More on safer playtime

ELuv's Big Mouth has posted some facts (and his opinion) about giving kids more playtime, and it is worth a read, since I was too lazy to look up the statistics myself.

Although I fundamentally agree with Eric, that American children are generally safer now, then when we were kids, the problem remains that the media tries to show that we are not safer. By highlighting and exploiting single events, then trying to demonstrate that these tragedies could happen anywhere anytime, and you are not immune, the media is preying on the average parents fear. It is sad when in fact the exact opposite is true, children are safer today and most of these situations have a very low likely hood of actually occurring again.

These stories makes good copy and maybe a compelling human interest story, but that is all they should be considered. Unfortunately most people eat this crap right up, and the ratings show I am correct. The media force feeds the perception that locking our kids inside, managing every minute of their day is the only can we keep them safe, and this is simply not true. (And by being inside, the children can continue to be force fed the crap that media is pushing, which further validates the new circle of life.)

Listen, tragedies happen and it is the responsibility of every parent and care giver to keep their children out of harms way, and teach them how to protect themselves. We also have another larger responsibility not to buy into the crap that the media peddles and take everything they say with a grain of salt, and ask yourself, how realistic is this scenario likely to play out in my home, in my neighborhood, or city? Because once you put a reality check, then we might not act like lemmings and start to say, that is crazy and does not make any sense, but maybe it does have some entertainment value, and that is all!!