Safety

Good evening, folks.  As I wrap up my campaign finances for the Superintendent primary, I was struck by an irony that would be quite funny if it did not involve our children's safety.  I could have entitled it, "A Funny Thing Happened to me on the way to the Election," but since it is not funny and it involved the second most spoken mantra by the Clay County School district, "Safety is our Number One Priority" (right behind "Clay County has Good Schools,"), I will stick with the mantra.

As you know with TS Fay approaching Tuesday morning, Duval County Schools announced at daybreak that after-school activities were cancelled, and that they would soon announce if school would be cancelled.  That decision was made before school ended, to include both Wednesday and Thursday.  In the meantime, the silence from Clay County School District was both deafening and defining, as they refused to communicate any information to the parents. Tuesday Evening, after only the second day of school, the district had also scheduled Open House at the high schools.  Parents flooded the phonelines, wanting information, so much so that we finally received an automated (and sounding particularly perturbed) call from a principal that stated the the open house was still on and school was still on and their number one priority is our children's safety.

It is a scary feeling, your heart stops and your worst fear paralyzes you from head to toes: your kid was just next to you and now is gone! You start screaming your kid's name first not to loud but then you realize that someone might have taken him (her) and you get totally insane!

In crowded places like a big store or an amusement park a lost kid becomes an easy pray for predators, who usually blend in the crowd waiting for an opportunity like this.

It takes a second for a kid to disappear! A quick thinking could save your kid of being abducted. Panic would only act on your disadvantage and waiting too long trying to find you child in the crowd will only delay help.

Bloggers, please watch the weather today, I just turned on the TV for the first time today.  There has been almost 50 deaths from the rash of tornados.  Once again, it looks like bad weather is not coming our way. But be prepared and I for one will be counting my blessings. 

Detective Baker giving a presentation for parents at Lawtey Community School

Did you know that MySpace.com is not a paradise for predators anymore? Now kids are protected by a shield! The Cyber Crime Unit from the Attorney General Office has come up with a site which not only provides parents and kids with excellent sources of information but also supplies My Space.com with a protective shield.

This shield will appear on your kid's site alerting predators to stay away because the site is under supervision. To know more about this visit www.myspace.com/florida_cpcu where you will find real kids testimonies and other sources of information on how to protect your kids against these criminals.

Hard to believe when you hear a story like the one I heard this morning about a young mother leaving her new born baby in the vehicle while she went to the mall!

Absolutely nothing justifies leaving a defenseless baby not only exposed to heat, cold and lack of oxigen, but also with a lack of safety. I am not going to make logs out of the fallen tree, but I must say that there is a complete absence of common sense among young people on these days.

Children having children and going through a transition between high school and parenthood with no life skills or simple logic.

And it is true! More car accidents among teenagers are caused by text messaging and not paying attention to the road than driving under the influence. However, just because technology is available doesn't mean we have to use it inadequately. It also takes some common sense to utilize this technology in a safety mode.

Not only teenagers are at risk of suffering a terrible accident while trying to drive, talk and text messaging at the same time while driving, a lot of adults do the same thing! Just put your hand over your heart and say: "I have never done such a thing!" It is very rare the driver that is not talking on the cellular phone while going home from work, and I'm sorry to say this but women are the master multi task when is about brushing their hair, apply make-up and turn in a 180 degree position to return the pacifier to the baby's mouth while behind the wheel.

You protect your child not letting him (her) go out to play without supervision, you drop and pick your kids up when they go to parties or to school. However, as soon as they get home they open the window to the world and they turn into potential victims again. The internet allows your kid to interact with those strangers you fear so bad. They play games together and predators can disguise to establish a "relationship" with their victims right under the parent's nose!

Years ago, when the television started, another kind of "window" was created. One where millions of people from everywhere around the world were influenced by other people's thoughts and experiences in life. Movie after movie, our society changed for ever! In a way, every one, somehow, became affected by a specific movie hero for good or for bad.

That's it! The year is almost gone and believe it or not Christmas is closer than we wished. This is the time when we regret not saving enough during the year and with the economy as it is we can expect not only a really skinny Santa Claus this year, but also crime everywhere. Don't let these holidays surprise you unaware and unsafe. Fight crime before it hits you. Here some safety advises you will never regret:

- Leave your small children safe at home with your spouse, your mom or a reliable baby sitter. Crowded stores are ideal to get distracted and leave your children unattended. Remember predators are always looking for the opportunity, don't take any chances with your kids!

Before you go out in a "spooky" night screaming "Trick or Treat" with your kids,  stop for a second and listen to this healthy advise. No, I am not a "Party pooper", just a concerned citizen who has gather together certain facts which I want to share with all parents. In case you haven't heard yet there is a new bacteria (I cannot even pronounce the name) which attacks the immune system and it is transmitted through touch! It is invisible and can even cause death.

It was detected in Texas and it has spread all over certain schools. However with people traveling all the time there is a good chance we might get it here in Florida pretty soon. Nothing more convenient for this type of bacteria to spread than the giving away candy to our kids, even if it is wrapped and looks all right it might be infected already. Paranoiac? Maybe! But "Better safe than sorry!"

Before you go out in a "spooky" night screaming "Trick or Treat" with your kids,  stop for a second and listen to this healthy advise. No, I am not a "Party pooper", just a concerned citizen who has gather together certain facts which I want to share with all parents. In case you haven't heard yet there is a new bacteria (I cannot even pronounce the name) which attacks the immune system and it is transmitted through touch! It is invisible and can even cause death.

It was detected in Texas and it has spread all over certain schools. However with people traveling all the time there is a good chance we might get it here in Florida pretty soon. Nothing more convenient for this type of bacteria to spread than the giving away candy to our kids, even if it is wrapped and looks all right it might be infected already. Paranoiac? Maybe! But "Better safe than sorry!"