I must rant because I held in my anger earlier

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Gabrielm80
Gabrielm80 Posts: 1,458 Member
in Motivation and Support
I went to the gym earlier, but forgot my shorts. Which wasn't a big deal because I barely fit in my XXL gym shorts anymore. Perfect excuse to leave head down a block to a sporting goods store and buy a pair that doesn't feel like its about to fall off. As I was leavin two cute kids in their car waved and said hi to me. I didn't think anything of it. Went to the store bought the shorts came back. Took 20 minutes give or take. Running back in passing same car and I hear, "hi" in a little voice again. It was than I noticed these kids where waiting in the car as their parent worked out. The AC wasn't running, but the windows were down. Now this is Texas and cars here get hot real fast. So hot people for fun have baked cookies on their dash boards. And these kids were young. One looked younger than my 3 year old the other seemed to be 4 maybe 5. Texas has laws about leaving children in the car unattended due to the fact we have children baked to death every year. When I see these deaths on the news I always wonder how does that happen. Haven't everyone in town seen atleast one news story of a toddler dying in the car due to over heating? The funny thing is the gym has free child care, yes free. I usually mind my own business but I reported this to the gym and suddenly every manager present stormed the parking lot to care for the kids. Once they were on it I minded my own business and didn't call the cops myself. I did notice the children happily playing with my daughter in the day care when I picked up my youngest so atleast the kids were no longer left in the car. I am hoping that this was a wake up call. I was so close to calling the police I am still shaking at 4 am stressing over it.
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Replies

  • PlayerHatinDogooder
    PlayerHatinDogooder Posts: 1,018 Member
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    Some people just shouldn't have kids . . .

    Still sounds like you did the right thing.
  • jfauci
    jfauci Posts: 531 Member
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    You definitely did the right thing!! I would have called the police too. Some people are too dumb for words.
  • Gabrielm80
    Gabrielm80 Posts: 1,458 Member
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    I have gotten people in trouble before over moral issues and have always felt guilty afterwords. Like catching an old lady stealing soup when I worked as a food stocker. I really hate to be the reason someone's life gets flipped upside down even when it was their fault but I lack a shred of guilt over this. I think even if I did call the police I wouldn't of thought twice afterwords. I know I was right, one of the few certainties in my life.
  • SkimFlatWhite68
    SkimFlatWhite68 Posts: 1,254 Member
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    You absolutely did the right thing! That is disgraceful parenting and the parent should be charged.
  • hhayes06
    hhayes06 Posts: 189 Member
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    You absolutely did the right thing and next time (because there will be a next time) don't hesitate to call the police yourself. I think all states have laws against leaving young children in cars by themselves, endangering a child and all. I have been working when we have been called out to a gym where a woman had accidently locked her 1 and 3 year old in her car and we broke a window ( I work dispatch for a police department). In this case the mom called us herself but we get calls more often than I like about kids in cars outside grocery stores. It's a sad thing in this day when people will purposely leave thier young children alone in a car out of convienence for themselves. :explode:
  • Alta2000
    Alta2000 Posts: 655 Member
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    You did the right thing. You would have felt worse if something had happened to the children and you have not done anything. Personally I would have called the police. A visit by child services would have really shaken the parent to start thinking about his/her children's needs, because if they have done it for the gym they must have done similar actions elsewhere.
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
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    You have to do that. Thank you, they could be dead now! :flowerforyou:
  • SusanaLdn
    SusanaLdn Posts: 121 Member
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    I have gotten people in trouble before over moral issues and have always felt guilty afterwords. Like catching an old lady stealing soup when I worked as a food stocker. I really hate to be the reason someone's life gets flipped upside down even when it was their fault but I lack a shred of guilt over this. I think even if I did call the police I wouldn't of thought twice afterwords. I know I was right, one of the few certainties in my life.

    I would never tell on an old lady stealing canned soup, people go through terrible difficulties. Maybe if she was stealing whisky I'd let her know I had seen it and asked her directly to put it back. Now in this particular case, I think you did the only thing these was to do. Calling the police would probably mean the kids could be taken into custody which, lets be reasonable, would be psychologically worse for the kids than being left in a car with the windows down. I think you did the right thing.
  • LeanneGoingThin
    LeanneGoingThin Posts: 215 Member
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    I have gotten people in trouble before over moral issues and have always felt guilty afterwords. Like catching an old lady stealing soup when I worked as a food stocker. I really hate to be the reason someone's life gets flipped upside down even when it was their fault but I lack a shred of guilt over this. I think even if I did call the police I wouldn't of thought twice afterwords. I know I was right, one of the few certainties in my life.

