We had just finished eating 4th of July barbeque, at a friend's house, when the local news came on the television...
The very first story shocked me so badly that I became nauseous and nearly cried!

A 2 to 3 year old girl was found at the Civic Center Park (the park that is at the center of Denver....where the homeless folks and the drug dealers hang out at night)...late at night, after a crowd of over 1,000 people had been there for an event and had left....this little girl was left alone in a stroller!!
The news story was telling me that they had finally located the girl's mother, who was out of state.
What shocked ME was that it took the police 24 hours to locate this child's family and that she had never been reported MISSING!
She was supposed to be in the care of her GRANDMOTHER!
Her GRANDMOTHER left her in the PARK, at NIGHT??!!?
The police had posted pictures of this beautiful little girl, smiling....
A friend recognized her and contacted authorities.
She is, now, in the care of Human Services.

I just want to cry for this child! ...How scary it must have been for her!
Hope (my granddaughter) is that age!
How could someone DO that to a kid?!?
I wish I could just visit the girl and hug her for hours!

This is indeed a sad commentary on today's society. To answer your question, I would say that the parents of this poor girl, or whomever was left to care for her, are most likely to be drug involved people. My prayers go out to this little girl.

What a nightmare night for that poor girl:( so glad nothing worse happened. That girl cant return to that grandma. Horribly irresponsible.

Stories like these make me so sick.

Children are so precious, I can't fathom how anyone could FORGET or purposely LEAVE their child out in the dark, unattended.

It scares me what's been going on in the world lately.
I am glad she is alright, but I hope she is placed somewhere with people who will actually take care of her and provide for her instead of leaving her out in the cold.

Originally Posted by Inzanebraned

We had just finished eating 4th of July barbeque, at a friend's house, when the local news came on the television...
The very first story shocked me so badly that I became nauseous and nearly cried!

A 2 to 3 year old girl was found at the Civic Center Park (the park that is at the center of Denver....where the homeless folks and the drug dealers hang out at night)...late at night, after a crowd of over 1,000 people had been there for an event and had left....this little girl was left alone in a stroller!!
The news story was telling me that they had finally located the girl's mother, who was out of state.
What shocked ME was that it took the police 24 hours to locate this child's family and that she had never been reported MISSING!
She was supposed to be in the care of her GRANDMOTHER!
Her GRANDMOTHER left her in the PARK, at NIGHT??!!?
The police had posted pictures of this beautiful little girl, smiling....
A friend recognized her and contacted authorities.
She is, now, in the care of Human Services.

I just want to cry for this child! ...How scary it must have been for her!
Hope (my granddaughter) is that age!
How could someone DO that to a kid?!?
I wish I could just visit the girl and hug her for hours!

Children I've never met take my hand knowing somehow that I'm a grandad.
I have stuck my nose in abusive situations in public.
I can't imagine anyone caring so little for anychild. Ever😯😕😠😡

I was having a bad morning already. Then this.

I am so full of hate right now. My hands are fucking shaking.

If Ermy was here to see this she'd be putting that Bogeyman of hers on that bitch.

I am so fucking mad.

GOD DAMN STUPID UNCARING FUCKS!

Vera, I feel the same way! ....being a grandma, myself, I just can't fathom how this kid's grandmother could leave her....then not even report her missing!
I did hear that the girl was 4 years old....4 years old and left in a stroller?
The news says that the girl will be staying with Human Services till further notice.

I'm sorry you are having a bad day, Vera.... I hope it gets better! !

Well, what's the whole story? It could be that the parents trusted the grandmother, who had been a good and responsible adult up until this point, and this unfortunate incident was the first ever sign of her senility. There has to be a first time for everything, and maybe this was just many tragedies coming together at one terrible moment in time. It doesn't always have to be neglect or drugs. Its not uncommon for old people to suffer from mental illnesses and perhaps this was just the first sign the old woman ever showed of Alzheimer's or something similar.

No, it's not the whole story.
I've been waiting for new news on this story...
I have wondered if the grandmother became ill and unable to speak, or if she may have been a victim of some unknown abduction or something....

