Madeleine McCann

[etccarmageddon]

Originally Posted by Saaf_laandon_mo

...two irresponsible and selfish parents who left their kids at home alone without taking any precautions to prevent anything whatsoever happening to them. What if they had fallen down the stairs, what if there was a fire, what if one of the kids woke up crying distressed from a nightmare. There were no adults present whatsoever in a villa/apartment where 3 under 5s were asleep. Now thats disgusting behaviour.

Like Gazzae says, if this had been a single parent she would have been vilified in the press, there would be fingers pointing at her for being stupid, people would be saying her kids should be taken into care because she cant be responsible for them.

I agree. If they can afford a holiday then they can afford proper child care.

Originally Posted by slug

Got to say I feel the same way as zinglebarb. Why was it so wrong to suggest last week that the parents were partly to blame, but this week its ok to say she is dead.

it's ok to suggest she's dead but I think not appropriate to use language like 'in a ditch'.

[Xaccers]

How do you go about getting child care in the late evening in a foreign country?

[gazzae]

Originally Posted by Xaccers

How do you go about getting child care in the late evening in a foreign country?

Use the resorts facilities or if they are not available then stay in.

Originally Posted by Chris T

Yep, you got it. Except the bit about 'you' and 'me'. I'm talking about what I think is reasonably sensitive and what is not when discussing fresh issues like this, not passing comment on any individual posts.



Sorry but that's just not true. I've taken the trouble to have a quick skim over all of your posts in the entire thread - and all of those by Mick and Paul as well. They certainly made their views known quite forcefully (and I understand why), but I don't see any evidence of you feeling 'gagged'. You have given as good as you got throughout this discussion and nothing any member of the team has said to you in the thread has caused you to stop.

---------- Post added at 11:30 ---------- Previous post was at 11:30 ----------



Not a problem.

Im sorry but as of late ive had the impression its "Do as we say or else" ive tried to discuss how I feel and have just been blocked

[Jules]

Originally Posted by Xaccers

How do you go about getting child care in the late evening in a foreign country?

The resort offered a baby sitting service which they chose not to use



2 weeks today since she went missing

[Osem]

Got to agree - very very odd that IMO. A toddler and 2 babies left alone when facilities were available. Even a baby monitor would have given some warning - we used one all the time when our kids were smaller. Can't understand it myself.

[etccarmageddon]

Originally Posted by gazzae

Use the resorts facilities or if they are not available then stay in.

or take a nanny on hol with you.

Originally Posted by gazzae

I can't help thinking that if it had been a single mum on benefits who left her kid at home while she went out then there would be a lot more people criticising her.

its all to do with image and nothing to do with opinion. People want to be seen to be compassionate and just generally good eggs its all front. I bet 99% of peoples first gut reaction was wtf were they doing on there own. I expressed my view I dont care if im liked or not . I wont hide what I think just in case others think bad of me for it

[Russ]

I would have thought most people's initial reaction would have been more along the lines of ''imagine the personal hell they must be going through'' rather than looking for someone to blame but as you say, it's a matter of opinion.

When I first saw the video of her playing I cried. I feel for Maddy. But the hell they are going through changes nothing about the event and the message should be broadcast loud and clear and that is dont leave your kids like this.
I still cant get over the facts of this case. 3 children under the age of 4 were left alone in a locked apartment anything can happen this time something did .Its hell but for educated parents they were plain stupid

If this forum has any influence on anyone then it should be used to get the message accross that leaving young children alone is bad. I was fronted with we should concentrate on finding maddy. How many on this forum has gone to help search????? how many have done anything more than buy a ribbon???? how helpful has the member ship been?????????
(except for the one guys whos organisation has added to the reward)

[Saaf_laandon_mo]

Originally Posted by Russ B

I would have thought most people's initial reaction would have been more along the lines of ''imagine the personal hell they must be going through'' rather than looking for someone to blame but as you say, it's a matter of opinion.

Most people Ive spoken to said their first initial reaction was "wtf were their paretns thinking off leaving them alone"

[Russ]

As I said, it's a matter of opinion. Most people I've spoken to are more concerned about what the parents must be going through.

[Osem]

Fortunately most parents go through their lives relatively trouble free and never experience anything like this whether it's losing a child through illness or worse. I'm not an advocate of paranoia but I do think that parents can be a tad blase when it comes to the welfare of their children, sometimes forgetting just how precious they are. Our youngest goes to a special school. Several of his fellow pupils have sadly died in the time he's been there and indeed, we've nearly lost him twice in his relatively short life. This experience has affected us greatly and whilst we realise that we can't look over him 24/7 we're far more aware of possible dangers and situations in which he might be vulnerable. Whilst it's not a recipe for a carefree life, it's what we have to do in order to protect him as best we can. The thing that should come out of this awful situation is that parents in general need to be a bit more aware of the dangers which surround us. This does NOT mean sacrificing all our most enjoyable pursuits and locking our children away but it does mean taking a little more responsibility for those we cherish the most, especially when they're at their most vulnerable.

We all hope this little girl is found safe and well but we must also hope that this event will serve as a warning to others and thereby reduce the likelihood of it happening again.

We all have our fingers crossed for a happy ending to this.

[orangebird]

Originally Posted by Saaf_laandon_mo

Most people Ive spoken to said their first initial reaction was "wtf were their paretns thinking off leaving them alone"

Yep, that was my (and my husbands) first reaction too.

[Saaf_laandon_mo]

I think some people are of the opinion that you cant feel for the parents AND also apportion some blame to them. From my point of view both can and should apply.
Also by discussing their irresponsibility it will deter (hopefully) other parents from leaving their kids alone in the same manner.
I for one would be happy that social services make an issue of this when they come back to the UK.
Before any one accuses me of being heartless, if Maddie had fallen down the stairs and broken her legs for example, most people would agree with me.
The fact that she was abducted is a lot more serious/worrying/different than falling down the stairs, but the degree of irresponsibility from the parents has been truly shockingly stupid.