What the hell is wrong with people today? Actually before I discuss that question I'll explain what lead me to ask it.
Today I was in the bank, sorting out some name transfers for business, and tax, purposes. Now as most of this had already been discussed and arranged it was a fairly quick process - approximately 20 minutes.
Some woman, who calls herself a parent, left her baby in the car for the whole 20 minutes; with the car unlocked and running. Luckily I don't live in some crime ravaged area but we have a ton of strangers in town for some fishing season. The population swells by a few thousand.
Had some stranger got in the car and took off with the baby sleeping in the back seat you can guarantee the mother would of been crying about the tragedy of her child being taken.
The real tragedy is that the child is going to grow up with her as a parent. Seriously in this day and age you cannot be leaving a baby in a car for 20 minutes all alone no matter where you are. I don't care if you live in the Bronx or some deserted town in the middle of Texas where nobody ever goes you just don't do that thing.
It is like the one thing that the law seems to have forgotten to ever worry about. Want to drive a car? You have to have a license. Want to be a cattle farmer? You need a license for that. Want to sell some cheap Japanese toy on a street corner? Yep, you need a license for that.
Want to get pregnant, give birth, and raise a child? You don't need anything but a willing partner. Actually head to the local sperm bank and the willing partner can be dispensed with.
Surely if the government can regulate everything they can start regulating who is allowed to be parents. It sounds harsh, and maybe it is, but some people just don't deserve to be parents. But that is the thing nothing can stop a person being a parent.
Take the average crack whore with 6 kids by 8 different fathers who when meant to be caring for her children is spaced out and oblivious to the kids playing with her crack pipe; and her boyfriend's old needles. Nothing to stop her having a 7th child; even though she really isn't looking after the first 6.
Isn't it about time that something was done so that the people who really should not be parents are not allowed to be parents. Get some sort of parenting test in before they are allowed to have children. If you haven't passed the test and you give birth the child is taken and given to someone worthwhile who maybe cannot have kids.
An example question could be:
You are invited to a party; you cannot get hold of your regular babysitter. What would you do?
A. Not go.
B. Go. The kids will be fine on their own for a few hours.
C. Take the kids. They can play in the coat room.
D. Ask the registered pedophile next door to look in on them.
Then obviously anyone who answers B, C, or D instantly fails the test.
OK. One question might be too obvious. Maybe 50 - 75 commonsense questions; with 95% being the accepted pass rate.
It is easy for kids to constantly be blamed for everything; but you really have to look at the parents. And sorry but if the parents are incapable of being parents they shouldn't be.
And for all the parents doing a good job at being a parent - congratulations; keep up the good work and maybe eventually things will change for the better.
I hear what you're saying Doggie and like you I find the conduct of some parents outrageous. They are a disgrace for those, who enjoy parenting, take their job as role model seriously and are aware of the huge responsibility that comes with having children.
ReplyDeleteThe incident at your bank however would have been reason enough for me to intervene. Some people are unaware of their irresponsible behaviour and need a wake-up call. In other cases (like the crack-whore example) all access to their conscience is barred. Something is wrong with their brain function. Having said that, of course I don't mean to imply that all wrongdoing or immorality is due to biochemical causes, but some undoubtedly is. Those cases are not able to assess their own actions and the resulting consequences.
Sad, but this kind of dysfunction in our society isn't unprecedented and there have been attempts to deal with it.
This is a slippery slope. Your statement about the government's involvement in who is allowed to be parent could be easily misinterpreted as the demand for eugenics and then this whole discussion slides into another dimension...
I semi-agree. Maybe I should have intervened; but around here when the police are involved things don't work out the way they should. Scarily enough I would have most likely been the one in trouble.
ReplyDeleteAs for the eugenics argument; it may have seemed like that (even to me who wrote it) but it was more a mis-worded argument for the government to make parenting classes required. And hopefully the people running the classes can spot potential issues.
Parenting classes are a good idea, they exist already in great variety, but since they aren't mandatory and not free of charge, they attract a clientele with a certain disposition only.
ReplyDeleteAnother idea would be to introduce this as tutorials at school or college. Programs like that have already been tested in the US. I know of a specific program in which students were shown what it means to have a baby. Reality was simulated by giving them an android-like baby doll with which they had to "deal" 24/7. Unfortunately these strategies aren't pursued, wrong resourcing politics, I guess.
Regards the intervention. I am glad that it hasn't come this far in my country yet (but it's getting there). Approaching a stranger about a delicate subject, even with a little reprimand would still be possible. One wouldn't have to fear to be arrested or to get charged for having interfered with their right for self-fulfillment or their need for individualism. "Land of the free" misconceived....
That's why there are more lawyers in the US, than in the rest of the world put together.
But there's hope for our sick world, keep pointing out evil to us, Doggie. Someone should put you up on your own list of modern day Saints.