Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is such BS. My kids had classmates at their DC public elementary that took the bus home ALONE at 4th and 5th grade.

4th and 5th grade is 9 and 10 (or 10 and 11). Taking the bus is going from point A to point B in a specific timeframe. MUCH different than wandering around a commercial neighborhood & busy intersections when you are 6 and 10.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This has nothing to do with coddling or agreeing with your opinon. It is a matter of understanding how the system works. Whether you like it or not, this family was already entangled with CPS, therefore once the kids were picked up, they had to take them back to the station for CPS to make an evaluation as to next steps.
Maybe the kids are not being "neglected", I don't think they are, but that was the nature of the previous investigation and now you have another report about the kids being out and about, CPS is OBLIGATED to investigate at the time and cannot just give the kids back. IT DOES NOT WORK THAT WAY.
This protects ALL KIDS, most especially the ones who are being abused. Just because you do not like, just because you do not like that this family is entangled with the system, does not mean you can circumvent the process. What do you not get about that?
It has nothing to do with not agreeing with anything -- it's about how the system works. Use your brain

What many of us are upset about is the idea that letting your 10 and 6 year old out of your sight will trigger an investigation by CPS.

I have had friends with brief not-very-painful interactions with CPS and acquaintances who have had extended interactions with CPS. I certainly would not ever want to be entangled with the system or CPS. But why should two children walking along a sidewalk trigger entanglement with the system and CPS? That's what we're getting hung up on.

People can argue all day about whether or not the state regulations apply to these kids being alone at the park. However, it is abundantly clear that this family was told not to do it again, and they did. And knowing how the system works, I think it was piss ass funky ass judgement by this family to do it again and chance losing their kids. Maybe they are the type who are so smart, they're stupid(as grandma used to say). I could thing of 100 ways to fight this without chancing losing my kids.
I could have staged a sit in at CPS and the State House, but i bet they would not have found my kids alone at that playground, makes me lose all sorts of credibility, weakens my argument and makes me look more like a grandstanding malcontent than someone with a legitimate and solid concern.

Or they could move to a place where it is *actually* safe for a 6 and 10 year old to wander around unattended. Not downtown SS, not 6-lane dangerous intersections. The Meitavs seem to be in denial about the neighborhood they live in, and the features that actually make it safe to be "free range." But instead, they've decided to apply "logic" to the situation rather than examine the actual facts. They seem unwilling to actually assess and understand where they actually live.

Anonymous wrote:

Or they could move to a place where it is *actually* safe for a 6 and 10 year old to wander around unattended. Not downtown SS, not 6-lane dangerous intersections. The Meitavs seem to be in denial about the neighborhood they live in, and the features that actually make it safe to be "free range." But instead, they've decided to apply "logic" to the situation rather than examine the actual facts. They seem unwilling to actually assess and understand where they actually live.

Anonymous wrote:This is such BS. My kids had classmates at their DC public elementary that took the bus home ALONE at 4th and 5th grade.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
This has nothing to do with coddling or agreeing with your opinon. It is a matter of understanding how the system works. Whether you like it or not, this family was already entangled with CPS, therefore once the kids were picked up, they had to take them back to the station for CPS to make an evaluation as to next steps.
Maybe the kids are not being "neglected", I don't think they are, but that was the nature of the previous investigation and now you have another report about the kids being out and about, CPS is OBLIGATED to investigate at the time and cannot just give the kids back. IT DOES NOT WORK THAT WAY.
This protects ALL KIDS, most especially the ones who are being abused. Just because you do not like, just because you do not like that this family is entangled with the system, does not mean you can circumvent the process. What do you not get about that?
It has nothing to do with not agreeing with anything -- it's about how the system works. Use your brain

What many of us are upset about is the idea that letting your 10 and 6 year old out of your sight will trigger an investigation by CPS.

I have had friends with brief not-very-painful interactions with CPS and acquaintances who have had extended interactions with CPS. I certainly would not ever want to be entangled with the system or CPS. But why should two children walking along a sidewalk trigger entanglement with the system and CPS? That's what we're getting hung up on.

People can argue all day about whether or not the state regulations apply to these kids being alone at the park. However, it is abundantly clear that this family was told not to do it again, and they did. And knowing how the system works, I think it was piss ass funky ass judgement by this family to do it again and chance losing their kids. Maybe they are the type who are so smart, they're stupid(as grandma used to say). I could thing of 100 ways to fight this without chancing losing my kids.
I could have staged a sit in at CPS and the State House, but i bet they would not have found my kids alone at that playground, makes me lose all sorts of credibility, weakens my argument and makes me look more like a grandstanding malcontent than someone with a legitimate and solid concern.

Anonymous wrote:

You're simply wrong. Maryland's law refers to children in dwellings or cars. It does not prohibit children being in the care of other children younger than 12 for the purposes of walking to school, walking to the park, playing in your yard, or playing in the park. Thank goodness.