Parents Deemed Unfit Because Their Kid is 'Fat'

A third grader in Cleveland was yanked from his family and stuffed into foster care (who get paid for taking in children, bu have no parental connection or bond) because the child was deemed 'obese', and was found to be suffering from sleep apnea.

The mom was called 'unfit' and acused of child neglect, despite seeking medical care for the child.  She was ORDERED to participate in a weight loss program, and was actively seeking help, but was still considered unfit to be a mom.

There are some problems with this logic;

1. Mom is actively seeking medical help for her child, so how is this neglect?
2. While in foster care, the kid didn't improve, so he was returned to his family,
3. The act of ripping kids from their real families and placing them in a strangers home (something we are taught as kids is to be avoided) isn't considered to be harmful at all,
4. It does not appear that any kind of workup for genetic disposition to obesity was done prior to the state taking action.

You can read the article from ABC News HERE.  Let this be a warning - if your kid looks like he or she is packing a few too many pounds, have a good lawyer ready!

Why CPR is Important for Dads: Ballpark Lifesaver

OK, dads: This is why YOU need to learn CPR and first-aid - so YOU can be ready to step in and protect your family in the event that one of your kin is choking to death.

For your consideration, follow the link above to Yahoo Sports and read about Emmanuel Marlow, the ballpark vendor who stepped in and saved a young boy's life, seeking no reward or recognition, and then simply went back to work selling beer to the crowd. 

'Emmanuel' from Hebrew translates to 'God [is] with us' and He certainly was, since NO ONE was doing anything to save the boy until Emmanuel took action, probably due to fear of being sued for assault or injuring the child.  We are all prisoners of our fears, but Mr. Marlow rose above it and did what needed to be done, without fear.

To Quote the article;

"You just never know when a similar situation will play out around you, or even involving someone you love. It's always better to be safe and prepared than to be sorry."

Amen.  And may God Bless Emmanuel Marlow, the unassuming ballpark hero.

Boy Slowly Killed By Parents for Wetting Bed: Dallas Morning News

Jonathan James, age 10, has died.  His guardians, in an effort to 'discipline' the child for bed wetting, locked him in a room in 100+ degree weather and prevented him from drinking even an ounce of water for 5 days!

Follow the LINK for the full story, and photos of parents who, if there's justice in this world, will be spending lots of time locked in a room themselves.

No-Kids-Allowed: Discrimination At Its Core

More and more, businesses are trying to exclude children (and by association, their parents  - who have the spending money) from their establishments.

While on the surface, this may seem like a good idea, until you consider some facts; 1) everyone was a child once, 2) parents represent more of the populace than single adults, 3) there are certain laws that explicitly prohibit discrimination, and most specify that one may not exclude another based on AGE.

I am someone who used to have the 'You kids get off my lawn' attitude before I became a parent, but I never - NEVER - supported excluding children from lawful activities, such as those being restricted based on age in this Yahoo piece.  Movie theatres, supermarkets, airlines are all on the list.  My local theatre had an 'adults only' showing of 'Cars 2' that was on more screens at more times than the 'kid-friendly' shows.

What a bunch of whiny, self-centered, spoiled BRATS we've raised!  No, I don't mean the kids excluded from the fun, I mean the ADULTS that won't share.

Military Dad Giftwraps Himself for His Kids

Welcome home, Dad!

New, Improved Stay-At-Home Dad

The company I work for has chosen to radically minimize expenses, and I have been given the chance to completely close my brick-and-mortar office and work from home full-time. This means that all my interactions between myself and colleagues, customers, vendors, contractors, takes place in my home studio/office/den/multipurpose room, over Skype or webcam.

On the upside there will be no more smoke signals - I have a no-burn ordinance in my neighborhood.

I already had an office at home, and it was a busy one. I take care of the home business, the charities I work for, the occasional voice-over work all from the comfort of the techno-cocoon the family calls 'the back office'. I even 'worked from home' a couple days a week in there as well.

While many would welcome such a work arrangement, I find it most unnerving. Besides having my professional hub of activity for the past decade shut down and stuffed into boxes in my garage, my 'home' i.e. 'back' office is very crowded now, surrounded on ALL sides by computer monitors of various sizes, where only 2 sides were covered before. It is also very hard to separate 'home' life from 'work' life, since they happen in the same space. Not to mention the dog barking at a cat outside while I'm in a teleconference spanning 3 continents. Lacks professionalism somehow.

Nonetheless, here I am, at work, yet on my blog, in sleep pants and a T-shirt, posting away as my son, now 10, stirs and wakes up in his room across the hall on his first official day of summer vacation. He's still at an age where he wants to spend time with me, but old enough to understand when dad is busy and needs to be left alone. For that I am blessed, to be able to spend the summer with him in this way really is a gift disguised as cost containment.

Now if the freakin' dog just had a clue, I could deal with it.

Father Shot By Teen Daughter For Taking Cell Phone

The girl was despondent, and grounded for bad behavior by her father, so she retreats to her room, gets out a hunting bow and shoots her father, landing a solid shot in his torso.  She then goes to him, takes her cell phone back, and prevents dad from using it to call 911.

He crawls out a window, with the arrow still protruding from his body, makes his way to a car and drives 1/3 mile to use the neighbor's phone to call for help.

