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[hiddenmuse]

"Stranger Danger" kept him from being found

I don't know what to make of this one. Part of me wants to say "stupid kid!" - but another part says "stupid parents!". Yet another part of me says "stupid people!" for letting a kid go off on his own, especially if they know that he has a crap sense of direction.


It's a great idea to teach your kids to not talk to strangers. Very smart lesson. The not-so-great-idea is to leave out a lesson on what to do if you get lost, because it could happen, despite any parent's best intentions.

For the love of Gord (and Everyone Else), if you're going to spawn, when you teach the sprogs to not talk to strangers, do teach them that if they get lost, it's okay to find someone to help them get back home. Or, if you are lost, and people are calling your name, looking for you, it's okay to go to them.

Finally, if your kid has a crap sense of direction, send them out with a friend ... or if they do go out alone, send them out with a GPS tracker. They're portable now, y'know.


Meh ... what do I know? I plan to be the cool, slightly eccentric, childless aunt when I grow up.

Comments

[livinginoctober.livejournal.com]

I LOVE your icon, first off.

And yes, I think that boy is extremely socially and otherwise, immature.

It really made me wonder about boys that age, and if they use video games as a way to dissociate from things that are going on around them that they don't know how to cope with.

I know at that age, and sometimes still, my way to dissociate is to read. It's the only thing that is truly safe to me when I'm really upset.

I think it's the same for boys that age...it's their way of escaping what's going on...that explains why after eating and drinking, he asked to play a game on someone's cell phone.

And I LOVE that he first asked for his Pokemon cards. LOL.

I don't know how to feel about the "stranger danger" thing...I think it's wonderful that his parents taught him that, but perhaps they could have educated him a little bit further on the whole thing...that if someone's trying to help you, it's okay. But then...a lot of kidnappers and such try to lure kids under the guise that their parents wanted them to help their child. I'm having some kind of code or safeword for my kids, so they know who's real and who's not.

Most parents probably don't think about their kid being lost in the woods, I'd imagine. I'm glad I have the chance to learn from this so I can plan ahead for when I do have children. I'm also horrible with direction, so I know how that is. I almost always have to use Lake Michigan as my guide for North, South, East and West.

Thanks for the great news link.

[caliza.livejournal.com]

I have a little bit of Search and Rescue training, and it's because searchers anticipate that children will be unlikely to respond to strangers or a search party that they often search at night, when the kid would be sleeping.

[livinginoctober.livejournal.com]

I did a search a few years ago for a little girl that had been abducted and was missing...but I didn't learn anything like that, that's a really neat fact. :)

Thanks :)

[caliza.livejournal.com]

And now...if you found that interesting, these may interest you also...

-when an alzheimers patient goes missing, say from a nusring home, their tendancy is to walk in a straight line, and if something (say a wall) gets in their way, they'll pace in front of it, instead of doing what you or I would do, and turn around. Because of this, and searchers not being aware of this, a women was once found in a shed because she had just kept going straight into it, but no one had thought to look in it :(

-search dogs can be really useful looking for kids, cuz the kid is going to be more likely to approach an animal than a stranger (assuming there is no great fear of dogs)

-if someone is trained in wilderness survival and happens to get lost, they'll be one of the easiest people to find if they want to be found, cuz they know what searchers are looking for. but if for some reason they don't want to be found, they can hide it well too ;)

me = geek

Re: Thanks :)

[livinginoctober.livejournal.com]

I don't think it's a geek thing, I think it's incredibly interesting and very useful to know and I thank you for it. :)

My best friend works in a nursing home, so he has all sorts of intriguing tales of Altzheimer's patients.

I know if I were a small scared child, I'd respond more to an animal than a person too. But then, I've always had this strange, irrational fear of being abducted or kidnapped or murdered. I'd say it was because I was mugged as a teen, but I can vividly remember hiding on the floor of my mom's car whenever she would duck into a store and leave me in the car. I'd lock all the doors and hide, for fear someone was going to snatch me. Maybe it's a past life thing or something (although I'm not totally sure how I feel about reincarnation, it's just the only reason I can think of for my fear)...

Your icon is great, too...btw. :)

Re: Thanks :)

[caliza.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I <3 the Care Bears :D

Re: Thanks :)

[hiddenmuse.livejournal.com]

That's some really cool information - and stuff that I didn't even know! :)

The bit about dogs and kids makes a lot of sense, especially since a lot of times, kids do like dogs (unless there was a bad experience), and they're more inclined to approach the dog than a stranger.

[hiddenmuse.livejournal.com]

You're quite welcome!

I remember that my brother and I had a code word with my mom - and a few trusted family friends - as kids. Also, we were told when someone (delivery people, policemen, etc.) came to the door, we should ask to see their ID, to make sure that they were legitimate. (Okay, so that was more applicable to babysitting, but still...)

As for direction, I'm usually pretty good with direction - although I'm totally screwed around here (San Francisco) since the streets seem to run every which way. Although, you'd think that I could remember to use the "sun rises in the east and sets in the west" thing to keep it together.

[bak2oz.livejournal.com]

I confess. I'm a parent. I drilled it into my boys at a very young age, that you stay with mommy or daddy, or what ever adult you are with because "the bad people" will take you away and hurt you. Yeah, this blew up in my face when my oldest was like 2 maybe. WE were in a grocery store. Every time we passed someone he would point to them and ask "is that a bad person?" That was just a little embarrassing.

I commend parents who teach their children to be wary of strangers, and how to handle being approached, what to do when lost, etc. I do, however, wonder what compelled them to leave out the part about when you are lost, and when people are calling your name. Chances are, if they know your name (especially in this situation), they are there to help you.

What I want to know is: Why the heck did he wander off in the first place??

There should really be a common sense test people have to take before they get a breeders license.

[hiddenmuse.livejournal.com]

I don't know why he wandered off in the first place ... but I just want to know, if he was a Scout, don't they teach the boys to use the Buddy System when they're camping?

With the family, I wonder what stopped them from telling their kids "if you get lost, and someone is looking for you, ask them if they know our code word" or anything like that. :-/

And that story about your boys is very cute - I can see how that would backfire (as well as possibly embarrass people)!