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3.4.05 |
| How Do You Like Your Baby? |
| By Keith W. Tyras Romanello 2004: 10.22 10.29 11.5 11.12 11.19 11.26 12.3 12.10 12.17 12.24 12.31 |
| 2005: 1.7 1.14 1.21 1.28 2.4 2.11 2.18 2.25 3.11 3.18 3.25 4.1 4.8 4.15 4.22 4.29 5.6 5.13 5.20 5.27 6.3 6.10 6.17 6.24 7.1 7.8 7.15 7.22 7.29 8.5 8.12 8.19 8.26 9.2 |
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It's not an age-old question. It's probably a question that has never been posed to you before. One of the great things about being Puerto Rican or American or Puerto Rican and American is that we enjoy many freedoms. We have the opportunity to choose. We have the responsibility to make choices. Some of those choices are sometimes life and death decisions. Some people out there seem to like their baby rare. Some seem to like their baby medium-rare. Some seem to like their baby medium. Others, for some reason, seem to like their baby well-done. For me, I always liked my babies -- and everyone's babies -- ALIVE and HEALTHY! Just like I wouldn't leave a $5 bill sitting alone on the seat of my parked, locked car -- I wouldn't leave my baby or child -- regardless of their age -- sitting alone in a parked, locked car with the windows closed. I'm not the smartest guy in the world, that's for sure, but I am smart enough to know when someone else is a moron. Luckily for many, it isn't a crime to be a moron -- UNLESS or UNTIL YOU ENDANGER AND/OR KILL A CHILD. Then it is a crime. A serious crime. I cannot think of ANY crime as stupid as purposely endangering a child. It's SO EASY NOT TO DO IT. When I read about a "mom" from Fajardo leaving her 3-month-old baby in a parked car for 45 minutes while she goes shopping with her sister-in-law OR another "mom" from Fajardo leaving her 3 and 7-year-olds home alone while she went to work in a hospital -- hope she's not a doctor or nurse -- OR a "mom" from Omaha, Nebraska leaving her 17-month-old child alone in a car long enough for him to get his neck jammed in a closing electric window, killing him OR a New Jersey "mom" working out at her local gym who "forgets" her child was left alone in a parked car OR a teenager from Norfolk, Virginia leaving her young brother alone in a parked, locked car OR 2 different women from 2 different cities in Virginia -- on the same day -- leaving 2 children in parked, locked cars with the windows rolled up and the temperatures potentially becoming high enough to fry an egg, I have to think to myself, how unimportant these kids really are to them and what the best way would be to punish and/or teach them NOT to be so stupid in the future. I couldn't believe last year when I read about a doctor in Florida, A DOCTOR!, bringing his young child to work with him, "forgetting" the child was in the car until it was too late. The child was eventually found "well-done," as dead as a baked potato. Was what the doctor did well done? No. It's ALWAYS a real tragedy when a kid dies needlessly. What the media has to do is make these crimes FRONT PAGE stories. Some in the media do sometimes, some never do. If I were in charge of ZONAi.com, I would go a step further and begin a permanent "ZONA Pendejo" section reporting every case of child neglect in Puerto Rico along with the most egregious cases from the United States and elsewhere -- along with CRUCIAL INFORMATION that will educate kids and adults on the correct way to look after their children. Can you imagine if they did begin a section with that title? Many of the same people who do not seem to give a second thought to these moronic crimes against the weakest among us would probably be the first to e-mail and/or call to object to the word "pendejo." Anyway, what the politicians have to do is make it easier to be a parent or a single parent in the year 2005 and at the same time getting the message out to YOUNG PEOPLE that NOT EVERYONE IS SUITED TO BECOME A PARENT or should become a parent unless they can afford a child, effectively raise a child and/or WANT THE CHILD. Kids need a safe place to be 24/ 7. If a parent is unable to care for their child during any part of the day or night, they need someone to help them or they need a place where they can bring them, regardless of their ability to pay for such care. There is absolutely NO EXCUSE to neglect a child nor is there an EXCUSE to not do everything possible to insure those at risk are PROTECTED. A quick visit to the NATIONAL SAFE KIDS CAMPAIGN website provides some great information that either you or someone you know can benefit from reading. Some of the information below (shown in gray) comes directly from the website. This information should be made available in