Posted on 01/24/2015 3:06:34 PM PST by grundle
A real-life “Home Alone” story of twin 9-year-old brothers in New Hampshire who managed to basically take care of themselves for a third of a year is in part a case of child endangerment, but also, upon closer inspection, a stunning tale of childhood ingenuity.
Few would agree with decisions made by the boys’ uncle, who told police he’d stop by every few days while the parents were on a trip in Africa. The parents, Jerusalem and Catherine Monday, left the United States in July, expecting to return in August. But they were delayed in Nigeria for another three months.
For their part, the boys transitioned from summer vacation into the school routine: They came home from school every day, ate snacks, watched TV until their failure to pay the cable bill got it shut off, did homework, got ready for bed, hopefully brushed their teeth, went to sleep, got up the next morning, got dressed, got on the school bus – all on their own. Neighbors say they regularly saw the boys and didn’t have any concerns about them.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Supposedly there was an uncle to watch over them, sorta, maybe ....
Probably a much better situation than many of their peers live in—crack head mother, revolving door of violent boyfriends, still no food, and violence, drugs, molestation, etc.
They are apparently African, but the story doesn’t mention that. This might have something to do with their not choosing to mention to a neighbor that they were without adult supervision/assistance.
I wonder if the parents paid the utility bills in advance, but forgot about the cable.
There are exceptions, Somalis being one.
I’ve read stories about the Civil War where children younger than 10 did all the hunting and work of an adult while dad went off and fought. The longest serving man in the Army joined up, as I recall, at 9 and fought in battles. He killed his first man at 9.
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/04/the-boys-of-war/?_r=0
When I was quite young in the 60’s I was left home by myself for up to ten days. It was a wonderful experience and made me self-reliant and confident. It depends on the child. Children rise to what’s expected of them. I sometimes think we expect too little from children and protect them too much. (Donning flame protective gear and ducking under cover.)
They got up and went to school so they could get two meals every weekday.
This just proves that all children should be wards of the US feral government.
Amazing, not to be believed!
“The uncle claimed that he would drop off food somewhat regularly, but when the officers were there, there was only some ramen in the cabinets.”
So? They’re not hoarders.
They did eat and well.
The prosecution premise is a bunch of bunk.
When my Mom and Dad divorced, she went to work, sometimes with two jobs at a time.
I wasn’t a teenager and had to manage getting my brothers and sisters up for school sometimes and others getting them fed.
We knew what to do, had plenty of food, the school was right behind our house, had plenty of clothes, washed our own clothes which was our responsibility, bathed and scrubbed teeth.
I don’t remember how hard it was because, having not lived with my mommy since I was 15 and in college, I’ve pretty much had to do everything for 35 years on my own and wouldn’t have been able to without Mom and Dad teaching me to be independent, self determined and self regulating.
“”””They are apparently African...””””
Which explains why the parents haven’t been arrested for child neglect. Were they white parents the state would bring the hammer down.
Really, the uncle couldn’t have taken them into his own home? And, btw, leaving your nine year old(s) alone while you travel for even a few days is child neglect. Not to mention leaving the hemisphere.
Are these people Africans? Is this more multi-culti cr*p?
Silly rabbit! Prosecution Is For Peasants!
When I was 11 years old, into and through my teen years, I lived at home by myself for weeks at a time. This was during the late 80s/early 90s. Took care of myself, did the grocery shopping, walked to school, and took care of the place. I kept the house spotless. My grandmother would just give me some money every week, until I got old enough to get a job.
Had friends over, but there was never any kind of ‘partying’. We’d just watch movies, baseball, listen to music, and play video games. We WOULD however venture out to roll an occasional yard from time to time, if someone was deserving.
We have Eritreans on my street, ethnically the same as many Ethiopians, but an independent African country. They go to our church. We also have some English-speaking Africans, probably from Nigeria or Kenya.
Like any other nationality, they have their good people and their bad people.
They went to school because it was the right thing to do and they wanted to get an education. The reason they were caught is because one of them showed up under dressed for the weather and told the teacher his uncle did not live with them. If the kids were slackers or trouble makers they would have been caught sooner.
My grandmother was taking care of 3 sisters for weeks at a time when she was about the same age. The youngest sister had polio and granny’s parents spent lots of time 175 miles away in Ann Arbor at the hospital. (horse drawn wagon trips)
At 9 years old my sisters and I took care of ourselves a lot. We were expected to keep the house clean, do laundry etc in the afternoons while our parents were at work.
I don’t disagree. We continue adulthood into the 20s. We don’t expect responsibility from 16 year olds.
One of our local industries is tied to Africa and one of the execs moved in across the street from my parents. Wonderful people! They went around the neighborhood and introduced themselves. My parents are getting frail and the two boys told them to call if they ever needed help with anything. The kids are expected to get high grades and the parents forbid them from participating in school sports.
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