Stupid Brits

Well now here's an interesting law that seems quite ridiculous:

http://www.boingboing.net/2009/10/28/council-bans-parents.html

They want parents to abdicate responsibility for their own children? Isn't a day at the playground supposed to be a time of interaction with your child? I can see this backfiring, and parents will just use these parks as a dumping ground for their kids. They're being watched by a certified, responsible adult after all, right?

When my kids were little, they sure as heck were not going to leave my side and go play on the big scary slide by themselves. And how many playground supervisors are there going to be? One for every 2 or 3 children? I highly doubt that. In a typical park, at least all the parks near me, you've got big kids stepping on little kids, all kinds of running around and smacking into each other, fights over who got to the teeter totter first, little kids needing a push on the swings or a catch at the bottom of a slide. And the list goes on. With that many small children, you need all the parents you can get. And I can't even imagine what kind of liability this could actually open them up to. "Your back was to my child and he fell off the swings!"

Granted, not all parents participate as fully as they should in their child's playground time. Some sit far off to one side, on their cell phones, not noticing as their precious little Johnny runs around screaming, stepping on toddlers' toes, shoving them, not saying excuse me, etc. But for the most part, all the parents are engaged in ensuring the safety and enjoyment of their own children. These people are the MOST qualified, and entitled, to be performing that task. I'm not even sure what exactly the government is trying to protect the children from. Are there hundreds of reports of weirdoes stealing or molesting children in parks? I highly doubt it -- far too many other parents there. If I ever hear a viable explanation, I'll publish it here, but meanwhile I am not holding my breath.