retAmberCase&amberId=11320

 

For those of you not wanting to look I'll make it simple - Mom ran in to a store for a quick in-and-out. She left her two year old daughter in the car. Daphne Webb hasn't been seen for over a month. The kidnapper is a stranger and made off on foot with the toddler.

 

Instead of kvetching about the inconvenience, maybe you should thank the woman who thought more about your daughters than you did.

You need to do some fact-checking on your anecdote. The baby's *father* left her in the car with his mother, whose purse was also taken.
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You need to do some fact-checking on your anecdote. The baby's *father* left her in the car with his mother, whose purse was also taken.

Yeah, no kidding!

 

The police also have been investigating the father in case he is lying.

 

http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_23635013/oakland-police-search-missing-girl

 

http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_23862209/oakland-family-and-friends-walk-help-find-missing?IADID=Search-www.contracostatimes.com-www.contracostatimes.com

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Maybe it's just me, but barring the obvious, like severe disability, if my 13 year old can't let himself out of the car before dehydration/heat stroke/starvation ensues, he might indeed be too stupid to live...[/size]

My 13-year-old HAS a severe disability. He can't walk, but he's perfectly capable of opening the windows and doors. I should hope that just two years before they're old enough to DRIVE the car, that they can be trusted to SIT in it.

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Starbucks Lady was totally correct. In many states it's illegal to leave children alone in a car for any period of time. It doesn't matter if it's hot, cold, or somewhere in between - it's illegal. Don't play the single, working mom card. I'm a single, occasionally working and disabled mother. I've NEVER left my child alone in the car.

 

I wonder if Starbucks Lady was aware of the only current Amber Alert in the US - http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/AmberExternalFCServlet?act=retAmberCase&amberId=11320

 

For those of you not wanting to look I'll make it simple - Mom ran in to a store for a quick in-and-out. She left her two year old daughter in the car. Daphne Webb hasn't been seen for over a month. The kidnapper is a stranger and made off on foot with the toddler.

 

Instead of kvetching about the inconvenience, maybe you should thank the woman who thought more about your daughters than you did.

 

You won't leave your 12 year old in the car?  :huh:

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Starbucks Lady was totally correct. In many states it's illegal to leave children alone in a car for any period of time. It doesn't matter if it's hot, cold, or somewhere in between - it's illegal. Don't play the single, working mom card. I'm a single, occasionally working and disabled mother. I've NEVER left my child alone in the car.

What I did was not illegal except possibly in 2 states, thanks to recent arbitrary laws that protect nobody.  My state has no law about kids in cars.  And amazingly, in the past 2 years not one child has died in a hot car in my state.

 

Based on your signature your child is 12.5 years old.  Before I was her age I had a tremendous amount of freedom and responsibility compared to sitting in a car.  I had had several babysitting jobs for infants and small children, for example.  And at that age I walked down and registered myself at my new school (we'd just moved).  I am not sure that never letting a 12yo sit in a car alone is something to be proud of, or a basis from which to judge others.

 

I don't leave my kids in the car much, and when I do, it's with careful consideration of the risks.  Love the way you paint me as a rotten mother when the only reason I was in that predicament was because I was trying to do some good things for my kids.

 

Arbitrary rules, laws, and people p!ss me off.

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Nope, I haven't read the whole thread. I have, however, been told that SKL is a suspected troll and that she changes her stories often.

 

What I have read about little Daphne Webb has been based on the Amber Alerts that have been issues for her since she went missing. Reading the articles that "unsinkable" linked to I see that the police do NOT suspect the father, that other witnesses saw the alleged abductor walk off with a child from near the car. The store clerk corroborates what the father said he did, and the time line.

 

There are currently nineteen states with laws against leaving children unattended in cars - http://www.kidsandcars.org/state-laws.html . Not sure how two is equal to nineteen, but whatever.

 

My daughter is thirteen and yes, I don't leave her in the car alone. Why would I leave her in the car? If I'm doing quick errands then I leave her at home where she can roam around and do stuff rather than be twiddling her thimbs in the car. I *am* proud that I involve my child in my life rather than leave her sitting around like a lump on a log.