    I would never tell on an old lady stealing canned soup, people go through terrible difficulties. Maybe if she was stealing whisky I'd let her know I had seen it and asked her directly to put it back. Now in this particular case, I think you did the only thing these was to do. Calling the police would probably mean the kids could be taken into custody which, lets be reasonable, would be psychologically worse for the kids than being left in a car with the windows down. I think you did the right thing.
    I doubt the kids would be taken into custody. They might monitor the parents though.
  • Microfiber
    Microfiber Posts: 956 Member
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    I have gotten people in trouble before over moral issues and have always felt guilty afterwords. Like catching an old lady stealing soup when I worked as a food stocker.

    Near Christmas, I saw a man stuff a frozen turkey down his t-shirt. I didn't report him as wondered if he had a family to feed. Nicking a tin of soup is not the same as leaving kids locked in a car.
  • Sandytoes71
    Sandytoes71 Posts: 463 Member
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    Not only could they die from the heat, they could get abducted or get out of the car and get hurt etc... Good job not letting it go. I'm feeling alittle sad about the soup bandit :) though.
  • SusanaLdn
    SusanaLdn Posts: 121 Member
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    I have gotten people in trouble before over moral issues and have always felt guilty afterwords. Like catching an old lady stealing soup when I worked as a food stocker.

    Near Christmas, I saw a man stuff a frozen turkey down his t-shirt. I didn't report him as wondered if he had a family to feed. Nicking a tin of soup is not the same as leaving kids locked in a car.

    Yep :flowerforyou:
  • Oishii
    Oishii Posts: 2,675 Member
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    You definitely did the right thing.

    I hope the parent responsible is getting some help too. I can't imagine what would make someone put their fitness above the safety of their own children, especially when there was free childcare available, but it doesn't sound like what a mentally stable individual would do.
  • kelly101386
    kelly101386 Posts: 389 Member
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    Absolutely appalling!! Thank God you noticed and did something about it by alerting the management!
  • roxylola
    roxylola Posts: 540 Member
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    Why would anyone do that especially with free child care.

    You might feel a little guilt for ratting on the parent but that is nothing compared to what you would feel if you had come out from your workout and found paramedics trying to resuscitate the kids.
  • Kreider86
    Kreider86 Posts: 105 Member
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    I work in an childsupport office.. and SO many people should just be sterilized. Thank you for getting those kids out of the heat. :flowerforyou:
  • mizzie1980
    mizzie1980 Posts: 379 Member
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    Not only could they die from the heat, they could get abducted or get out of the car and get hurt etc...

    That's what I was thinking! The OP said the windows were down, so the kids probably wouldn't have died from the heat, but if the windows were down, even a crack, someone could easily get in there and kidnap them.

    OP, you did the right thing, for sure! Here's hoping the parents get at least a wake up call from this.
  • SDkitty
    SDkitty Posts: 446 Member
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    When I was younger I worked a home depot as a cashier and someone who was in the store for a long time buying remodeling supplies had left a toddler in the car seat in the car in the summer in San Diego, I told my manager who consequently called the cops when the person didn't come to the front of the store when called over the intercom. They ended up breaking into the car to get the kid out. And THEN the person came out eyes blazing. Frelling people. UGh.
  • crista_b
    crista_b Posts: 1,192 Member
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    The parent in that situation disgusts me! :explode: I know that people don't really have room to comment on another's parenting style/choices in a lot of situations, but this is not one. That is a bad parent.

    I'm glad you did something, and I'm especially glad that the gym managers took care of it right away. Sometimes you report something to managers, and they seem to kind of wave it off because it's "not their responsibility". Good on you and the managers here! You probably just saved some young lives. :flowerforyou:
  • yanniejannie
    yanniejannie Posts: 1,090 Member
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    I would have called the police............there is NO excuse or justification for leaving those kids in the car and the parent richly deserved a trip through the justice system........more than likely the kids would have been placed with a relative, but even if they entered the foster care emergency placement system, is there ANY question in your mind that they would not have been better off? Death by heat exhaustion/dehydration ain't pretty.

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