Clipmarks | CrazyRedHead's 'children' clips

The Feral Child

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 04:12:21 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead
clipper's remarks: She weighed 46 pounds. She was malnourished and anemic. In the pediatric intensive care unit they tried to feed the girl, but she couldn't chew or swallow solid food. So they put her on an IV and let her drink from a bottle.

Aides bathed her, scrubbed the sores on her face, trimmed her torn fingernails. They had to cut her tangled hair before they could comb out the lice.

Her caseworker determined that she had never been to school, never seen a doctor. She didn't know how to hold a doll, didn't understand peek-a-boo. "Due to the severe neglect," a doctor would write, "the child will be disabled for the rest of her life."

Hunched in an over sized crib, Danielle curled in on herself like a potato bug, then writhed angrily, kicking and thrashing. To calm herself, she batted at her toes and sucked her fists. "Like an infant," one doctor wrote.

Clip Source: www.tampabay.com

Two officers went into the house — and one stumbled back out.

Clutching his stomach, the rookie retched in the weeds.

"I've been in rooms with bodies rotting there for a week and it never stunk that bad," Holste said later. "There's just no way to describe it. Urine and feces — dog, cat and human excrement — smeared on the walls, mashed into the carpet. Everything dank and rotting."

First he saw the girl's eyes: dark and wide, unfocused, unblinking.

She lay on a torn, moldy mattress on the floor.

Her ribs and collarbone jutted out; one skinny arm was slung over her face; her black hair was matted, crawling with lice

she was naked — except for a swollen diaper.

"The pile of dirty diapers in that room must have been 4 feet high," the detective said. "The glass in the window had been broken, and that child was just lying there, surrounded by her own excrement and bugs."

When he bent to lift her, she yelped like a lamb.

Choking back rage, he approached the mother. How could you let this happen?

Tags: child, children, health, psychology, child abuse

"I'll breastfeed till they're EIGHT!"

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 20:39:03 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

Stella Onions doesn't worry about people staring.

Whether sitting outside a cafe or walking round the park, whenever she breastfeeds her two children, she ignores the women gawping and men brazenly pointing her out to their friends.

But such reactions are hardly surprising; the babes sucking at this middle-aged mother's breasts are toddlers aged five and three years old.

Josephine has said she doesn't want to stop till adulthood. She really enjoys it and has actually told me she won't stop until she gets married.

She often says: "I never want to stop my mummy milk."

'Zac loves it, too - he says it's yummy and sweet.'

Now Stella has begun a campaign to normalise breastfeeding, so that it becomes as acceptable elsewhere as it is in her home. She says the benefits must be appreciated.

Even the most liberal of mothers find the sight of other babies sucking beyond infancy disconcerting, let alone their own.

Tags: children, health, family, breastfeeding

Woman Says Joyriding Grandson, 7, Beat Her Up

Sun, 18 May 2008 00:51:46 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead
clipper's remarks: O..M...G.

Clip Source: www.wpbf.com

A 7-year-old boy who took his grandmother's car on a joyride last month has been taken for a mental health evaluation after he allegedly beat her up inside a South Florida Wal-Mart

Latarian Milton told WPBF on April 28 that he took his grandmother's Dodge Durango on a joyride

"I wanted to do it because it's fun. It's fun to do bad things," Milton said. "I wanted to do hood-rat stuff for my friend."

the boy and a friend drove several miles

during rush hour before finally coming to a crashing halt

Milton ran over two mailboxes, hit two parked cars in a Costco parking lot and struck two moving cars

Milton's grandmother, Vikkita Stratford, told WPBF that the 7-year-old took his mischievous activities to a new level Monday when she said he beat her up inside a Lake Park Wal-Mart.

the problem began when Milton asked his grandmother for some chicken wings. When she refused, Milton walked over over to the counter and ordered them

Milton hit her stomach, legs and "wherever he could reach me."

Tags: children, crime, florida, idiots, juvenile delinquent

Her First Home Run

Sun, 18 May 2008 13:54:06 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead
clipper's remarks: If you love children, baseball or heroes, you have to see this.

Clip Source: ace.mu.nu

[Video]

A really sweet story.

Tags: children, baseball, heroes

Children & Alcohol

Wed, 07 May 2008 14:37:16 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: timesonline.typepad.com

Eamon and Antoinette McGuckin were taken to hospital and their kids - ages 1 through 6 - were taken into care temporarily after the adult McGuckins apparently passed out in a hotel lobby and bar. The plot thickens as stories report that Antoinette says she only had three beers. Friends and neighbours describe them as devoted homebody parents rather than as, y'know, ginhead chavs.

Even for the most upstanding of us, drinking in front of children poses problems.

I've never gotten blotto around the under-18s but my daughter frequently brandishes her plastic stemware and says "This is my wine."

