On Fri, 28 Mar 2008 18:54:29 GMT, Palindrome wrote:
> Believe me, I RESENT the look I get from chav mums when their
>> kids jump on the bus and rush to the back where I like to sit. Their
>> mums take one look down the bus, see an old codger, and the look that
>> comes over their faces is set in pre-vigilante mode as they yell to
>> their kids to come back down the front. This used not to be the case
>> in Britain. How many milliseconds would a mum let a stranger merely
>> talk to her child before dragging the child away? Could an adult even
>> dare to speak to a kid who is apparently lost in the street or in a
>> large store?
>Everyone is now much more risk-aware than they ever were.
Except that the awareness is mainly about perceived risks rather than
the real risks. The old codger at the back of the bus is *extremely*
unlikely to abuse any kids sitting beside him even if he *were* a
raging paedophile - especially if there are any adults on the same
bus. Sure, it *can* happen, but the probability is very low - nothing
to worry about. The real danger is *far* more likely to come from
someone both the parent and child know and have come to trust.
>A man on his own was a rarity. Men worked until they died. A child would
>only see them at work, or with their family at church. Oh, you might see
>them on holiday, but always with their wife in tow.
I disagree. Unaccompanied fishermen along a riverbank or pier of a
weekend were not a rarity at all, and nor were retired gentlemen
sitting on benches along the promenade. Then there were the
gamekeepers and other men in outdoor occupations who were not unknown
to have a child or two tagging along as they went about their work, if
they were ameniable to it.
--
Cynic
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