
What??? How is "accidentally" leaving a baby in the car a "bad choice?" These are two completely different things. No one makes the choice to drive to work, forget to drop the baby at daycare, not notice the sleeping baby in the backseat when they get out of the car, and then not realize what they've done until it's too late. THOSE are the tragic stories of babies dying in hot cars. No choice is being made - it is horrible ACCIDENT that unfortunately can happen to even very good, careful, vigilant parents. And it's entirely different from making the conscious choice that it's safe to leave the baby in the car while you walk a few feet away to grab the newspaper because you will be gone less than a minute. Babies don't die in hot cars in the 30-60 seconds it takes to buy a newspaper from the machine. I rarely leave my baby in the car, but I would have no problem leaving her in her seat if I parked for a minute to buy a newspaper in OP's scenario. |
For the record, you're having a conversation with two different people. What I meant by that was if you really don't think it matters to take your kid out of the car because you really wanted a paper, nothing anyone says here will likely change your opinion. I really don't think I used any kind of subtext or coded language, so this really didn't need to be spelled out. Some people think it was OK, some people didn't. I'm in the latter and doubt that I can convince her to join me there. Is that clear enough? I said nothing about how she feels about her kid. You just read into that. |
So then you would have no problem changing the bolded text to the more accurate "if you made the informed decision that your child would be safe in the car for the brief period of time it took you to get a paper." Right? |
Sure, but it's just semantics. I still have an opinion (and don't forget, the OP ASKED if she was wrong here; therefore, she, and everyone on here, should be open to the possibility that maybe it wasn't the best thing in the world to do). I'm not sure what you're so angry about. If someone comes on this board and solicits opinions, and is given them, why are you so angry about my answer? I have an opinion about what she did, and I don't think the risk was worth it. How many times and different ways do I have to say that to satisfy you? |
Of course you have an opinion. That's my point. It's not just semantics--you're of the opinion that the OP chose selfish convenience over her child's safety. That's why you phrased it the way you did--because you had something to say about "how she feels about her kid." And that's fine--just own it, don't try to innocently slip your subjective opinion in as objective fact. |
Isn't that was she was ultimately asking?? And this affects you .... how? |
Agreed. This is not ok. |
Right, the whole point here is that OP is trying to point at the man calling 911 as "the problem", when in fact, he's doing the right and decent thing. The level of flying-harpy vitriol that this simple observation has led to makes me think there's something else going on here. |
Isn't that was she was ultimately asking?? And this affects you .... how? Because it's annoyingly passive agressive when people phrase their opinions as facts. In my opinion. Which affects you...how? |
How could anyone complete a call to 911 in 30 seconds? Or even a minute? Something doesn't compute. |
why is that not ok? with the windows down the kid is fine. do you take the kid out when you pay with a credit card at the pump? what is the difference? |
I hope this is a sarcastic comment. But I will bite. ummm....HUGE difference. If I pay at the pump, I am still standing right there, not more than a few feet away. In fact, I will somtimes lean in the window and talk to him while the gas is pumping. If I am in the gas station store, I am not right there in close proximty. |
no, not sarcastic. but so what is the difference? if the child is in sight and not more than 20-30 feet away? What is the concern? |
Personally I would have double-parked in front of the newspaper box so it would be an even quicker transaction, and left the car running (though not in DC,in the burbs since we're talking about it). I have done that to go to the ATM.
I have also left my kid to nap in the car in the garage (weather dependent, of course). Windows open, door open...no way in hell I was waking that kid up. I just stayed within earshot until they woke up. I do think the poor guy was freaking out that you'd abandoned your child in the car, or were going in to get coffee and would be gone for a while, etc. I probably would have not bothered to get a newspaper if the baby was napping to avoid the 'do i leave him or take him out and wake him up' dilemma. |
My (personal) reason exactly is that I am sleep deprived and errands frequently and easily take longer than I think they will. Also, what is a short amount of time to me (a few extra minutes chatting to a neighbor or waiting because there are a few people lined up at the library drop slot, for example) is a long one for a baby in a hot car. I'm not comfortable leaving my keys in my car or my car running, not for fear of theft but because the same short delays that could make it unsafe in a hot car can also make it unsafe in a running but idle car. Having thought about this before being faced with the situation, it's just what I've decided to do. It's also what is recommended to do, so I've never felt the need to spin out scenarios to justify the choice or label it as right or wrong or whatever. It's not like every time I go run an errand I am living in anxious petrification of something going wrong, I just don't leave the baby in the car as a rule, the same way I put any bags or objects in the trunk when I park the car. It's a habit, and it doesn't require a new analysis every single time. I either took the bucket seat (when he was small enough) or popped him in a carrier (if I needed both hands for the errand) or carried him in one arm. |