She went too far, now she has to pay...

Those of us who are parents have been there. We know the pressure of a long day, and just as you are at your wits end, a fight breaks out between the kids. You say stop 7 or 8 hundred times to no avail. You look for something to throw or you threaten them with severe bodily harm to no avail. You threaten to put them out of the car, and that doesn't work either...but you pull over for added emphasis...still no luck? How about open the door...by now, most kids are quiet. For whatever reason, Madlyn Primoff, 45, a partner in a Manhattan law firm, took it a step further and really put them out. Her daughters aged 12 and 10 were left on the sidewalk 3 miles from home. The 12 year old ran after the car, so the mother let her in. The 10 yr old wasn't fast enough. The mother was arrested when she appeared at the police station to recover her 'lost' child.

This is not the first, nor will it be the last case of a parent losing control, and taking measures so drastic they defy logic. We have to keep things in perspective when dealing with our children, and remember that nothing they do, is worth endangering their lives. This woman learned that lesson the hard way, but it gives us an opportunity to reflect and cool off when we find ourselves approaching the breaking point. Now go hug the little curtain climbers, even if they were bad today!

Fear wins (again) over common sense.

The latest bruhaha to grip the Island is the cell tower scam at Our Lady Star of the Sea School in Huguenot. Parents are threatening to pull their children out, the school is installing steel gates over the windows (fire code anyone?), and local politicians are about to weigh in with the hope of gaining some political momentum. Hogwash! All of it. I worked in the nuclear power field, I wore a REM tag, It was read and measured evry month. I have produced (ok women, helped produce) five vibrant healthy children without a single defect (other than some attitude), so give it a rest...the amount of "radiation" emitted is negligible compared to other daily common sources. Watching TV is more dangerous. Once again fear reigns supreme on Staten Island, the stupidest comment ever was by some woman who was interviewed, when asked how she knows that the radiation amount is dangerous, she replied,"they can't prove that it isn't". Don't we realize that these towers are everywhere?What?!?! We are still doing things we already have proven are dangerous, but we keep doing it (smoking comes to mind). The latest 'cause celebre' will be taken up by whichever politician is closest to re-election and this will dominate the news but to no avail. Unless of course those same parents are willing to pay Sprint (and T-mobile coming soon) to break those contracts. I didn't think so.