Children still dying in hot cars.

[Londo_Jowo]

Hmm....interesting. One side actually sites evidence and the other side sticks their fingers in their ears yet you want to treat both positions as equally valid. Whatever.

Yes, there was a change to where and how child seats had to be positioned in the car but the statistics do not show this massive increase people would like to blame on the changes in the law. I bet it could be shown that the use of cell/smart phones increased during the same time frame and could partially be to blame for the absent minded person who inadvertently left a child in the car. Or it could be these people were affected by ADHD as a child and continued to be affected by ADD as adults. It's also possible that the people have been careless all their lives and this is the cause of leaving a child in a car.

I watch people in the mall/store and see a portion of them get so caught up in what they're doing that they lose all track of their children so it's no wonder that these are the people more likely to leave a child in a car.

 

[Zaap]

I watch people in the mall/store and see a portion of them get so caught up in what they're doing that they lose all track of their children so it's no wonder that these are the people more likely to leave a child in a car.

I'd bet anything that exactly NONE of those people just wander out of the post office minus thier kids and go about their merry way for HOURS before remembering they have kids and that they just freaking abandoned them. Atleast none of them without some other underlying mental disorder.

But simply because a car is involved? Hey, it could happen to anyone, no biggie.

 

[Matt1970]

Matt the science shows that it is exactly the same as forgetting your keys or phones in these circumstances.

If you have a prefrontal cortex and basal ganglia, in the right circumstances you are susceptible to forgetting in the same way as these poor folks.

In my opinion a responsible parent acknowledges the possibility while irresponsible parents deny the possibility to feel better about themselves.

It's absolute nonsense to say the brain can just as easily forget where your car keys are as it can that your kid is in a car with you. The brain will prioritize them completely different.

 

[Zaap]

LOL. Forgeting *WHERE* your car keys are is hardly the same as forgetting you *HAVE* car keys and a car in the first place.

The day someone finds themselves on the way to work ON FOOT in the middle of the 405 freeway because they forgot their car was in the garage... that's the day those levels of "forgetfullness" equate.

 

[Matt1970]

LOL. Forgeting *WHERE* your car keys are is hardly the same as forgetting you *HAVE* car keys and a car in the first place.

The day someone finds themselves on the way to work ON FOOT in the middle of the 405 freeway because they forgot their car was in the garage... that's the day those levels of "forgetfullness" equate.

Or when they forget they even have a job.

 

[Zaap]

I would submit anyone that feels they are capable of forgetting they have a child with them (over a long enoigh period of time as it would take to bake one in a car) as if it had no more significance to them as a pack of gum....the responsible thing is actually don't have kids, and dont ever offer to take responsibility alone for other peoples kids either. In fact, don't ever put yourself in a position of sole responsibility over any other human being's life. Theres something wrong with a mind that disgards people as easily as inanimate objects... regardless if another narcissistic person on the internet told you it was normal because they read an article that they thought said it was.

 

[Paratus]

I would submit that anyone who is narcissistic enough to feel "it can't happen to me because.." should avoid having children because they are an accident waiting to happen.

 

[Zaap]

LOL! From the guy whose genius equates "forgetting about a useless stretch of 20 minutes of a routine drive = the same as forgetting you have your infant with you and abandoning them to die while you selfishly go about other things for hours."

 

[Londo_Jowo]

I would submit that anyone who is narcissistic enough to feel "it can't happen to me because.." should avoid having children because they are an accident waiting to happen.

What about those of us that have had 3 children and never expefienced this issue? My youngest is 17 so I had to place my son in the back seat facing the rear as well.

 

[Paratus]

LOL! From the guy whose genius equates "forgetting about a useless stretch of 20 minutes of a routine drive = the same as forgetting you have your infant with you and abandoning them to die while you selfishly go about other things for hours."

lol

It seems like you take it personally. That it's possible to fuck up and hurt a kid.

See Zaap the way I've been trained is that responsible people make appropriate efforts to reduce risk. The ones who don't, the ones who ignore data end up fucking up.

If the verbal diarrhea you been spewing here is to show you aren't a fuck up, well you can't even summarize the science in the articles correctly.....

I've never left my children anywhere dangerous because I'm mindful of the small risk of that happening. I don't particulary care what you think on the subject. I just hope you take responsibility for any kids you may have.

 

[Zaap]

I've never left my children anywhere dangerous because...

...your brain doesn't classify them in the same category as a pack of gum, to be instantly forgotten and then 'remembered' hours later after you've baked them in a car/left them to drown/abandoned them on a street corner/on a bus/in a mall, etc.

There wasn't any real precaution you had to take against any of these things, you're just into making excuses for people who have some disorder that would allow them to, or worse, provide excuses for people who've done it on purpose. (Like the recent POS who actually researched it before doing it.)

 

[Paratus]

What about those of us that have had 3 children and never expefienced this issue? My youngest is 17 so I had to place my son in the back seat facing the rear as well.

