Have you seen that video of the attempted abduction of 2nd grader at WalMart? It is blood-chilling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Man tries to carry off second grader. She screamed and kicked, and he put her down and ran off. Thankfully, they got the guy in custody!

http://gma.yahoo.com/video/parenting-26594265/little-girl-fights-off-abductor-in-walmart-28242481.html

Thank goodness this child is all right but her mother bears the fault. Who, in their right mind, leaves a 7 yr. old to "play" in the toy aisle while you go two aisles over and you can't see your child. She bears the blame and if I were her DH, I would raise holy hell for doing something this stupid and dangerous and it would be a cold day in hell before she would take her out again.

Some moms leave their kids to "play" in the children's area of bookstores while they go in an entirely different store. Happens all the time..

WalMart does not have play areas and as another PP pointed out this child was much farther away then two aisles. The mother was negligent and damn lucky. Mothers who leave their children in a play area and go to another store are also negligent.

[Anonymous]

Like a PP, I also taught my kids to yell "this is not my daddy", etc. I think that's important, because many people (like me) will just assume a screaming child is throwing a tantrum, and ignore them, when it could be something much worse.

Mom shouldn't have left the girl in the store like that, but thank goodness she was a fiesty little thing and fought back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Man tries to carry off second grader. She screamed and kicked, and he put her down and ran off. Thankfully, they got the guy in custody!

http://gma.yahoo.com/video/parenting-26594265/little-girl-fights-off-abductor-in-walmart-28242481.html

Thank goodness this child is all right but her mother bears the fault. Who, in their right mind, leaves a 7 yr. old to "play" in the toy aisle while you go two aisles over and you can't see your child. She bears the blame and if I were her DH, I would raise holy hell for doing something this stupid and dangerous and it would be a cold day in hell before she would take her out again.

Regardless of the mom's behavior...I don't let my kids play alone in the other part of the store...I have had one of my kids step into another aisle when I was looking at something on the shelf....and then yelled at my kid for doing so! It can happen to the best of us which is why this is a teaching lesson for even the most diligent moms.

I have started allowing my 8.5 yo DD to help me with shopping by going off on her own in the grocery store to find things in one aisle while I find things in other aisles. She's very mature, educated about stranger danger, etc. It has been very hard for me to lengthen the apron strings a little and give her some freedom. Now I wonder if I am doing something wrong

[Anonymous]

Good for this girl. Clearly her mom can't be all bad if the girl knew exactly what she should do in this situation.

[Anonymous]

have started allowing my 8.5 yo DD to help me with shopping by going off on her own in the grocery store to find things in one aisle while I find things in other aisles. She's very mature, educated about stranger danger, etc. It has been very hard for me to lengthen the apron strings a little and give her some freedom. Now I wonder if I am doing something wrong

Personally, I think we have to allow our children experiences like this to gain confidence and independence as they get older. I think the key, in a case like this, is to remain aware. You need to know exactly where you sent your daughter, let her know exactly where you will be, tell her you will come looking for her in 2/3/4/5 minutes if she's not back with the item she went to get. I do this with my 8 year old son too. I send him to grab a tomato in the produce section while I'm perusing the meats. There is risk involved but, like a lot of parenting situations, a little risk is required so the children grow. YMMV.

[Anonymous]

Will anyone show this to their kids? We've explained to our eldest (almost 6) about the dangers of being away from us at a store and that someone could snatch her.

I now want to explain to her what to do in that situation. I'm wondering if this video would be too scary or would it be a good accompaniment to a talk.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't show the video or tell the story even to my child, age 6, but I will say, if a stranger tries to grab you or touch you, shout "this is not my mommy," etc.
My son is really soft-spoken and I really wonder if he would have done what this girl did. I will be having the talk tonight!

[Anonymous]

"Personally, I think we have to allow our children experiences like this to gain confidence and independence as they get older. I think the key, in a case like this, is to remain aware. You need to know exactly where you sent your daughter, let her know exactly where you will be, tell her you will come looking for her in 2/3/4/5 minutes if she's not back with the item she went to get. I do this with my 8 year old son too. I send him to grab a tomato in the produce section while I'm perusing the meats. There is risk involved but, like a lot of parenting situations, a little risk is required so the children grow. YMMV."

Same here - I let me 5.5 y.o. run and get things. But we've talked about stranger danger/safety issues, and I'll probably show this video to further the discussion.

[Anonymous]

Oh, lord, I am sitting here bawling after seeing that video. So scary. I am definitely going to tighten up my practices, since sometimes I am a little lax in keeping my preschool DD right next to me.