 

As for the reason you were in the predicament in the first place? It's because you and your children are irresponsible towards library books. Why would books that  you don't own be tossed on the floor of a car? Here is a hint that will help you in your life - have a bag or basket that is where library books are always kept when not being actively read. It saves you the hassle of paying for book damages, fines for over due books, and from leaving second grade children unattended in a car while looking for lost books. It's a hint from a book titled "The Well-Trained Mind". You might want to read it some time.

 

This board is not what it once was. I've been here on and off since 2000 and it's not a nice place to be anymore. This saddens me.

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Nope, I haven't read the whole thread. I have, however, been told that SKL is a suspected troll and that she changes her stories often.

 

What I have read about little Daphne Webb has been based on the Amber Alerts that have been issues for her since she went missing. Reading the articles that "unsinkable" linked to I see that the police do NOT suspect the father, that other witnesses saw the alleged abductor walk off with a child from near the car. The store clerk corroborates what the father said he did, and the time line.

 

There are currently nineteen states with laws against leaving children unattended in cars - http://www.kidsandcars.org/state-laws.html . Not sure how two is equal to nineteen, but whatever.

 

My daughter is thirteen and yes, I don't leave her in the car alone. Why would I leave her in the car? If I'm doing quick errands then I leave her at home where she can roam around and do stuff rather than be twiddling her thimbs in the car. I *am* proud that I involve my child in my life rather than leave her sitting around like a lump on a log.

 

As for the reason you were in the predicament in the first place? It's because you and your children are irresponsible towards library books. Why would books that  you don't own be tossed on the floor of a car? Here is a hint that will help you in your life - have a bag or basket that is where library books are always kept when not being actively read. It saves you the hassle of paying for book damages, fines for over due books, and from leaving second grade children unattended in a car while looking for lost books. It's a hint from a book titled "The Well-Trained Mind". You might want to read it some time.

 

This board is not what it once was. I've been here on and off since 2000 and it's not a nice place to be anymore. This saddens me.

 

Wow. Just wow. That was probably one of the rudest, most uncalled for replies I've read in a long time.   :glare: 

 

You are right in one regard, there are a few people who make these boards 'not a nice place'. I just responded to the post of one of them.

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Nope, I haven't read the whole thread. I have, however, been told that SKL is a suspected troll and that she changes her stories often.

 

What I have read about little Daphne Webb has been based on the Amber Alerts that have been issues for her since she went missing. Reading the articles that "unsinkable" linked to I see that the police do NOT suspect the father, that other witnesses saw the alleged abductor walk off with a child from near the car. The store clerk corroborates what the father said he did, and the time line.

 

There are currently nineteen states with laws against leaving children unattended in cars - http://www.kidsandcars.org/state-laws.html . Not sure how two is equal to nineteen, but whatever.

 

My daughter is thirteen and yes, I don't leave her in the car alone. Why would I leave her in the car? If I'm doing quick errands then I leave her at home where she can roam around and do stuff rather than be twiddling her thimbs in the car. I *am* proud that I involve my child in my life rather than leave her sitting around like a lump on a log.

 

As for the reason you were in the predicament in the first place? It's because you and your children are irresponsible towards library books. Why would books that  you don't own be tossed on the floor of a car? Here is a hint that will help you in your life - have a bag or basket that is where library books are always kept when not being actively read. It saves you the hassle of paying for book damages, fines for over due books, and from leaving second grade children unattended in a car while looking for lost books. It's a hint from a book titled "The Well-Trained Mind". You might want to read it some time.

 

This board is not what it once was. I've been here on and off since 2000 and it's not a nice place to be anymore. This saddens me.

 

Well, if "someone" told you this, you can bet it's true.  (I bet you heard it on the internet.)

 

You really just should have shut up. :huh:

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Nope, I haven't read the whole thread. I have, however, been told that SKL is a suspected troll and that she changes her stories often.

 

What I have read about little Daphne Webb has been based on the Amber Alerts that have been issues for her since she went missing. Reading the articles that "unsinkable" linked to I see that the police do NOT suspect the father, that other witnesses saw the alleged abductor walk off with a child from near the car. The store clerk corroborates what the father said he did, and the time line.

 

There are currently nineteen states with laws against leaving children unattended in cars - http://www.kidsandcars.org/state-laws.html . Not sure how two is equal to nineteen, but whatever.

