BellaOnline Forums News and Politics Animal Life One-month old child makes "croc feeding debut"

I believe that, until a child can make an educated decision for him/herself, it is the adult's RESPONSIBILITY to keep them safe. You can't do that by not putting them in a car seat, letting them ride on a boat without a life jacket, or taking them on dangerous outings. If the child grows up and decides he doesn't want to wear that seatbelt, THEN it's his decision. Until then, we're the adults...we're the ones with their lives, literally, in our hands.

:love:

Marian

Yes, there are instances of parents shoving their children off to "perform"..treating their children as game pieces...but this child was NOT put into a situation, such as skiing , where he had to make life or death decisions...his well EXPERIENCED and DOTING Dad was in control the WHOLE time. Bob was NOT in danger..as he was in the hands of a PROFESSIONAL!!! We should ALL be so lucky with some of the SURGEONS we put our AND CHILDREN'S lives in!!! :rolleyes:

Soulmate,

Are you speaking from experience about surgeons? These days it is so important that patients (and the parents of patients) keep a watchful eye on the things that happen to them. We like to think that the medical world is a safe place, but the reality is some physicians and medical staff don't care anymore. I wonder if it was always this way, we just weren't aware of it. I'm not saying all medical professionals are that way, but I've worked in the business long enough to know there are some scary things happening behind those polished doors. If you are speaking from experience: (((HUGS)))

Marian :love:

No, I have not experienced problems with a physician first hand.I merely used that as an example to prove a point.So, thanks for the undeserved hug. My point is that people are slamming Steve Irwin because of what happened with his son, and EVERY DAY these SAME people take risks with their OWN children. How many of them have hired babysitters that they knew NOTHING MORE about them then the fact that they were the only one free to sit on that night? I mean, come on, ok, the guy perhaps made what we would label a "bad call", but again, I maintain that we are making opinions with our UNTRAINED eyes and MINDS!! HE KNEW what he was doing, and that his son would be SAFE!! Maybe some of the circumstances WE put OUR children in, would bring the same "HORROR" to Steve and his wife..not believing that someone could actually DO that to their kid! WHO KNOWS!
All in all...Michael Jackson he is NOT...as Steve is SANE!

Can we move on, please? I'd rather hear people's opinions on the issue, not opinions on other people's opinions.

hey, welcome to the world of forums.

I really didn't think it was that big of a deal. It certainly is in line with all of his other 'stunts'. I guess he doesn't want to be an overprotective parent. There are too many cloistered children as it is, well in this country at least.

There definitely is a trend to more structured play rather than the "play in the street until the streetlights come on" type of play we used to have in my day. Is it due to the fear of the "bad element" or the fact that a lot of families have both mom and dad working? Or is it due to something else entirely?

Marian

I think that actually kids die far LESS often than they ever did before. Parents used to have 5 or 6 kids in a batch and would assume that one or two would die from disease or accident or whatever. Kids would be out on the farm doing hard labor early and would be kicked by horses. Kids would be apprenticed to smiths at early ages and be working with hot metals and such. Women were cooking at the hearth from age 6. So kids were looked at as "functional family members" that had a fair risk of death and who better get things done.

Nowadays we only have 1 or 2 kids each, and we plan OUR lives around THEM. We feed them what they want, they choose the TV station, we take them to 8 activities. I have been doing a lot of genealogy research and when my grandparents were young they did what the family told them to do, period. This involved cutting down wood, handling the animals, and following all family activities. They would never DREAM of asking for a certain meal or interrupting adults in the evenings.

I'm not saying it's better or worse. But it's gone to extremes. A 2 year old sued a playground in Connecticut because he fell against a fence and cut his head - and this would damage his modelling career.

I have a 15 yr old son and dote on him. But I think that in modern times we feel death and injury should never happen, and take extreme steps to ensure that. I think in years past, death and injury were accepted as normal parts of the life cycle. Because back then we WERE more part of the normal life cycle - we raised chickens, rode horses, had cows for milk and meat. Now we're so far apart from life that it is a shock when it intrudes.

Again not saying it's bad or good, it just seems to be a different attitude.

I've been trying to stay out of this conversation for the past week. I have a lot of mixed emotions on the subject. I really can see both sides of the coin.

Being a parent, and having taught parenting classes, worked in schools, and having many credit hours behind me in the subject, I've seen and heard a lot in the 30+ years I've had my hands in relating to parents and children.

It is real easy for anyone to get emotionally involved in their perspective of what Irwin did. Then again, isn't that how we judge everything in life? From our perspective? What I see and feel will never be entirly the same as what someone else sees and feels.

Marian, I like your question of why things have changed. Yes, Wendy, there are many over protective parents out there. There are also, many neglectful parents. So where is the happy medium? Who defines that? What I would do and have done as a parent might make another parent scream abuse. On the other hand, I too have been accused of being way over protective.

What I really appreciate is that this board has (for the most part) an open mind and willingness to let everyone voice their perspective. We can all learn something from each other. It is good to question our own perspective from time to time. This is how we all grow. I want to thank everyone for adding their point of view. It sure has made me think through the "whys" of my opinions.

Rose