General Chat

Merlin.Exactly. Or they could easily have taken turns at staying in,looking after each other kids etc.
I dont know how many other kids there were or how near but the end of the day...you dont leave kids in a strange place,out of siteand door not locked.And IF she was 'taken' Dr's of all people know the way these peoples minds work re watching and snatching. :-S

I better shut up lol :-(

Marion

And all this happened because they wanted to save a few quid on Babysitters who were available,as Doctors you,d think they would be able to afford it.**M**

I'm the same Stray. My Mum and Dad live five doors away from us..just around the corner...a fraction of the distance from the apartment to the Tapas bar ...and when I dog sit their dog for them, I keep her for the night if OH isn't around to watch the children whilst I walked the one minute walk round there to drop her off..

My youngest nearly choked to death when she was 2 yrs old ..if she hadn't had someone on hand at that precise minute we'd have lost her. That's how quickly these things can happen. I still have nightmares about it ..it was the worst few minutes of my life. I would NEVER leave young children unattended and can't believe that there are people that would.x

can i state for the record i have never ever left my son unattended, nor do i no anyone who would, and the shop is 5 doors down, if he didnt wana come the shop with me i wouldnt go or id get him minded.

i live opposite my mam but if lilman is playing and i have to nip to mams my friend who is my neighbour will watch him, i wnt even cross t road leaving him unattanded and its a stone throw compaired to were that resturant was!

they left 3 children unattanded, they have to live wiht the guilt for the rest of there lives, and so they should, children dont ask to be brought into this world, and its up to us as there parents to protect love, care and cherish them.

i wont be buying the book nor will i be reading it, as i only read non fiction, and just vecause kate says it, doesnt mean its true.

Thanks Muffy, I just wondered.

The McCanns must be fully aware of how their actions on that night would lead to the disappearance of their daughter, but the clock cannot be turned back and all they can do is keep the search alive. Their biggest fault was their composure. If they had screamed and wept and gone to pieces, they would not have such public vitriol poured on them for their neglect that night. I pity their missing child and I pity them. BCXX

A pre-planned decison that you will leave a child/children alone for a lenght of time can not be compared to answering an un-planned knock on the door where most things that could cause harm have already been at top priority or should be.!


Who knows what the future may hold for that little child to surface,but I think its a deluded bubble.....

Yes they did Ann. One couple used a baby monitor..the other couple apparently did the same checks as the McCanns x

Did any of the other people in the group have children do we know? If so it must have given them a jolt and food for thought.

I agree Marion..it's all about narrowing the odds. Mine have fallen, banged their heads etc...and they've screamed their heads off but they've had help and reassurance in a minute if not seconds ! half hourly checks? *shudders* that's a long time for a child to be left hurting :-(

One of mine ended up in hospital.....he fell out his bunk bed.I was in bed, heard the thump.Things do happen I know but a lot can be avoided with a bit of common sense. They abviously didnt think about what could happen.....what ever it was.

Marion

Children can come to harm even if you do not leave them on their own. A knock at the door, little Freddy is playing with his toys, one goes to answer the knock........little Freddy plays with the electric plug !!!!!!! You cannot watch children all the time.

All I am saying is..........this case is a very rare occurrance, thank heavens, and the result has been devistating.

Well mine were never left. I would get baby sitters or they went with me.
Kids dont sleep right through,all it takes is a noise,dream, feel hot,cold or unwell.
And they should have known better.And if i am right they were left every night alone,while they ate and drank.

Marion

I wouldn't dream of leaving my girls in a locked or unlocked house and going anywhere for any length of time....day or night. ..and I don't know anyone else that would. :S

Tell me, who can put their hand on their heart and say they never popped up to the corner shop to get a pint of milk, met Mrs Jones and had a bit of a natter, whilst little Samantha played in the garden/was asleep/watching cartoons.

I am sure the MacCanns wish they could turn back time, as we have all done at some point in our lives. To have had a child killed whilst on holiday would be hell, but not to know where she is, if she is still alive, will she ever be found.

As far as news papers are concerned, I read a story, divide by 100, subtract the number first thought of, and then you may have the correct story. After all, newspapers want to sell newspapers.

Please don`t vilify the McCanns, for "There but for the grace of God, go I"

There is no evidence the child was even abducted from the apartment....there is just as much chance that she *woke and wandered*,,..I've never been able to get my head around why that was always considered impossible...and abduction the only option in the eyes of the parents...especially as it was eventually conceded that the patio doors were left unlocked....at nearly four she'd be well able to open them...but that's just one of the many things that just don't seem to *fit* in this case.

Like every one else I would dearly love to think that one day she will be found. As I've said many many times before..I have a little girl the same age as Madeleine and the case had a massive effect on me...hence my prolonged interest in it.

I never understood their decision to leave those children alone .. the fact that Madeleine asked her mother the day before she went missing why they didn't come to her and her brother when they were crying at night baffles me. It is a parents duty to attend in those circumstances..and it's clear they weren't as sound sleepers as had been claimed if they were waking through the night. like that..How scared must those poor toddlers have been.? Crying in the dark in a strange place with no one coming to their aid.? Then for them to be left again the next night knowing full well what had happened the night before...shocking ! ....Breaks my heart to think of what must've been going on in their heads.

I'm sure if she ever was found they'll be teams of psychologists who would be able to help her make sense of it all..bless her heart x

As Doctors they should have had more sense than to leave the kids.
In my eyes it was neglect.

Marion

For the Child I have every sympathy,and I hope she is found, However, for the Parents none at all, in fact they are lucky in as much the other children were,nt taken and they were not charged with Child Neglect.**M**

I think the time for blaming the parents has passed. I am sure that there were mistakes made on all sides, the first by the parents (and I have heard Kate say she regretted leaving them, regretted that he didn't go into the room when he checked because the door was open and not as they left it, regrets not paying attention to something Maddie tried to tell them the day before). (how often do we ignore our children?) There was also the stupidity of the notice displayed in the reception area which told everyone that hte Mcann's party needed a table near the door because they had to check on their children, fancy advertising that fact.

One thing is certain, we will never, ever, know how devastated the Mcann's are by the loss of their child, we can't feel their pain. I feel sorry for them, it is not charitable to feel otherwise. I hope that Maddie is still alive and that she has been looked after. I am not sure she is though unless in a very isolated area.

I am still reading the book when I get the time and I will draw my own conclusions.