According to Det. William Adam, a S.W.A.T. team was sent into the forest to find the girl.  She was taken into custody, originally headed for juvenile detention, but apparently is under medical care at this time.

Wow - talk about the hazards of modern-day technology!

You can listen to Det. Adam on KIRO radio HERE.

Mom Is Injecting Poison Into Her Daughter's Face on ABC

Botox, short for 'Botulinum Toxin' is used in adults to mask wrinkles by effectively poisoning the nerves and muscles under the skin.

Kerry Campbell appeared on 'Good Morning America' to try and justify why she was personally taking needle in hand and shooting up her daughter Britney with Botox.

It is no surprise that once the San Francisco area Child Services agencies' call centers were flooded with calls that an 'investigation' was started.  Read the article from SFGate HERE.

Why, you ask, would a mom do this to her child?  To compete in beauty pageants, of course!

UPDATE: 5.20.2011: Yahoo News is reporting that the mom was paid to perpetrate a hoax, akin to the 'Balloon Boy' saga, which landed the dad in JAIL.  If this really was a hoax, mom deserves the same treatment...LOCK HER UP!

SWAT-Style Sweep for Parents of Kids Skipping School

OCRegister.com: Parents, you are now being targeted by local police.  You will be cuffed, your house will be raided by cops with riot gear carrying warrants, and you will be stuffed in the back of a cruiser and hauled in front of a judge if your kid is absent "too many times".

The justification?  You are STEALING from the schools, because if your kids aren't in their seats, the schools lose money.  WHAT ABOUT THE MONEY ALL THIS POLICE "WORK" IS COSTING THE TAXPAYERS?  Don't these school administrators realize that there are some kids whose sole reason for skipping school is to get their parents in trouble?  This is idiotic, an amazing waste of resources, and an outright abuse of police authority.

Go look at the photo gallery at the OCRegister and see for yourself.  I'm not exaggerating.

Teen Drinking Associated with Recreational Computer Use: Study

From NewsWise: Alcohol Use Linked to Time Spent Using a Computer for Non-School-Related Activities, Including the Use of Social Networking Sites, According to New Weill Cornell Study

It seems that if your teen uses Facebook, the odds that your teen is also drinking increases, according to the study.  The sample size was small, but this is one to watch.  It was published in the online journal Addictive Behaviors.  Link to the Cornell release HERE.

Are any parents surprised? 

Moms Lead, Daughters Follow - and Get Skin Cancer

Courtesy of NewsWise: A survey conducted by the American Academy of Dermatology concluded that a large percentage of young Caucasian girls follow in mom's footstep - into the indoor tanning salon.

Use of these tanning beds increase Melanoma risk by 75%, and yet they're still legal?

May is Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention month.  Do someone you know a favor and educate them on just how DEADLY these tanning beds are!

PC Rental Outfit Uses Webcams to Spy On Renters

Daily Tech is reporting that Aaron's used images taken from customer's webcams on PCs they had rented AND PAID OFF IN FULL. A class-action suit is likely to come.

According to the report, Crystal and Brian Byrd of Wyoming had completed their rent-to-own contract, but due to some 'clerical error', the rental outift came to their home, armed with pics taken with the webcam on the laptop they had recently paid off, presumably 'evidence' to the ownership of the machine.

The Byrds, in their statement to the AP, said that their main concern was for the safety of their family. They have small children, and if Aaron's had decided to snap a pic while their kids were getting out of the tub, that could be construed as child porn.

My concern is this: IF the software used to 'spy' on the Byrd's is found to be legal, when does it get de-activated? The software used also logs keystrokes as well, so is Aaron's intending to monitor the customer's web habits as a form of 'leverage'?

BUYER BEWARE! I would suggest that if you buy a PC with a webcam, better wipe the hard disk clean before you use it!

Undercover Survey: Mature Rated Games Hard To Buy

According to cnet.com's blogger Don Reisinger, the stats show that video games rated mature or higher are 'hard' to buy, with 13% of teenagers who were not age-appropriate being able to score the title anyway.

THAT IS NOT HARD TO BUY!! THAT IS EPIC FAIL!!

If any other corporation, regulatory body, or government agency stood up and said, "Hey, only 13% got through - that's a win!" they would be hauled before Congress to answer for themselves!

Link to the original article HERE. Please post your thoughts while I go get a cup of herbal tea and an ice pack to soothe my exploding head.

Breast Milk Ice Cream Pulled from UK Store: NPR

'Baby Gaga' is the name of a new ice cream flavor that went on sale in London last week - and was pulled from stock this week - amid fears of passing on viruses, such as Hepatitis, to the general public.

There is a sign up on the store window of 'The Icecreamist' shop in London, stating that they're sold out. NPR reports that the Westminster Council ordered the product pulled for screening and testing.

The ice cream is made from breast milk obtained from a pool of 15 women responding to an internet ad, flavored with vanilla and a bit of lemon zest.

Ironically, it was two men who complained about the ice cream being available. The store founder was quoted saying "It's pure, it's natural, it's organic, and it's free range — and if it's good enough for our kids, it's good enough to use in our ice cream."

Who can argue with that logic?