WTH is Happening in Canada?

[SanMiguel]

First the 8 year old girl who was killed and yesterday a boy was almost kidnapped in Toronto. What the hell is happening in Canada? Considering its a 1st world country, cant the Police do something about these crimes happening around us?

http://www.torontosun.com/2012/03/07...from-kidnapper

[Big Filipino]

It's sad that 2 people stood by and did nothing during the incident. That also speaks to the nature of our society.

[SanMiguel]

like a day ago my son got a certificate for properly riding his bike, police were conducting seminars for riding a bike in their school, with safety helmets and observing traffic rules and such, im pretty sure when we were kids and BMX was soo cool we would go out biking without helmets on. but going back to the issue, imo, instead of giving seminars on how to ride a bike i think what the police should be conducting to kids is how to protect themselves if a stranger comes a long and grab them, at least teach them the basics on what to do...instead of riding a bike, safety is OK but kidnapping is more serious and its actually happening around us right now.

[Robimus]

Originally Posted by SanMiguel

First the 8 year old girl who was killed and yesterday a boy was almost kidnapped in Toronto. What the hell is happening in Canada? Considering its a 1st world country, cant the Police do something about these crimes happening around us?

http://www.torontosun.com/2012/03/07...from-kidnapper

Um, they did arrest the guy in the article you linked.

[Super_Megatron]

Originally Posted by SanMiguel

i think what the police should be conducting to kids is how to protect themselves if a stranger comes a long and grab them, at least teach them the basics on what to do...instead of riding a bike, safety is OK but kidnapping is more serious and its actually happening around us right now.

That's the parents job.

[Mighty_Galvatron]

Originally Posted by SanMiguel

First the 8 year old girl who was killed and yesterday a boy was almost kidnapped in Toronto. What the hell is happening in Canada? Considering its a 1st world country, cant the Police do something about these crimes happening around us?

http://www.torontosun.com/2012/03/07...from-kidnapper

Uhhhhhhh, ok.

[Sun Swipe Prime]

Not to make light of those incidents. They are very serious. But don't let them scare you beyond reason. One kidnapping is news. Two hundred is just another ho hum day.

IMHO, it's more likely the bike riding tips will be more useful to the kids than tips on the how to protect themselves from kidnapping because the likely hood of bike accident vs. kidnapping is way greater.

Playing a little devil's advocate. A child knowing or thinking they know how to protect themselves can give them a false sense of security. A 90lb kid who knows karate is still just a 90lb kid against maybe a 200lb man or even two men. I think sometimes, not always, it's better to be chicken shit and run at the first sign of trouble than to be the a guy who knows martial arts and decides he'll kick some ass and finds out the other guy is packing a gun.

[Nomad]

Yeah. Unless you're Jean-Claude Van Damme (and in a movie)... a gun will often matter more than thinking you know how to fight.

[Robimus]

It would be great if society was safe 100% of the time but thats never going to be the reality. It doesn't matter if your in Toronto, or New York or London.

One thing I'd add is that you will never find my 10 year old kid walking home from school without adult supervision. Thats just not old enough so far as I'm concerned.

My daughter is in grade 3 and some of her classmates parents do send their kids to school unsupervised. I'm not sure what the magic age is to turn kids loose on the streets but 8 or 10 doesn't seem old enough to me.

[juxtapose519]

Originally Posted by Sun Swipe Prime

IMHO, it's more likely the bike riding tips will be more useful to the kids than tips on the how to protect themselves from kidnapping because the likely hood of bike accident vs. kidnapping is way greater.

Agreed. Stuff like drug awareness and traffic safety are way more important because they're things that all children deal with at some point in their lives, often frequently. Dealing with strangers is important too, but the chance that your kid is ever going to run into someone who actually intends to do them harm is kinda slim. A cracked skull is just as deadly and far more likely.