I read, in the news, that the grandmother has finally been arrested for "Wrongs to a Minor."
The grandmother is 55 years old, and a neighbor told police that the woman, her boyfriend, a younger woman and several children have been living at the woman's house for about 6 months, but the little girl that was abandoned has only been living there for 2 or 3 months.
No excuses or explanations have been offered as to why nobody claimed the girl missing.
The girl stayed with Human Services over the weekend.
The girl's mother lives in South Dakota....
When a Facebook friend of the mother asked if the mother had regained custody of the girl, the mother only clicked the "thumbs up" icon.

I hope to read about more details about this story in the near future....but the media may not publish more details.
I really hope that the little girl is being appreciated, loved and truly cared for with her mother.
Kids are a precious resource....I hope this event hasn't scarred that young mind!
I hope the grandmother is charged to the fullest extent of the law!
She deserves to be left alone in the dark in the company of strangers...maybe a dark jail cell?....so that she might know what the little girl felt like!

Eh. I don't think children are particularly precious resources. There's an abundance of them, and we keep making more, and there's a general shitty mindset of "I want to raise something I created." so we'll keep making more. They aren't any more precious than any other life, but if you willingly drag one into this world, then I agree, you absolutely should be prepared to take responsibility for that choice.

I hope the kid's doing okay. I honestly don't think that she's so traumatized- Children get lost all the time. Its a scary experience, but they usually recover just fine. So assuming that she finds her way into responsible custody, I'm pretty optimistic about her future.

Hmmm....Bitter Much?
You sound like you would like to blame the children for being abundant!
The children are precious! ...many parents and guardians are not!
Children that grow up with invisible scars become scarred adults....often depressed or manic.
Do you remember being 3 or 4 years old?....can you imagine how scary it would be to be left in the care of strangers for days?
I can't imagine it NOT leaving a scar!
Some people should just be born sterile!

I hope the girl ends up in a home where she can know love and caring, wherever that may be for her.

How about we either have this discussion without making a fool of ourselves with unnecessary personal remarks like "Bitter?" or not have it at all, yeah? I don't consider myself "bitter" for valuing every life equally. Every life is important. A child is no more important nor "precious" than an adult.

Of course I don't blame children for being abundant. But the fact of the matter is that they're a very abundant. So they aren't precious as lives or as resources- Not as lives because all lives have the same value, not as resources because they're not particularly rare. They're just lives, and I think that the respect everyone- not just children, but everyone- deserves for being a life is respect enough without trying to put them on a pedestal over adults or elders.

Well, there's no real point in arguing whether she'll experience trauma from being lost or not. I don't think the media is going to release any more information for us to go on. But I think she'll be fine. Its unfortunate, but as long as she was returned to responsible custody after the event, I think she'll grow up healthy. They couldn't find her parents for the duration, but she was "found" by the right people and they kept her safe and took care of her for the entire time she was lost. If she had been found by the wrong people or had not been found at all, then I think she would have a more difficult time healing.

Well....since I was the one who started this thread, I am offended that you imply that I am making a fool of myself by expressing my opinion about you!
You DO seem bitter to me....and I have a right to think whatever I choose to think....whether you think I'm being a fool or not!

My statement about children being a precious resource is obviously lost on you....
I know that children are abundant and not rare...
But a child that is raised in a balanced and loving home is becoming more rare every day....jobs and commitments and social activities often put the kids at the bottom of the priority list....all while thinking (as you seem to) that the kids will be FINE!

Neglect and abuse takes on many faces that many don't recognize....and they DO leave scars!
I guess you have been fortunate enough to have been one of the "fine"kids!....and I'm the only "fool" that sees you as BITTER!


ANYWAYYYY! ....The newest news about this story is that when Grandma went to her boyfriend and admitted that she had forgotten the little girl, the boyfriend told her to call the police....but she didn't call the police because she had a warrant for her arrest in another state, and she was afraid to go to jail...
Well....she was in jail the last I read! ..
....And the little girl is back with her mom.
I doubt we will be told any more about this story, so I won't have any more to add to this thread.

rofl. Look hon, if this was any of your personal threads, "This is my thread and I'll cry if I want to." would be perfectly valid logic and I would respect it. But this is a general discussion thread, where many people come together to express their thoughts on your chosen topic, and if you can't be respectful to me and have to make rude personal remarks about me because you don't like my opinion, then you are acting like a fool, whether it offends you to hear it or not.

