The Boom in Baby Snatching (Hysteria)About to have a baby? Don't want it stolen out from under you at the hospital? CNN has some great advice: Just beware of "women," especially those in their 20s or 30s. Yes, these are the people who "fit the profile" to steal your baby. You won't have any trouble keeping your eye on all of them, will you? And they may be dressed like a nurse, CNN adds, so certainly don't trust anyone who looks as if she belongs at the hospital. After all, she COULD be a baby snatcher. And how likely are baby snatchers to strike? Well, um, last year, one baby was stolen from a hospital. AGGGGHHH! That was a strangled scream of frustration with the scaring-means-caring media — frustration with a TV station that would go on-air with all sorts of warnings about how to keep your baby safe and then print a 1,500-word piece on "How to guard against baby snatchers" — as if we have to BE on guard! As if there aren't about 4 million American babies born annually and, of these, ONE was taken. Yes, I am very familiar with the argument that "even ONE is too many," but what about the argument that 4 million new moms being told never to trust ANYONE anywhere near their babies are too many? Four million new moms being told: Your child is in danger every minute. You cannot take your eyes off him for a single second. Everyone is out to get your precious bundle. Or, as a subhead in the article says, "Know who wants to steal your baby." Like, "Know your local pharmacist" or "Know your city councilors." As if your local baby stealers are just another group of people to get to know. The article chastises women if they even CONSIDER taking bathroom breaks without wheeling their babies in there with them. "The single most dangerous time is when mom goes to the bathroom. ... Put your baby in a bassinet and roll it into the bathroom with you." Excuse me, but shouldn't a "dangerous time" somehow correlate to reality? If something happens tens of millions of times WITHOUT incident (assuming the 4 million moms go to the bathroom at least a couple of times while in the hospital), isn't that activity not "dangerous" but, in fact, exceedingly SAFE? If tens of millions of people answer the phone without accidentally giving themselves concussions — but one did, once — should we talk about the "dangerous time" when the phone rings? As one wonderful commenter wrote under this story on CNN's website, "What's next, how to guard against being hit by a coconut?" I'm sure that if CNN could find one sad story, it WOULD run that piece — if the person hit by the coconut were a kid. That, of course, is the key.
The problem is that this paranoia follows the moms home. Don't put an "It's a girl!" sign on your lawn, a Florida hospital warned my friend; predators will come a-calling. And don't send out birth announcements; predators will come a-calling. This predator obsession takes hold, and years later we see those kids inside — staring at a screen, scarfing Skittles — because they're not allowed to go outside and play; their parents are too afraid of predators. So thanks, CNN and all the other media, for blowing baby snatching completely out of proportion. Look what you've given birth to. Lenore Skenazy is the author of "Free-Range Kids: How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Children (Without Going Nuts with Worry)" and "Who's the Blonde That Married What's-His-Name? The Ultimate Tip-of-the-Tongue Test of Everything You Know You Know — But Can't Remember Right Now." To find out more about Lenore Skenazy (lskenazy@yahoo.com) and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2011 CREATORS.COM
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