 

My daughter is thirteen and yes, I don't leave her in the car alone. Why would I leave her in the car? If I'm doing quick errands then I leave her at home where she can roam around and do stuff rather than be twiddling her thimbs in the car. I *am* proud that I involve my child in my life rather than leave her sitting around like a lump on a log.

 

As for the reason you were in the predicament in the first place? It's because you and your children are irresponsible towards library books. Why would books that you don't own be tossed on the floor of a car? Here is a hint that will help you in your life - have a bag or basket that is where library books are always kept when not being actively read. It saves you the hassle of paying for book damages, fines for over due books, and from leaving second grade children unattended in a car while looking for lost books. It's a hint from a book titled "The Well-Trained Mind". You might want to read it some time.

 

This board is not what it once was. I've been here on and off since 2000 and it's not a nice place to be anymore. This saddens me.

Well, if that post was meant as an ironic, humorous comment on the judgemental and patronizing nature of some message board comments, I salute you. It was brilliant.

 

If you were serious then...Naw. No way you were serious. Not with that last paragraph.

 

Funny stuff!

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I'm not going to comment about the situation as I have nothing unique to add either way; however, I would like to say that I am impressed by the police response time. It is definitely impressive. My first thought was that no one called him and he was just passing by. If someone did call him, I would love to see such quick response time for all calls.

I've been wondering that myself. It's possible he was just driving through and no one called. I've been reading the responses and I'm totally floored by how ugly people can get. I am one of the paranoid ones. Yes, I'm a helicopter mom. I think it's a combination of things. I worked in law enforcement for close to 7 years. My husband has been working 20+ years in law enforcement and we both worked child abuse cases. In addition to that, both my boys have a history of epilepsy, so that is not something I am willing to risk. However, that's how WE do things. To each their own. I am glad everyone is safe. Geez people, it's a rant, if you can't say something nice, don't say nothing at all. I think my mother taught me that.

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So interesting find last night. While the legal age to babysit is 12 given the number of deaths an injuries to children left in cars this summer they are now charging parents who leave any child under the age of 16 in a car with abandonment or failing to provide the necessities of life or causing a child to be in need of intervention depending on the caseworker. It is not illegal to leave them but the cops are sending every complaint about it to CPS and they are charging every parent who does it this way. Yesterday a 2year old was left in a parked car in an underground parkade for a extended period (dad says he was running errands and lost track of time). Cops had to smash out a window to rescue the boy. I get charging parents who leave toddlers but parents of 15 year olds??? They can get a learners permit at 14, they can hold a job. They can be left home alone and babysit other children but they can't sit in the car when mom runs to pay for gas or pick up a jug of milk. So ridiculous.[/

 

quote]

 

So, to avoid leaving my toddlers in the car with my 10 and 7 year olds, I will stay in the car and send a kid to do my errands. I wonder if that would be better?

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This board is not what it once was. I've been here on and off since 2000 and it's not a nice place to be anymore. This saddens me.

Amazing. It takes a lot of chutzpah to say that after your nasty comments in both posts to the OP.

 

The pot stirrers seem to like it, though.

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One day at the store, I tucked my babies into their car seats, locked the doors, then pushed to buggy to the nearest corral (which was further away than I would have liked).  I came back to find a man standing by my car. He said he thought I went shopping and left the babies in the car, so he was watching them to make sure they were OK. Told him I'd never ever do that, but thank you for caring enough to want them to be safe.

 

You know the safety level of the area, you know your kids maturity level and what situations they're capable of handling. While I can understand the woman's motivation,  I do think it's a little extreme to call the cops on children within my own view. But then I'm a mom, and I have a bad tendency to be everyone's mom... so hey...

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"When I was in driver's ed, the teacher would sometimes have us drive him to the stop and shop ostensibly to "practice parking." He then left three 14-year-olds in the car UNSUPERVISED when he ran in to get snacks. It's a wonder we all survived."

Did he share the snacks?? If he didn't, I would have definitely called the police!!

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Nope, I haven't read the whole thread. I have, however, been told that SKL is a suspected troll and that she changes her stories often.

 

There are currently nineteen states with laws against leaving children unattended in cars - http://www.kidsandcars.org/state-laws.html . Not sure how two is equal to nineteen, but whatever.

