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We previously reported on the parents in Maryland who were being investigated for neglect after letting their 10-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter make a one-mile walk home from a Silver Spring park on Georgia Avenue on a Saturday afternoon. Now the Washington Post that after a two-month investigation the Montgomery County Child Protective Services has found the parents responsible for “unsubstantiated” child neglect in a decision that has not fully resolved their clash with authorities over questions of parenting and children’s safety. "I think what CPS considered neglect, we felt was an essential part of growing up and maturing," said Alexander Meitiv. "We feel we're being bullied into a point of view about child-rearing that we strongly disagree with."
The finding of unsubstantiated child neglect means CPS will keep a file on the family for at least five years and leaves open the question of what would happen if the Meitiv children get reported again for walking without adult supervision. The parents say they will continue to allow their son, Rafi, 10, and daughter Dvora, 6, to play or walk together, and won’t be swayed by the CPS finding. “We don’t feel it was appropriate for an investigation to start, much less conclude that we are responsible for some form of child neglect,” says Danielle Meitiv, who said she and her husband plan to appeal and worry about being investigated again by CPS. “What will happen next time? We don’t know if we will get caught in this Kafkaesque loop again.” Asked how authorities would respond if the children were reported again for walking unsupervised, Paula Tolson, spokeswoman for the Maryland Department of Human Resources, said CPS would become involved if a complaint was made about the safety of the children. In such cases, “if we get a call from law enforcement or from a citizen, we are required to investigate. Our goal is the safety of children, always.”
(Score: 5, Insightful) by NotSanguine on Tuesday March 10 2015, @04:01AM
When I was a child, I walked to and from school (yes, barefoot, through the snow, uphill both ways) by myself, played with my friends in the park, rode my bicycle on NYC streets, rode the subways and never had a problem.
This was in the '70s, when NYC was a much more dangerous place than it is now.
I had my bicycle stolen once -- my fault, I wasn't paying attention.
I sampled the many playgrounds in both Central and Riverside Parks and found the ones I liked best.
I tore up my legs pretty good more than once, trying to navigate the sharp curve of a hill on my skateboard.
And my parents? They allowed me to take responsibility for myself at levels I was prepared for, and that made me stronger, more independent and confident in my own abilities.
Punishing parents for trying to raise strong, independent, healthy kids is completely ridiculous. I weep for today's children. They are being placed at a disadvantage that will limit and harm them later in life.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 10 2015, @04:24AM
If you can't give them experience, at least you can prevent them from becoming narcissists. [pbs.org]
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 10 2015, @07:29AM
Not only does the government seem to want to prevent the raising of strong, independent and healthy kids, it also thinks that it is its job to decide where children can go, at what times and how far. Maybe it's so that they become obedient adults who are more likely to accept the totalitarian state which is being built (not only in the US).
(Score: 3, Insightful) by c0lo on Tuesday March 10 2015, @11:38AM
No, it's not. Strong, independent, healthy are the opposite of the desirable traits of the future persons. They must be domesticated into being fearful, obedient/subservient and sickly (consumers in short), otherwise there's a good chance they'll pick up those pitchforks and torches [politico.com], a situation that the free market fairy can't deal with.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford