Comments

1.   GMail

     918 days ago

   Having personally carried my screaming, kicking 3 year old daughter through a mall I can completely sympathize with Ms. Smith here. Children this age are NOT reasonable human beings. Child cruelty? You've got to be kidding. What would you suggest mom do? I am not an advocate of the child leash, but I have no doubt that the child in the video was completely capable of walking around on that string - he or she just refused to do so, probably because mommy wouldn't buy him/her a second ice cream cone or something. In this situation, mom can either attempt to reason with the child, a process that can take lots of time, and be fruitless (remember small children are not always reasonable) or somehow force the child to go with her.
   
2.   mrminus

     918 days ago

   hmm. i'd think picking up the child and leaving the store, rather than ignoring him/her and dragging them around, would be the most effective option.
   
3.   noskad

     917 days ago

   I agree with mrminus. If you kid is being a brat, do yourself a favor and recognize that he needs a nap in all likelihood! Don't continue to drag (literally or figuratively) the child around because of your selfish desire to take care of your personal errands. Better yet--leave the child at home with an adult relative or friend you trust (fellow parent?). Trying to reason with a toddler is a waste of time. Bribery works temporarily, but must be repeated. Bribery converts the parent into Pavlov's dog, and the child's tantrum is like the bell compelling you into action. Dragging a child who won't comply like an animal on a leash would fit into most people's idea of child cruelty. Using the leash for its intended purpose--to prevent the child from getting lost or abducted by staying close to the parent--is pretty common these days, but the last I heard they weren't designed for dragging...
   
4.   elly

     917 days ago

   GMail, are you a mother (or father) ??? If you are your kids should be taken away from you simply based on your perspective and lack of decent parenting. You DO NOT drag around any child of any age. I wouldn't do it to one of my dogs. Harnesses are used to keep a child safe, not drag him around a store like a puppet. This is child abuse as it is likely to be just a glimpse of what this woman does to her child. Some people just shouldn't have children. You remove a toddler from a disruptive situation. You do not punish him/her because of your selfishness. I have a 21 year old and a 15 month old and I never EVER had to deal with any of this nonsense. A well adjusted child raised in a healthy environment doesn't need to be dragged anywhere. You ought to be ashamed of what you wrote. I truly hope your bitterness towards children has prevented you from having any!
   
5.   sariefloss86

     917 days ago

   I have to say that I've seen plenty of kids about this age being hauled around by an arm, or being dragged upwards by one arm, surely the damage THAT could is more serious than the damage one of those harnesses could do. That, and I think everyone that's said "just pick the the kid up" has never ever been kicked or punched by a toddler in full tantrum mode. My three-year-old brother once gave me a bruise that lasted for months. And Elly, he is the sweetest, happiest little boy you could ever meet. Maybe your kids are just boring.
   
   
6.   PhoenixBennu

     917 days ago

   So let us recap here. Parent group A: Beat the child into submission because of lack of more intelligent action. Parent group B: Use more intelligent action. I think I would rather be a member of parent group B and have a child who won't grow up to be on death row for murdering his family. (and yes I do have kids)
   
7.   bidermant

     917 days ago

   What really disturbs me about this video is just how limb and defenseless the child is and how determined an nasty the mother is.
   
8.   poppit

     917 days ago

   Elly: "You remove a toddler from a disruptive situation." Wow, disruptive. God forbid anyone have any disruptive events occur in family life. I'll tell you what's wildly disruptive - being taken away from the only family you know. That's disruptive and GRIEVOUS to child development, especially if the child is taken by hysterically paranoid outsiders. What if this was the WORST the mother has ever done? WHAT IF? Yeah, people like you would never entertain that idea. It's more important to make a drama lama out of it and take the kid away, because that's more stimulating to the bored brain, like bad news in the media.
   