You also seem to want to think I'm a bad person. You keep construing my posts in the worst possible way. I say, "Children are abundant." and you hear, "Its children's fault they're abundant." I say, "All lives are valuable." and you hear, "Its okay for children to be neglected." Oh, and now you're assuming you know what kind of environment I grew up in and what kind of life lead. What's your problem? Can you stop making assumptions? As the saying goes, it makes an ass out of you and me.

I think every life is important. Just because I don't think children are more important than adults doesn't mean I think that children are worthless. Every life deserves an equal amount of consideration and respect, and I don't see how you managed to twist that into "Its okay for children to be neglected."

Anyone who would do that to a poor defenseless child obviously shouldn't be around children. Having 2 kids myself, this really upsets me. People need to think about how their actions effect other people.

Well, HON!
I write like I talk....and I would have made the "bitter much?" comment if you were standing in front of me, talking to you....
Excuse me for writing it that particular way....
I suppose I should have written it more like "You sound quite bitter to me!"
As for me making any assumptions about you....I'm afraid that it is you that made the assumptions!
The only things I assumed about you were that ya didn't have any kids of your own...
I did not intend to imply that I was pointing fingers at YOU, in particular....twas intended in a "general" sense,...and due to RL distraction and the fact that I have to type everything out in a tiny window on my phone,....I may have worded it to sound different than it was intended.
I take offense to being called a fool in any situation...especially when it was obvious to me that the point I was trying to make was not being received by you.
I, personally, think that children are more valuable than adults.
That is my personal opinion.
And, I believe that when children are victims of potentially traumatic events, it often looks like the child is fine, when, in fact, that event festers silently until the child becomes an adult.
It is my opinion that these adults are more likely to be affected by depression, mental illness and social problems....
In an unfortunate cycle, those adults often become parents that have little capacity for parenting.....and so it goes...
I see it in the news all the time...not to mention what I've been witness to...
The kids that were victims of depressed or manic parents all grew up to amount to little more than.....another "life," if not gang members or....comic book characters who shoot up theaters....or high schools.....
I fear for the children....for they hold our future in their hands....
I want them to confidently know what to do with it.

I also apologize if I spoke out of turn about having been the starter of this thread....
I had not realized that it being a general forum prevented me from expressing myself in my own style.
~SO many RULES!~

(I've been in a real pissy mood for a while now.....maybe I should just keep quiet and only observe for a while....before I make any more.....misunderstandings.)

Originally Posted by Inzanebraned

Hmmm....Bitter Much?
You sound like you would like to blame the children for being abundant!

Originally Posted by Inzanebraned

often put the kids at the bottom of the priority list....all while thinking (as you seem to) that the kids will be FINE!

Originally Posted by Inzanebraned

I guess you have been fortunate enough to have been one of the "fine"kids!....and I'm the only "fool" that sees you as BITTER!

I don't know what you intended, but your posts sure seemed intended for me rather than a general public. They're also all incorrect assumptions- I never said I blame children for being abundant, that I support child neglect, and it was completely unnecessary to make any snub at my childhood or past.

I understand and I respect your opinion. I don't agree with it, but you be you. I don't insult you ("Bitter much?") or make assumptions about your childhood ("you have been fortunate enough to be one of the fine kids") because I don't agree with your opinion. I didn't call your actions foolish because you have a different opinion about children, I called your actions foolish because you insulted me as a person for my opinion, which is completely uncalled for in a mature discussion about any topic.

There's no particular rule about "owning" a thread in the general discussion section, but if you start a general discussion, its just that- Its a general discussion where people of all walks come together and talk about the topic of your choosing. Not everyone is gonna think the same things you do about your topic, and its rather rude to be rude to them for posting a differing opinion.

I understand that this is a very personal and important topic to you, and I think your feelings on the matter got the best of you. But I just want to be able to talk about this without being insulted or snubbed for feeling differently about it, and if we're at a point where we can all respect each other, then I think we're fine. No hard feelings.

