Madeleine McCann allegedly abducted in Portugal (2) The press apologise.

[denlin]

Would not any of us in the same unfortunate situation try to do the same?

 

Well I would think most parents wouldn't have left three children of that age alone in this country never mind abroad, they are supposedly educated people but have little common sense. I reserve all my sympathy for Maddie

[Wildcat]

The condemnation of the abductor goes without saying, and is clearly not the point of this discussion. If it was, I'm betting it would be very short, and we would all agree...

 

...which leaves the outstanding issue of whether the parents acted appropriately...

 

...which is what we are debating...

 

They acted lawfully. The risk they took in a gated resort with regular checks not so abnormal. But in retrospect obviously a mistake, because of the consequences.

 

I don't really see what more there is to be said on the subject.

 

I think what is of interest is the motivation of those that feel the need to blame the parents, and deny them any sympathy. On the face of it, it is an astonishing lack of empathy, but you suspect from capitals often used to make their points and the emotive language used they are making their points from a deeply emotional perspective.

 

I think it is more interesting to see this reaction in context with the decline in freedoms children have had over the last 50 years from once being able to roam freely unsupervised playing in parks and on the streets to today where children are kept in doors and supervised and nannied to an opposite extreme. I worry we aren't storing up dysfunctional problems for the future by denying children the play and freedom we once experienced.

 

Perhaps the Psychology lecturer on the thread might like to comment on the history of parenting in this regard and suggest some reading material and studies on the topic that would inform the debate.

[teddie]

I asked this before, but it obviously got lost.. has any one a comment about katherine Gaspars witness statement?

[Dick]

I'd say it's most unlikely she's still alive.

Unless some nutter's kept her locked up in a room all this time, in view of the large amounts of reward money for information about her, if she was still around someone would have come forward by now.

Never leave children alone out of sight, especially in foreign parts.

same thing happened to Ben Needham.

[denlin]

I think it would be interesting to see this reaction in context with the decline in freedoms children have had over the last 50 years from once being able to roam freely unsupervised playing in parks and on the streets to today where children are kept in doors and supervised and nannied to an opposite extreme. I worry we aren't storing up dysfunctional problems for the future by denying children the play and freedom we once experienced.

 

That is because they are so many evil <REMOVED> out there and children aren't safe anymore like they were when we were growing up. Sad but true

[teenyweeny]

I asked this before, but it obviously got lost.. has any one a comment about katherine Gaspars witness statement?

 

 

have you got a link for this or can you ellaborate on here what you mean.

[harvey19]

I asked this before, but it obviously got lost.. has any one a comment about katherine Gaspars witness statement?

If I did see it I can't remember what it contained.

Could you enlighten me please.

[teddie]

have you got a link for this or can you ellaborate on here what you mean.

 

It is in the British Police files and also the Potuguese files, so common knowledge, unless people are just commenting on what they have read in the Daily Mail Or Sun! (Ohh that scares me!!)

[harvey19]

It is in the British Police files and also the Potuguese files, so common knowledge, unless people are just commenting on what they have read in the Daily Mail Or Sun! (Ohh that scares me!!)

Or the Express and that really scares me.

[Eater Sundae]

They acted lawfully. The risk they took in a gated resort with regular checks not so abnormal. But in retrospect obviously a mistake, because of the consequences.

 

I don't really see what more there is to be said on the subject.

 

I think what is of interest is the motivation of those that feel the need to blame the parents, and deny them any sympathy. On the face of it, it is an astonishing lack of empathy, but you suspect from capitals often used to make their points and the emotive language used they are making their points from a deeply emotional perspective.

 

I think it is more interesting to see this reaction in context with the decline in freedoms children have had over the last 50 years from once being able to roam freely unsupervised playing in parks and on the streets to today where children are kept in doors and supervised and nannied to an opposite extreme. I worry we aren't storing up dysfunctional problems for the future by denying children the play and freedom we once experienced.

 

Perhaps the Psychology lecturer on the thread might like to comment on the history of parenting in this regard and suggest some reading material and studies on the topic that would inform the debate.

 

Re my bold. I am not familiar with Portuguese law, however, I remember that many people have claimed that leaving young children alone is specifically illegal there.