Baby Fence

[PoolDoc]

Knowledgeable people differ passionately about what 'appropriate' or 'reasonable' levels of care and risk should be for small children. This always makes it a difficult topic to discuss . . . it's hard not to feel that someone who disagrees with you is acting in a way that's immoral.

But, the reality is that parents have to have the right to use their own best judgement about their own children. And this right inevitably means that they have to have the right to make mistakes -- including some serious ones -- with their own kids. People sometimes find themselves wanting to disagree with this idea; the tendency is to say, "Well, somebody ought to do something!"

The problem is that the only "somebody" left is the government. Forgive me for being political for a moment, but I believe that the both the old Soviet Union and Hitler's Nazi regime tried that approach, with results that were nothing short of horrifying. And, everyone I know who's seen the 'foster care' system up close and personal has concluded that even some pretty awful homes are better, on the average, than foster care! (And that's not a criticism of foster care: I'm not sure that there's an alternative in some cases of abuse or neglect. I'm just saying that the 'solution', while sometimes necessary, is itself often pretty horrible by its very nature.)

So, unless you want to advocate that governments should assume the responsibilty for child care, a la Brave New World or worse, 1984, you have to let parents make their own imperfect judgements. Personally, though I grew up around large aggressive dogs, I'd never have a pit bull. But, I believe that responsible parents have made judgements on that topic that they have the right, and responsibility, to make even though I disagree.

Just how safe pools should be made is a similar topic.

In the past, I've often told here how important I think it is to watch children constantly when they are in the water. I know that many parents don't have the knowledge that I do about how fast small children can drown. But, I still tend to feel that such parents -- and they are many; I see them by the dozens every summer -- are acting irresponsibly. But I don't think they should be arrested: I believe they have the right, and responsibility, to make decisions for their children. And I know, that in the real world, that includes decisions that I disagree with, and which I think are seriously mistaken.

I think this thread was drifting past providing information, toward arguing what which way was best. For the reasons I mentioned above, I don't think that's a really fruitful direction.

So, in my very own dictatorial way, I'm leaving the information, locking the thread, and letting the parents involved make their own decisions -- right or wrong, as the case may be.

Sincerely,

Ben
PoolDoc