English and Spanish to every student in every grade in every school throughout Puerto Rico and the United States. It should be made available for every pregnant woman or expecting couple. It should be made available in the form of PSAs shown in print, on the Internet, in movie theaters, on TV and radio. Here's a sample of what I believe everyone at some point in their life should know . . . Heat/Entrapment Parents running quick errands may think their cars will remain cool, but even on mild days temperatures inside vehicles can rise to dangerous levels in minutes. A young child’s core body temperature can increase three to five times faster than that of an adult, causing permanent injury or death. The family car parked in the driveway can also be dangerous. Unlocked cars pose serious risks to children who are naturally curious and often lack fear. Once they crawl in, young children don't have the developmental capability to get out. One-third of the heat-related deaths in 2000 occurred when children crawled into unlocked cars while playing and became trapped. Protecting Your Family From Heat - Never leave your child in an unattended car, even with the windows down - Check to make sure all children leave the vehicle when you reach your destination, particularly when loading and unloading. Don't overlook sleeping infants - Make sure you check the temperature of the child safety seat surface and safety belt buckles before restraining your children in the car - Use a light covering to shade the seat of your parked car. Consider using windshield shades in front and back windows. Protecting Your Family From Trunk Entrapment - Teach children not to play in or around cars - Keep car keys out of reach and sight - Always lock car doors and trunks, especially when parked in the driveway or near the home - Keep the rear fold-down seats closed to help prevent kids from getting into the trunk from inside the car - Be wary of child-resistant locks. Teach older children how to disable the driver’s door locks if they unintentionally become entrapped in a motor vehicle - Contact your automobile dealership about getting your vehicle retrofitted with a trunk release mechanism - If your child gets locked inside a car, get him out and dial 9-1-1 or your local emergency number immediately Protecting Communities The National SAFE KIDS Campaign and General Motors have a national public awareness campaign to inform parents and caregivers about the dangers of leaving children unattended in vehicles, particularly on warm days. Never Leave Your Child Alone is a brochure available in PDF format in English and Spanish that includes sobering facts about heat-related deaths to children trapped in cars and safety tips on how to protect your family. This brochure will be distributed to the public by more than 300 state and local SAFE KIDS coalitions and thousands of General Motors dealerships. Several states have enacted laws designed to protect children from being left unattended in motor vehicles. Legislative solutions include establishing penalties for leaving a child alone in a car. Please note that even if a state does not have a specific law prohibiting adults from leaving children unattended, state and local prosecutors have the discretion to charge adults criminally under existing child endangerment laws. Important information from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on the subject of Motor Vehicle Trunk Entrapment can be found online. General Motors also has information on their website as does T.R.U.N.C., "Trunc Releases Urgently Needed Coalition." Puerto Rico SAFE KIDS is led by PUERTO RICO SAFE KIDS, INC. coordinator Anita Rivera. Ms. Rivera can be reached at 787.448.5139 or by e-mail at arpran@prtc.net. You can also visit the PUERTO RICO SAFE KIDS CAMPAIGN website -- it's in Spanish. I've been writing to SAFE KIDS now for about 4 or 5 years on a variety of subjects and have never one time received a return e-mail from anyone. Maybe you'll have better luck. DON'T LIVE IN PUERTO RICO? There's a SAFE KIDS in all 50 States and Washington, D.C. -- just visit The National SAFEKIDS Campaign. DON'T LIVE IN THE UNITED STATES? There are SAFE KIDS throughout the world in Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, Israel, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Philippines, South Africa, UAE, Uganda and Vietnam -- just visit SAFE KIDS WORLDWIDE. DON'T LIVE IN THIS WORLD? Chances are fairly good that someone left you in a parked, locked car with the windows rolled up when you were very young.
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EL NUEVO DÍA I PRIMERA HORA I VOLANDO ALTO I ZONAi I VIDA DIGITAL I PR WOW I CIBER PAPI