But so what? Drinking is part of the adult world. We drink responsibly. We don't drive afterward.

A big question is, does drinking around your children promote healthy drinking habits (witness the enduring story of Italian children learning to sip wine from their toddler years) or does it normalise a dangerous drug?

Do you drink around your kids and what is your stopping point?

Tags: children, alcohol, society, morality, health

New shoes that grow with children's feet

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 11:26:43 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

It's an expensive exercise keeping children in shoes, as any parent would attest.

All too often, the little darlings are bursting out of their new ones before the soles have been scuffed.

But one inventor claims to have found the solution - shoes that grow with the feet.

The INCHworm trainers use a technology called iFit to expand up to one full size.

They are altered by pressing a button on the side and pulling the toe out to the required length.

Each pair goes up in two half-size increments, which means that each offers three sizes.

According to the makers, the shoes are sturdy enough that they won't stretch accidentally and can withstand the roughest of playground workouts.

They are not cheap, at £47.99 including delivery.

However, the patented technology means that each pair would last about three to six months longer than a normal pair.

They are also great for the thousands of kids who have one foot bigger than the other - they could have one shoe set at size 11 and one at 11 and a half.

Tags: children, shoes, innovation

Clowns Disliked By Young Patients

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 14:50:32 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead
clipper's remarks: I hate clowns too.

Clip Source: news.sky.com

Clowns are too scary for kids in hospital and are not the best decoration for children's wards, according to new research.

A survey found that decorating wards with images of clowns was more likely to frighten young patients than cheer them up.

More than 250 children aged between four and 16 were asked for their opinions - and every single one said they disliked clowns as part of hospital decor.

Even some of the older children said they found clowns scary, Nursing Standard magazine reported.

The youngsters were questioned by the University of Sheffield for the Space To Care study aimed at improving hospital design for children.

"As adults we make assumptions about what works for children," said Penny Curtis, a senior lecturer in research at the university.

"We found that clowns are universally disliked by children. Some found them frightening and unknowable."

The authors of the study have produced a guide on how to create child-friendly environments.

Tags: humor, children, clowns, health, psychology, terrifyingly garish zombie clones

The Pornography of Misery Memoirs

Tue, 09 Oct 2007 17:38:19 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead
clipper's remarks: An attack on books about horrific child abuse

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

just months after seeing her mother incarcerated Dana will be expected to perform an emotional striptease and deliver up every graphic detail of her abuse for public consumption.

Every molestation, every forced depravity and every betrayal by her mother is likely to be demanded in full colour for readers who will revel in the pornography of misery.

"I think it is going to be the most horrible yet," says one ghostwriter, with a hint of relish at the detail it may reveal.

If Dana's book follows the disturbing wave of recent misery memoirs, it will read as if you were there: as if you were the victim - or the perpetrator.

"the readers of these books are less well educated and need graphic detail to make them understand the impact of abuse"

Oh, please! How stupid does a person have to be if they don't understand the terrible impact of sexual abuse without having to read the horrific detail?

Publishers churn out these misery tales for one reason: they sell.

Tags: crime, children, child abuse, morality

Asthma and Antibiotics

Sat, 08 Dec 2007 04:46:45 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: www.sciam.com

children who had received antibiotics during their first year of life had a significantly greater risk of developing asthma by age seven.

Children who had received more than four courses of antibiotics were almost twice as likely to have asthma develop

researchers isolated 148 children who had received antibiotics for skin or urinary tract infections. They found that these kids had an even greater chance of developing asthma than children with respiratory infections who had been treated with antibiotics

the presence of a dog in the home lowered asthma risk

rural kids had less of a chance of developing asthma than urban children

they suggest carefully weighing the risks and benefits of antibiotic use before age one.

Asthma is on the rise worldwide. Virtually unknown at the dawn of the 20th century, the wheezing respiratory disease caused 255,000 deaths globally in 2005

Tags: health, science, children

Junior Giant: a 14lb 8oz baby boy

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 14:21:50 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

As a first-time mother, Sara Herman thought it was only to be expected that she had an enormous bump after five months.

What she and doctors failed to realise was that the petite mother-to-be, who is only just over 5ft, was expecting a giant.

When Jack eventually arrived at 37 weeks he weighed an astonishing 14lb 8oz.

And now, after health problems kept him in hospital for four months, he is enjoying life at home in Manchester with 37-year-old Mrs Herman and her husband Keith.

"At five months I looked like I was going to give birth at any moment and the size of my bump meant it was difficult for me to get around," said Mrs Herman, a product sourcer.

"But because it was the first time I'd been pregnant, I just thought this was normal."

A scan at 14 weeks showed the baby was growing fast and doctors even thought that the due date was wrong as the baby was so large.