 

My daughter is thirteen and yes, I don't leave her in the car alone. Why would I leave her in the car? If I'm doing quick errands then I leave her at home where she can roam around and do stuff rather than be twiddling her thimbs in the car. I *am* proud that I involve my child in my life rather than leave her sitting around like a lump on a log.

 

As for the reason you were in the predicament in the first place? It's because you and your children are irresponsible towards library books. Why would books that  you don't own be tossed on the floor of a car? Here is a hint that will help you in your life - have a bag or basket that is where library books are always kept when not being actively read. It saves you the hassle of paying for book damages, fines for over due books, and from leaving second grade children unattended in a car while looking for lost books. It's a hint from a book titled "The Well-Trained Mind". You might want to read it some time.

 

This board is not what it once was. I've been here on and off since 2000 and it's not a nice place to be anymore. This saddens me.

 

You have pretty strong opinions for someone who hasn't actually read what you are talking about.

 

Did you read the summary of laws in those 19 states?  I did.  I posted about it above, as have others.  The laws are narrow and only apply if certain additional circumstances exist, none of which existed here.  For example, leaving the car running, keys in the car, kids under 6, longer than 15 minutes, weather makes it dangerous, someone got hurt, etc.

 

Are you suggesting my kids are safer alone at home for at least a half hour while I run errands?  They are half the age of your kid.  I wouldn't dare get on this board and rant about being called on my kids being left alone at home that long.

 

How sitting in a car (actually doing something useful, even) for 3 minutes in anticipation of a library visit is "sitting like a lump on a log" is a little too challenging for my little brain.  As for the library book problem, which has only happened one time in our long history of taking out many library books, thanks so much for the kind, helpful advice.  You have certainly improved my little corner of the world.

 

You read something stated behind my back about me being a suspected troll?  I really could not care less.  I distinctly remember some unimpressive things you yourself have posted on here (about yourself and others), but I will not be unkind enough to bring them up.  I don't think you're a troll, just probably someone with bad PMS or something.

 

If I were mean, I'd say I hope some busybody calls to report your kid home alone, so you have to deal with the cops about it.  But of course that would never happen because you are a much better parent than I am.

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Are you suggesting my kids are safer alone at home for at least a half hour while I run errands?  

 

How you could extrapolate that from what she said is illogical and foolish. I think it's pretty clear what she's suggesting is what you did was both preventable and lamentable. I will suggest that the fact that you came here to rant about something so controversial in parenting does suggest a trickery, attention-grabbing component that naturally makes people wonder about your intent (ie, trolling). It could be that you're simply ignorant of the social implications people make from such parenting styles. Ultimately, it doesn't matter why you posted what you posted, it's public domain now, and there is no responsibility to patronize you when responding. Considering leaving children alone in cars unattended is probably as controversial as spanking, it should come as no surprise to hear opinions expressed that are not only unsupportive of your preventable predicament, but unsympathetic for any inconvenience you might have experienced. 

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There are currently nineteen states with laws against leaving children unattended in cars - http://www.kidsandcars.org/state-laws.html . Not sure how two is equal to nineteen, but whatever.

 

 

My state is one of the 19 with a law on the kids in car site. The law requires that children not be left in a *running* car or parked in front of a tavern. It is not a ban on leaving older children in a car for short times. At all.

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Am I the only one who didn't realize this was controversial until the controversy began?    :confused1:

 

Friend of mine is a local deputy sheriff and was telling about having been called to rescue a dog left in a pickup on a hot day. He got to the pickup, which was parked under a tree with the windows completely down, to find the dog blissfully asleep in the driver's seat.

 

He told the lady that had alerted him that she was an idiot.  ...In polite terms, of course.  lol

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Am I the only one who didn't realize this was controversial until the controversy began?    :confused1:

 

Friend of mine is a local deputy sheriff and was telling about having been called to rescue a dog left in a pickup on a hot day. He got to the pickup which was parked under a tree with the windows completely down, to find the dog blissfully asleep in the driver's seat.

 

He told the lady that had alerted him that she was an idiot.  ...In polite terms, of course.  lol

 

Nope, not the only one.

 

I had no idea shopping carts, crockpots, or cupcakes were controversial either until I started frequenting this board. 

