I MADE MY TEACHER CRY!
Okay....did my presentation; did my skit.
People were crying. My teacher was crying.
It was sad. Hell, I cried a ton doing the research.
Anyway...the Texas law says that you can leave a child unattended in a car for up to 5 minutes.
My point: A lot can happen in 5 minutes. In less than 5 minutes, kids have been abducted from cars, kids have killed themselves with automatic windows, cars have been stolen with kids in them, & in one very very very tragic story, a car thief tried to push a 6yo out of the car, while the mother was also trying to yank the child out of the car. The child was tangled in the seat belt, and dragged to his death in a 5 mile chase where speeds reached 80 mph.
Just horrible, horrible, horrible, stuff that all happened in less than 5 minutes.
So...there you have it. My final project. Incredibly sad.
If you want to know about the laws in your state for leaving children unattended in cars, go to www.kidsandcars.org
Click on legislation.
These laws vary state to state. There is no universal federal law which would supersede the state laws. (1) That may be part of the problem. If we had a strict federal law, then it would supersede the less strict state laws....or (2) each state (in my opinion) needs a strict law, making it illegal to intentionally leave children unattended in cars. Every single one of the parents discussed in my project all said the same things: they never thought anything bad would happen; they never thought it would happen to them. And every single one of them would give anything to go back in time, & do things differently.
Labels: School
posted by Lainey-Paney @ 4:13 AM
14 Comments:
Oh, Good for you!! I have no idea how you got through the presentation yourself, but totally understand why you chose that presentation.
You ought to take it on the road and do presentations to young mothers, wehther its through the local DCS or other social service parenting organizations.
YAY for you!!!! Woohoo!!!
I remember that storty, about the child being dragged and killed....so, so sad. I can't imagine, as a other, having to watch that happen to my child.
You are so right...alot can happen in 5 little minutes.
Oh wow, I would have been bawling. That is so sad. It is amazing the things that can happen when kids are left alone in a car. I hope you reached some people, I know you have me!
Wow you just gave me goosebumps!
I bet you got your 50 points. Yay! It is always good to do presentations on something that touches you...I always found that helped me.
P.S. I tagged you for a meme!
Wow, it must have been quite a presentation. But it sounds like you did a great job- congratulations. 5 minutes...I had no idea. I thought you couldn't leave them at all and I am a little surprised that you're allowed 5 minutes. But being aware what might happen makes that 5 minute dash into a store seem very unimportant.
When I was still working back in Phoenix, AZ, I looked outside our store to see a small child throwing a fit in his carseat (he was maybe 3 or 4). Our store was pretty small, so I loudly asked who was driving the white car with license plate ######. No one answered. I didn't know if someone was ignoring me or just didn't hear me, but I called our mall security. They showed up immediately, closely followed by the police and fire departments. The mother ran out just in time to see her car windows get busted open with an axe and to be cited for child neglect. Apparently, the child was just throwing a tantrum, so she left him in the car so she could browse for a video to rent in peace. A freaking movie rental was the big reason she left her son in the car...in the summer...in Phoenix!
It never ceases to amaze me that people leave.their.children in a car. I'm sure that when we were kids, our parents would run into the store for a gallon of milk or whatever, but...that was then, this is now. The crazies are everywhere.
This is really sad. But, I've done it. I have. Does that make me a horrible person? Maybe. I have run in to get coffee and left three kids (6,9, 11) in the car. I guess I assumed that since the 11 year old sometimes watches his brother and sister at home for very short periods of time that it was ok.
Also, my mom used to do this all the time. She was and is a wonderful mother. She would run in and grab her dry cleaning or deposit a check or whatever and lock us in the car. I guess I never felt like it was dangerous. It wasn't hot or for more than a couple minutes. But, as you say, a lot can happen in a few moments.
I guess my mom got lucky and I need to be more careful. But I also think it's all about how you are raised.
Anyhoo, thanks for opening our eyes a bit.
congratulations on doing this awesome presentation that i'm sure, although very difficult, potentially live saving to many children!
i'm off to check out my state laws right now.
and i guarantee, even when it's -20 here and i just want to run into the gas station really quick...i will always be reminded of this & either choose not to go in or to unbuckle my 3 precious girls and take them with me!
thank you.
I got cold chills just reading about the little boy who was tangled in his car seat. So sad.
My best friend and I are both stay-at-hommers during the day. She has an almost 3-year old and if she must go to the store and he's being wretched, she will drive out of the way to pick me up to sit with him or drop him off.
It is different then when we were little. 5 minutes is an eternity.
I thought you couldn't leave the child alone in a car for any amount of time either. Didn't realize it varied state by state. I'm glad you did so well on your presentation.
Wow, what a sad sad tragic and horrible law! I am glad though you did so well on your presentation.
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