@RonaldMcDonaldTrump I’ve seen a few comments on Facebook saying the fact the man’s name or photo hasn’t been released given he’s already been arrested for attempted murder “tells us all we need to know” etc etc.
I didn’t find that unusual at all while the news is still fairly fresh, but I have to say I thought it was being reported a bit weirdly in that several news agencies were reporting it with the headline of “3 year old ended up in crocodile enclosure” as opposed to “3 year old thrown into crocodile enclosure” which from several accounts is more like what may have happened.
But if the man in question has a learning disability or something it makes a lot more sense of all of that. I can imagine a scenario where a learning disabled person sees a small child trying to get a better look at the crocs and trying to be helpful lifts them up or even over the barrier then accidentally drops them, or even may not understand the dangers at all and deliberately drop the child in. I think we just have to wait and find out more details. I would have thought that barrier was addquate and it probably is in most circumstances but not where there is an adult incapable of understanding the dangers perhaps.
@MrsTerryPratchett thank goodness for some humanity. People with learning disabilities and/or mental health difficulties are not criminals, and legally there are robust processes in place for depriving someone of their liberty if they are felt to be a risk to themselves or others. I do personally agree that too many “mental health asylums” have been shut in favour of care in the community, leaving a serious lack of inpatient psychiatric beds. And I very much suspect some of that was funding driven as well as ideological. However there are also good reasons for moving things more towards care in the community rather than institutionalising people who are simply unwell or disabled. It allows people to live more normal lives. Look at those dating shows for people with learning disabilities etc. Nobody would have imagined when I was a kid in the 1980s that we’d see people with eg Downs syndrome achieve that sort of normalcy in their lives. Let alone see them become models and professional atheletes etc. That’s a very positive thing in my opinion. But yes the carers are largely there because these are vulnerable people open to exploitation by others, not to be able to overpower them as they’re such a danger to the public.
As someone who had puerperal psychosis and ended up under section in a mother and baby unit (and quite rightly too, it’s exactly what I needed), I don’t think locking innocent people up for illness or disability alone is the answer at all. And even though I understand why I was sectioned, and prevented from escaping when I tried, you really have no idea how psychologically difficult it is to not be in charge of even small decisions in your own life or be able to go for a short walk on a nice day etc. Deproving someone of their poverty, particularly where no crime has been committed is not and should not be taken lightly.