9.   poppit

     917 days ago

   "A well adjusted child raised in a healthy environment doesn't need to be dragged anywhere." I can't stand parents who spend their time patting themselves on the back for their outstanding parenting skills just because they have normal "well-adjusted" non-disabled children. BRAVO, Elly, BRAVO. You ARE SO GREAT!! :)
   
10.   giveakidabreak

      917 days ago

    actions speak louder than words. mom is the adult. the child, as GMail commented, is a three year old and at that age unreasonable human beings but they are also not to be held responsible for that fact. the child is three not thirty. he is still in the formative years and it is more important than ever to take the time to reason with the child. it can be done. it is done all of the time. what is obvious is mom's lack of (for whatever reason) coping skills. she is telling the world via her actions what she is capable of.
    
11.   dragon64

      917 days ago

    This is nothing short of abuse. There is no justification, by any self diluted parent of a "bad child", that can tint this situation otherwise. You don't drag a child by a harness looped around their neck any distance, let alone the length of a store and onto the sidewalk. Anyones ability to sympathize with this woman is coming from some serious mental health issues. Any parent with the slightest understanding of child development would be disgusted by this on every level. Not only is she physically abusing this child, but she's teaching them that the way people resolve issues/disagreements is by force. Painful force. Along with everything else that comes along with abusing the role of power in any relationship. If this is the absolute worst she's ever done, she should not have control over that child. As far as children being traumatized by being removed from their primary care giver: The trauma of that woman's parenting "techniques" is far more damaging to that child than him being removed from them.
    
12.   sherrylee

      917 days ago

    There is absolutely no indication that the child in this video is being injured by being pulled on the leash. Apparently there was NO rug burn because: his skin was covered, it would have been reported, and besides, it hurts to be rug-burned and the child doesnt seem to be in distress during the episode. Note the reaction of the observers. I hope that if he was in distress, one of the observers would have intervened. Would any of you take a video while a child was being abused instead of intervening to help him? The fact of the matter is that we don't know enough information to decide whether or not there was abuse or just frustration, or if the child enjoyed the ride!
    
13.   inaperfectworld

      916 days ago

    I'm not in favor of the whole dragging the child across the distance of the store scenario. But let's try to imagine what might've brought this on.... What if little Joey refused to leave and mom gave him an ultimatum, "You either walk out of here on your big boy 2 feet, or I will drag you out of here." Little Joey then proceeds to plant his stubborn, toddler feet on the floor and giggles while Mom, following through on her ill-planned threat, drags him out of the store. Granted, not a great parenting tactic. I'm NOT in favor of it. But I strongly suspect that the child would have been flailing and kicking and scratching at the floor if he was terrified at being dragged. He was probably enjoying the ride. None of us know the full circumstances. Making rash judgments on parents based on a 5 second look into one incident doesn't really give you a great perspective on the how's or why's of her actions.
    
14.   slightlycurious

      916 days ago

    Personally, I think when you have children, you have to give up your pride and accept that they will through tantrums and embarrass you in public. However, I think as a parent, you should be GROWNUP and handle the situation in an adult-like manner; dragging your child through a store is hardly mature. And why have kids on leashes? Ya, they wander, but they LEARN. I wandered away when I was little, got scared, and I never did it again. Even though they are young, they will still learn! And you should have a better watch on your kid if you are to bring them along in public areas..hence you won't need a leash for a HUMAN BEING. Spanking the child is probably more effective than dragging him with a device that could CHOKE and cause further harm to him. All he'd have with a spank is a red bottom and a lesson learned. I'm glad she got the charges she got; it's not humane to have a human being on a leash much less drag it around like some lost puppy who you are too lazy to watch after!
    
15.   mcb27

      910 days ago

    this is a no win situation,if she leaves the child in the floor to wait out his fit she is a bad mother who doesnt take care of her child,so she just does not think and she draggs him throught the store it is not like it is a parking lot my god peolpe come on,and the ones sitting here saying you have never done this are probebly the ones who have.and if you did not do this maybe you should have.i just have to think what if this was me and i spanked my kid people would act the same way,people do not believe in any kind of disipline these days.not saying she is right,but like i said people would have acted the same way if someone spanked their kid.
    
16.   qwerty1234

      868 days ago

    Elly's a bitch, fuck all yall