I am disgusted at the Madeleine McCann/Shrek debate!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Bigmamie]

I have joined this site solely to remind all you thoughtless, forgetful, selfish ba#@ards that Madeleine McCann is missing!!!!!!!! I cannot understand how anyone can sit with their arms around their own children, in the comfort of a cinema whilst feeding their children popcorn and Coke that there are lots of mothers in this world who cannot do this. Their children have been taken from them and I wonder if any of you had the money or the resources available to them, I wonder if you would have campaigned this long or this hard for their daughters return. I wish the McCanns every success and only wish I could physically find their daughter for them. I am taking my 6 kids to see Shrek tomorrow and I hope my cinema is still showing the Madeleine film. I hope the publicity generated stays in your faces for a long time to come. Tell me, if she passed in front of you down at the shops or at the park could any of you be bothered to actually tell someone. Or are you all just to happy in the knowledge that its not one of your children. There but for the grace of God............

Tissy all the evidence suggest that she was snatched in the middle of the night. A lack of her footprints and unknown DNA found in the room.
As for her being alone, I am aware of that. I was shocked at first but after reading more, I realize that is a cultural difference between our countries.
In the U.S. a person would get in a large amount of trouble if they left a child of that age by themselves.
I most certainly would never point my fingers at the McCanns because I realize that there is a great difference in our cultures. I think they have enough regrets as it is.

I'm disgusted at the number of exclamation marks in the title and OP. How selfish can you get? there are people in the world who will never enjoy the dash and point for themselves as a result of your feckless behaviour.

PARP.

unknown DNA in a hotel room, well there's a surprise.

What makes you the expert on the investigation then? We only know what the media tell us, and that isn't much.

I'm not pointing any fingers at the McCanns, I said the parents weren't in the room. That is what has been reported. As for the "middle of the night" who eats dinner in the "middle of the night"?

With all due respect, Leati, as a US expat to the UK myself, a naturalised Brit and the mother of two Scottish children, this is not the US.

People here are different culturally, and yes, this extends to how children are brought up.

It's impossible to explain the differences, it's something you must experience first-hand.

But along with that, these differences must be respected because this is a British board, with most of its members being Brits.

I am usually quite puzzled as to why Yanks who live in the US and have no connection to the UK come onto a board like this. I am American, but don't go onto American parenting boards because I am not living there, my children are being brought up as Scots, and so I rarely see much I can relate to, tbh.

ruddy nora, is this still going on???

sorry expat, that was not aimed at you, it was aimed at more interlopers who have not read all of the thread but feel they can comment on us nontheless!

It's not hit that magic number of posts when full capacity is reached.

Irishbird, I see your point about reason going out the window in a situation like that. The chances are we really cannot agree on the movie thing. Because like I said, I grew up with milk cartons with missing children on them. Missing children posters are also often posted at grocery stores and the post office. I never found those poster frightening, just a fact of life. I also never answered the door when my parents were out and didn't talk to strangers because were taught that as well. We were also taught how to scream in a voice that catches peoples attention, and what to yell so that we do get help if something like this happens.
The odds of a child being kidnapped are relatively astronimical but I hope my child is prepared if someone ever tries.
One last thing, the incredible hulk is visually frightening and that is why to a young child who does not have a strong grasp on thier language skills yet, it would be scary.
My daughter found Santa frightening.

I think everyone is going to have to agree to disagree. Leati at least you put your arguement in a clear way unlike bigmamie who was completely hysterical.

The thing is, it is each parents choice on how to they raise their child and how they broach difficult subjects (and what age they think appropriate).

If you look on the message board as a whole you will see that there is a great deal of support for the McCanns and that everyone would like Maddy found safe and well, however many people found that this one ad offensive and no-one can come on her and say that they are wrong.

As UI said before, initially I agreed with the OP (although I feel slagging everyone off really didn't help her arguement!), however I know that if I hadn;t told DD1 about it, I would also have been pissed off that someone took that choice away from me.

Anyway, I'm sure that this arguement will rage on for days, but just wanted to say my piece

Can I just ask, is it really the case that more kids are taken by strangers in the US? I know the actual numbers are greater, but then the population is also much higher so you would expect that. Is the actual risk different or is it just perception? Does anyone have any figures?

Where is Mamie, anyhoo?

Well, never mind, consultants lead such busy lives . . .

Leati you've just lost me now

'I also never answered the door when my parents were out and didn't talk to strangers because were taught that as well. We were also taught how to scream in a voice that catches peoples attention, and what to yell so that we do get help if something like this happens.'

Do you not think that we teach our children the same thing?

Yes, Daisy, there are many more stranger abductions of both adults and children in the US.

In the last place I lived before emigrating, Colorado, a 69-year-old man has just appeared in court for the abduction and murder of a 24-year-old newlywed postgrad student in an extremely remote area of the San Juan wilderness.

It is far, far more common there.

Worryingly so.

And leaves me in a real conundrum about how best to bring up my two daughters, who are dual nationals and may chose to live in the US at will.

Having been brought up there and in Latin American countries where gun violence and kidnap for ransom were far more common than here, I had WAY more 'street saavy' than I've seen in many Brits.

It's an important trait to have if you're going to live in the US, unfortunately .

First of all, I am a Native American and grew up with Native American beliefs. Which means it takes a village to raise a child. If your child was kidnapped tommorrow, I would be upset. If I beleived that someone was preventing information from getting out there I would be bothered. As for the DNA...have you ever been on www.bringmadeleinehome.com/
they have a section dedicated to news and it was found quite a while ago so you may have to go back aways.
I have a question for most of you. When ever someone does not agree with your post do you insult them? I mean if I was hear agreeing with you, it would not matter if I was a "yank."

Not necessarily, Leati.

It's not the norm to be insulted just because you disagree, but again, peoples' perceptions about what is insulting are different here as well.

I can see where you are coming from, but as I wrote before, I was brought up in Houston, TX and a number of Latin American countries, as my heritage is Mexican-American and my father worked abroad for most of my childhood.

the fact that your american doesn't mean a thing other than the cultural difference.

I don;t think you've been insulted (although I may have missed that) Bigmamie was insulted, however what did she expect with an initial post like that, she obvioulsy had not read the whole thread to which she was referring

Quint, you do teach your children the same way, but not as extensively as many children in the US are taught.

Perhaps because violent crime is sadly more prevalent there.

If you were to look at the percentage of people kidnapped per the population, I do not know how the numbers would stack. The US is a much larger country though and unfortunately there are a lot of freaks out there.

And freaks with guns, sadly .

But is the risk per head of the population greater? For example is it 1 in 1000000 kids who are taken by strangers? Just because you hear about lots doesn't mean the actual chance of it happening is greater.

I have tried not to get involved in this but I jsut wanted to ask why Shrek? The audience for a tarantino film would surely be more suitable. Why kids targeted?

From what I've heard, this film is pants, too .

The overwhelming majority (probably 90%+) of missing children on US milk cartons have been snatched in custody battles. Extremely different context than Maddie's disappearance.

I've told my children for years that they could get "stolen" just like we once had a camera stolen. They aren't traumatised by this knowledge, even though DD is a very anxious child in general. But that's because they don't believe the camera was violently destroyed by the thief.

WHEREAS, the emphasis people place on McCann case is because we adults KNOW that Maddie almost certainly was violently murdered, and I think that's in the atmosphere around most discussions of her case. Children sense the adult worries, I can understand most parents wanting to filter it out.