I have three kids too. My youngest is four and should be able to get herself out of her car seat by herself in another 6 months. I have never experienced the issue either, (forgetting my kid was in the car.)

I have made wrong turns before. If the family was in the car and my wife was talking to me, I had been working the night shift that week, and we were making a right onto the highway instead of left I'd autopilot into the left turn lane. Left was the direction we'd go 95% of the time.

My wife and I do little things to make sure she doesn't get left. If our morning routine is screwed up we'll send a quick text to the other checking to make sure our youngest was dropped off at day care. My daughter and I play word games in the car since she's learning to read.

Being aware of possible ways your children can be hurt makes you a more responsible parent than denying its a possibility.

 

[Paratus]

...your brain doesn't classify them in the same category as a pack of gum, to be instantly forgotten and then 'remembered' hours later after you've baked them in a car/left them to drown/abandoned them on a street corner/on a bus/in a mall, etc.

There wasn't any real precaution you had to take against any of these things, you're just into making excuses for people who have some disorder that would allow them to, or worse, provide excuses for people who've done it on purpose. (Like the recent POS who actually researched it before doing it.)

Other than the precautions I mentioned above.

At work we have an error database we fill out I'd we screw up, even if the screw up results in no impact. We even fill it out if we screw up during training.

Even with years of training and potential loss of life and billions in hardware on the line people still make errors. We were over 99.9% accurate last quarter with no impacts yet there were still errors made. The same reasons show up again and again. Tired, rushed, and distracted people make mistakes.

If you think it's not likely to happen to you becuse it's a small risk
I'd agree

If you think it's not likely to happen because you are already mindful of the risks. I'd say great.

If you think it can't happen because you can't make a mistake, I'd say you are full of shit.


People who knowingly leave their children in a car are a whole other ball game.

Leave your child for five minutes or less is fine with me. It's not a good idea because your likely to have folks calling the cops, but at least in Texas it's legal.

Leave your kid in the car for an hour in August so you can get your hair done and it's jail time.

 

[pcgeek11]

when were you a young man?

as mentioned, this phenomena was pretty much non-existent until the mid 90's when safety standards were changed mandating that car seats be both in the back seat and facing away from the driver, which prevents the driver from actually seeing the infant.

Long before that... I will be 60 in a few months.

Sounds like a rear facing car seat is more dangerous than a car wreck.

 

[Blanky]

I will never understand the idea of "forgetting" your infant is in the car. A normal, responsible parent simply *can't* just forget the presence of their own infant children when it's their turn to take care of them.

I'm willing to entertain the idea that in a perfect storm of mistakes it being an accident is possible...

...but it's just so damn far-fetched that it defies belief.

Assuming you don't yet have kids, it's quite likely you'll have a more sympathetic view in time. It's almost surprising to me more kids aren't left in cars. If you have the same routine day after day and then for some reason it's changed one day and you have to drop your kid off at day care, but he falls asleep on the way, and day care is on the way to work, you end up forgetting about even dropping him off. You get to work, park car, grab your stuff, and you've had a big project on your mind all month you simply forget he's there.

Plenty of otherwise good, attentive parents can have this happen, because they have. I'm sure the numbers do trend toward idiots in general, but it's not unreasonable to expect some decent people to forget their kids in the back.

 

[MrPickins]

Long before that... I will be 60 in a few months.

Sounds like a rear facing car seat is more dangerous than a car wreck.

You're letting the media fool you.

This is a very rare occurrence, especially compared to auto accidents. It just gets plastered all over the news when it does happen.

 

[Cozarkian]

I would submit that anyone who is narcissistic enough to feel "it can't happen to me because.." should avoid having children because they are an accident waiting to happen.

I don't have kids, but I do have a dachshund who sometimes wants to go on a trip so bad that I allow him to ride in the car when running errands. He curls up quietly in the back seat and makes no more noise than a sleeping baby. He is also smaller than a car seat and not visible in the rear view mirror. In short, he should be easier to forget than a baby.

Nonetheless, not once have I ever failed to remember my dog was in the car and to crack a window. Not once when shopping have I ever forgotten that my dog is in the car and I need to keep the trip very short. Not once have I ever failed to consider that it was starting to get warmer and it wasn't safe to leave the dog in the car anymore so I need to go home.

I'm pretty sure I couldn't forget my baby is in the car.

 

[MrPickins]

I'm pretty sure I couldn't forget my baby is in the car.

We all feel infallible until we are shown that we are not.

 

[moonbogg]

I'm pretty sure I couldn't forget my baby is in the car.

Because your brain is reliable, right? Is this the same brain that has no idea what it was thinking about 5 minutes ago, or will think about 5 minutes from now? You already considered lying in response, didn't you? You were about to claim you know EXACTLY what you were thinking about 5 minutes ago. I'm here to tell you that you got no idea what you were thinking 5 minutes ago, and that pile of goop in your dry ass skull is perfectly capable of forgetting about a baby in the back of your car, resulting in a baby BBQ, 4 door sedan style.