Really....I only came back to this thread because I finally had a moment of silence in RL and had a moment to think about what I had written and realized that, in the haste to get the post written, I prolly blundered again, and may have offended some OTHER folks, now!
*giant sigh*
First off...on the day I read your first comment, it honestly read, TO ME, as though you seemed bitter and wished there weren't so many kids in the world....and I admit that my response about "how you sound" should have been stated as it being how I read it and interrupted it.
I stand my ground on the "bitter much?" cuz I say that to people in RL all the time and have never been met with being called a fool for it...until now.
(Usually folks I say it to admit it and laugh at themselves a little.)
(By the way, the little words under your screen name say "bitter bitter"...?)
I did say that you had said that kids get lost all the time and are fine...
Maybe they WEREN'T fine?...and they grew up with some mental issue that never got connected to the time the kid got lost...cuz they were too young to remember?
It is your assumption that they were fine....like most parents and guardians assume.
I was left believing that you may have been lost as a child and grew up to be, as you stated most lost kids do, "fine" and that I am a fool for interpreting (possibly incorrectly) that you seemed bitter.

The main reason I came back to this thread, though, is to clarify that I do not think that people can not be assets to the human race just because they might have a mental disability such as depression or social issues!
I meant that the deck is kinda already stacked against them and its hard....its harder for them to be able contributors...many stay home on the couch and forget to take their meds!
I have been there, so I know this!
I only meant that the race, as a whole, would be much stronger if we could do all in our power to prevent mental illness....and that it starts with the children.

I'll get over being called a fool if you'll get over being asked if you're bitter!

(In fact, I'm pretty bitter, myself, lately.....like, MOST OF MY LIFE!)
*sighs, again!*

It is for this very reason that the BF hates texting....because words get interrupted wrong much more often when ya don't hear the tone of a person's voice or the expression on someone's face....and before ya know it, you're pissed off and ready to throw your phone in the toilet!!
.....maybe that only happens to us! Lol!

My feelings were hard long before this thread was created....
That prolly explains my misinterpretation of what you posted...
Don't take it personally...
I am all about agreeing to disagree.

.....*ahem* .....can we just get this thread removed and act like it never happened or something?

I do wish that there were fewer children in the world, but absolutely not in the sense where I think children are the problem. I wish that adults would be fully educated and willing to take on the responsibilities and sacrifices of being a parent before carelessly bringing one into a shitty situation. A child should only ever be brought into the world if they're being brought into a loving, responsible home or if all other forms of birth control failed and the pregnant woman is opposed to abortion.

If I'm at all bitter about the situation, I'm bitter because there are so many unwanted children because of irresponsible or no planning, and that's just not fair. No one deserves to be brought into this world to feel like a mistake or a burden.

Ah, the bit under my username actually references a famous poem.

Originally Posted by In the Desert - Stephan Crane

In the desert
I saw a creature, naked, bestial,
Who, squatting upon the ground,
Held his heart in his hands,
And ate of it.
I said, “Is it good, friend?”
“It is bitter—bitter,” he answered;

“But I like it
“Because it is bitter,
“And because it is my heart.”

I understand your concern. I just think that this situation doesn't have to turn into a mental illness or a trauma- I'm sure that it could contribute to one if she continues being neglected, but it was stated that she was returned to her parents rather than her grandmother, so I'm hoping that this means she's in responsible care. If she leads a normal life from this point on wards, I do feel that this will just become a bad memory, and that she won't suffer any trauma in the future from it. But of course it all depends on what experiences she has from this point forward.

But really, don't worry about it. No hard feelings at all. I don't blame you- This is a very difficult topic, and its easy for difficult topics to get a little heated. As long as we're on the same page now, everything's fine.

Originally Posted by Inzanebraned

Hmmm....Bitter Much?
You sound like you would like to blame the children for being abundant!
The children are precious! ...many parents and guardians are not!
Children that grow up with invisible scars become scarred adults....often depressed or manic.
Do you remember being 3 or 4 years old?....can you imagine how scary it would be to be left in the care of strangers for days?
I can't imagine it NOT leaving a scar!
Some people should just be born sterile!

Some people are born sterile, just not in ways one would normally expect.