 

Of course, shoes indoors and which way you put the toilet paper on the holder are controversial everywhere.  :001_rolleyes:

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How old is your car? It has been more than 20 years since I owned a car that you could roll down the windows without the keys in the ignition.

 

I drive a 2003 and it has manual windows, by my choice.  I hope to buy manual windows with my next car too - if they still exist.

 

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How old is your car? It has been more than 20 years since I owned a car that you could roll down the windows without the keys in the ignition.

My last car was a chevy cobalt, 2005 I think...Anyway it had manual windows, as in turn the crank.  Not every new car has power windows.  My cobalt was bare bones no extras, including no power windows etc.  So it is not necessarily an issue.

 

When I leave my teens in the car I sometimes leave them with the idle key.  It is a key that turns the car on so you can run the A/C or heat, put the windows up and down etc but if someone tries to put it into gear the whole car shuts off.  You can not drive with it in at all. 

 

The other day I needed to buy a new broom yet again, so I left my 14, 14 and 9 year olds in the car in front of the dollar store.  That said it is a small town and while people get into your business over lots of stupid things kids waiting in a car is not one of them unless it is a small child.  Actually they are more likely to chew you out for leaving your dog in the car than your kids, the assumption is kids can get out if they get hot, bored whatever.  My 14 year olds are both taking their learning permit tests in Sept, I dare anyone to comment on them being in the car out here.  dd14 babysits other people's children until 4-5am at times, she is a f/t nanny this summer (though she is giving me the client in sept so she can focus on school), both are being trained in cadets to shoot and handle guns, yet I am not supposed to leave them in a car for 5 minutes lol It's pretty funny actually.

 

We drive 15 minutes to this town for little purchases, but when I need big purchases we have to drive 1-2 hours away so I don't leave the kids at home.  We make a million little stops.  They all come in at walmart but everyone but my dd5 scatters to do their own looking around while I get what I need then I gather them all up to go pay.  Smaller stops even if I am going to be 15-20 minutes I give them the option, ds 9 and dd 5 can not stay in the car without a teen while in the city, but in the small town where you know the name of every passerby I allow them to for short stops like paying gas, or buying a broom (I go through about 12 a month-don't ask). 

 

Heck sometimes I even send them out to the car as punishment.  Can't behave yourself go sit in the car by yourself while I finish up.  I can't drop everything and leave if we just drove 2 hours to accomplish these stops so the bad child gets sent to the car(if dd5 then dd14 takes her there). 

 

 

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Heck sometimes I even send them out to the car as punishment.  Can't behave yourself go sit in the car by yourself while I finish up.  I can't drop everything and leave if we just drove 2 hours to accomplish these stops so the bad child gets sent to the car(if dd5 then dd14 takes her there).

We have the same policy for the same reason.

 

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Heck sometimes I even send them out to the car as punishment.  Can't behave yourself go sit in the car by yourself while I finish up.  I can't drop everything and leave if we just drove 2 hours to accomplish these stops so the bad child gets sent to the car(if dd5 then dd14 takes her there). 

 

 

 

I do similar - if someone can't behave properly in, say, a restaurant (or even FedEx, where for some reason they think they must play hide-and-seek / tag), they get sent outside.  What that means is they go out on the sidewalk in front of the store.  Sometimes they even ask to go outside while waiting around.  Adult transactions are boring, after all.  Of course it depends on the area and how long I'm going to be.  But they have been sent to wait outside at that very FedEx before.  And lived to tell about it.

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Wow! I can't believe this thread is still going.

 

My kids are 11 (just turned) and 7. I leave them in the car for quick trips. Just did it the other day to run in to Home Depot, actually.

 

See, I aim to raise adults. Yes, they are children right now... But they are learning slowly, bit by independent little bit, to rely on themselves. I don't want 30 year old "children" relying on Mom and Dad for every tiny little thing, thinking that might be a good age to START teaching independence.

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My car is a 2002 Ford Taurus, I had to bypass the automatic lock so I can open the driver side door and still use power windows. If I didn't bypass automatic lock, my car would lock and unlock going down the road complete with lights turning on and chimes going. I need a new door lock acculator but I'm too cheap to have it replaced when I can bypass it for free. Besides getting a new to us car in a few years, the car is quickly approaching 200,000 miles with all the mechanical issues that includes. We are waiting until we pay off Dh's truck, can't afford two car payments.

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