Thanks for posting the link, OP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: have started allowing my 8.5 yo DD to help me with shopping by going off on her own in the grocery store to find things in one aisle while I find things in other aisles. She's very mature, educated about stranger danger, etc. It has been very hard for me to lengthen the apron strings a little and give her some freedom. Now I wonder if I am doing something wrong

Personally, I think we have to allow our children experiences like this to gain confidence and independence as they get older. I think the key, in a case like this, is to remain aware. You need to know exactly where you sent your daughter, let her know exactly where you will be, tell her you will come looking for her in 2/3/4/5 minutes if she's not back with the item she went to get. I do this with my 8 year old son too. I send him to grab a tomato in the produce section while I'm perusing the meats. There is risk involved but, like a lot of parenting situations, a little risk is required so the children grow. YMMV.

I clearly remember my mom allowing me to go on my own to the grocery store to grab a few things when I was around this little girl's age. My parents always gave me freedom and the tools to enjoy it.

Just a few years ago I learned though that my mom would follow behind me to make sure I was safe. Same thing my dad would do the first few years after I started driving. He'd go after me and make sure the place was safe and drive back home behind me. I never noticed!!!! His car was always home when I arrived Smart daddy!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: have started allowing my 8.5 yo DD to help me with shopping by going off on her own in the grocery store to find things in one aisle while I find things in other aisles. She's very mature, educated about stranger danger, etc. It has been very hard for me to lengthen the apron strings a little and give her some freedom. Now I wonder if I am doing something wrong

Personally, I think we have to allow our children experiences like this to gain confidence and independence as they get older. I think the key, in a case like this, is to remain aware. You need to know exactly where you sent your daughter, let her know exactly where you will be, tell her you will come looking for her in 2/3/4/5 minutes if she's not back with the item she went to get. I do this with my 8 year old son too. I send him to grab a tomato in the produce section while I'm perusing the meats. There is risk involved but, like a lot of parenting situations, a little risk is required so the children grow. YMMV.

I clearly remember my mom allowing me to go on my own to the grocery store to grab a few things when I was around this little girl's age. My parents always gave me freedom and the tools to enjoy it.

Just a few years ago I learned though that my mom would follow behind me to make sure I was safe. Same thing my dad would do the first few years after I started driving. He'd go after me and make sure the place was safe and drive back home behind me. I never noticed!!!! His car was always home when I arrived Smart daddy!

This brought tears to my eyes. I have to say that I am most comfortable with this approach. I don't think young children should be out of an adult's sight.

[Anonymous]

Heh. My dad would've had to sit idly by while my friends and I went to some wild parties, had he followed us! Don't think it would've been so sweet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Man tries to carry off second grader. She screamed and kicked, and he put her down and ran off. Thankfully, they got the guy in custody!

http://gma.yahoo.com/video/parenting-26594265/little-girl-fights-off-abductor-in-walmart-28242481.html

Thank goodness this child is all right but her mother bears the fault. Who, in their right mind, leaves a 7 yr. old to "play" in the toy aisle while you go two aisles over and you can't see your child. She bears the blame and if I were her DH, I would raise holy hell for doing something this stupid and dangerous and it would be a cold day in hell before she would take her out again.

Some moms leave their kids to "play" in the children's area of bookstores while they go in an entirely different store. Happens all the time..

WalMart does not have play areas and as another PP pointed out this child was much farther away then two aisles. The mother was negligent and damn lucky. Mothers who leave their children in a play area and go to another store are also negligent.

I think you misunderstood me. I'm the PP that talked about the bookstores. It's a HORRIBLE idea and I think the mother is incredibly negligent to leave her child that far away. I was pointing out other ways moms leave their kids because it's convenient. The children's area in a bookstore isn't a play area or daycare. Kids should be supervised.

[Anonymous]

I saw it and I think that little girl is friggin AWESOME. I'm so glad they caught the guy. If my DC were older, I'd show him the video. I'm one of those who often checks the sex offender registry in our zip/neighborhood just to refresh their faces in my mind. Definitely a parent's worst nightmare. I'm so glad that girl is "safe" even though she is probably traumatized by the whole incident.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Will anyone show this to their kids? We've explained to our eldest (almost 6) about the dangers of being away from us at a store and that someone could snatch her.

I now want to explain to her what to do in that situation. I'm wondering if this video would be too scary or would it be a good accompaniment to a talk.

I'd rather scare my kids shitless than have them abducted because they were not aware of a potential danger.