jenpace
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2005
Seriously. As a full-time stay-at-home dad, I'm finding all of the suggestions to find a mom with kids irritating and more than a touch sexist. I'd know exactly what to do with a lost kid, and am extremely adept at interacting with unfamiliar kids if they look like they need some kind of help.
I've always told my kids to find a mom if they get lost as opposed to a dad or parent. This is recommended by Gavin De Becker, an expert on personal safety and author of 'The Gift of Fear'.
"Teach your child to go to a woman if she is lost.
Why? First, if your child selects a woman, its highly unlikely that the woman will be a sexual predator. Next, a woman approached by a lost child asking for help is likely to stop whatever she is doing, get down to the kids eye level, commit to that child, and not rest until the child is safe. A man approached by the same child might say, Head over there to the managers desk, whereas a woman is most likely to get involved and stay involved.
Is what Ive said politically incorrect? Maybe so, but the luxury of not running for office is that I dont care if its politically incorrect. The fact is that men in all cultures and at all ages and at all times in history are more violent than women - and facts are not political.
If you are ever lost, go to a woman works because its practical (there will almost always be a woman around) and simple (easy to teach, easy to learn, easy to do). Finally, teaching children to choose someone rather than wait for someone to choose them will be a useful lesson their whole lives. Its the same advice I give to adult women."