Jack had grown so big because of a condition called hyperinsulism

At the age of 14 weeks he had 95 per cent of his pancreas removed

Tags: children, baby, health

The Boy Who Refused to Die

Sat, 03 Nov 2007 15:05:21 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

They say twins share a strong bond - but the one between Gabriel and Ieuan Jones was unbreakable.

When doctors found that Gabriel was weaker than his brother, with an enlarged heart,and believed he was going to die in the womb, his mother Rebecca Jones had to make a heartbreaking decision.

Doctors told her his death could cause his twin brother to die too before they were born, and that it would be better to end Gabriel's suffering sooner rather than later.

Mrs Jones decided to let doctors operate to terminate Gabriel's life.

Firstly they tried to sever his umbilical cord to cut off his blood supply, but the cord was too strong.

They then cut Mrs Jones's placenta in half so that when Gabriel died, it would not affect his twin brother.

But after the operation which was meant to end his life, tiny Gabriel had other ideas.

Although he weighed less than a pound, he put up such a fight for survival that doctors called him Rocky.

Tags: children, pregnancy, health, science, survival

Girl Born with Half a Brain

Sat, 19 May 2007 11:49:12 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

She might look and act like any other child her age, but Chase Smith is far from a typical two-year-old.

As this incredible medical scan shows, she was born with only half a brain. While one side is perfectly normal the left side is a black void.

Her condition is so rare that there are only a few known cases worldwide

The amazing discovery was made after Chase was sent for an MRI scan amid concerns over her health.

She had lost the movement down her right side and it was suspected that she had suffered some sort of stroke or bleed on the brain.

"One side was just empty - there was nothing filling the space. The shock and horror I felt is hard to describe.

Chase was born a healthy 8lb 1oz after an uneventful pregnancy. But Miss Jepson, a 21-year-old chef, first suspected something was wrong with her daughter at the age of seven months.

She was sleeping more than normal, her right arm was almost immobile and her right hand was constantly clenched into a fist.

Tags: health, science, kids, children, brain

Are you a tokophobic?

Fri, 26 Oct 2007 12:04:24 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

Of course, for most women, the anticipation of labour comes with a degree of anxiety. But as many as one in seven women are thought to suffer from tokophobia (a word which derives from the Greek "tokos" meaning childbirth).

Dealing with the condition is often difficult because it remains one of society's taboo subjects.

Despite her desire to find a way to have children, Rachel has been labelled "cold-hearted" and a "babyhater" by some friends she has discussed her fears with.

"Because there is the reward of a baby at the end of childbirth, it seems most people think that women should just stop whinging and get on with it," she says.

"In fact, plenty of mothers wear their stories of horrific deliveries like a badge of honour.

There are two main types of the condition. Primary tokophobia relates to childless women who have a deep-seated dread of pregnancy and birth, often relating back to their own mother's experience or something they learned in school.

Tags: sex, children, childbirth, fertility, health, psychology

The "man" who fell to Earth

Sat, 20 Oct 2007 15:05:16 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead
clipper's remarks: Who, or what, is Michael Jackson?

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

He was the king of pop who, following a series of scandals and bizarre episodes, dethroned himself. Jacques Peretti loses the plot as he attempts to uncover the real Michael Jackson

"No one knows the truth. No one knows what, or who I am. And the longer it takes them to discover this, the more famous I will be."

I wanted to find out what happened to him in the last two years - and in so doing, try to find out what the hell made Jackson the way he was in the first place.

Here was a man who'd spent a lifetime telling us over and over that he was a freak. That he was abused as a child, and that's why he's so impossibly strange and unearthly. The normal rules of conduct couldn't possibly apply to him. But was he really the freak he claimed he was?

I was able to interview Jackson insiders who'd never talked before because, two years after the trial, the time is right for these people to say their piece.

Tags: celebrity, children, sex, bizarre, epic decades-long public meltdown

I hated being me - Donny Osmond

Sat, 06 Oct 2007 11:59:53 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

Donny Osmond is talking about the day in 1982 when he woke up, brushed The Teeth and decided he didn't want to be Donny Osmond any more.

"I realised I had to be someone else, because Donny Osmond wasn't working for me," he says.

Actually, Donny Osmond wasn't working for anyone any more; the original boy-band superstar was all washed up at 25, a failure, too old for Puppy Love, his most famous song.

They were Utah's answer to the Von Trapp Family Singers but were - if it is possible - even more impossibly cute.

A few days ago he cried on a chat show when he was asked if he was angry with his father for driving him on.

Then he said he wished he had stayed in Utah. Now he begins to tell me why.

the money disappeared, embezzled or spent, and he won't say who was responsible - his brothers, his parents, the men they employed to look after it?

"I have never asked for the details," he says.

"What was I going to do about it?"

Tags: celebrity, music, children, entertainment