I've wondered about that...I honestly don't know what I would do/how I would handle it. I'd like to assume that we'd be able to just put it behind us and move on, but...until we're put in that situation...and hopefully we're not, we just don't know.

I wonder how the boy went missing so long without someone noticing? The link isn't working for me and I need to get busy with other things, but...I'd know if the kids hadn't come home and would be calling the school to find out if they'd gotten on the bus and be calling the bus driver and so on until he was found, you know?

Much like filtered_sunlight, I would hope I would be able to be thankful my child was safe and move forward from the incident. Not having been in such a situation and hoping I never am, I can't answer beyond the possibility.

Move forward.  Also teach your kids what to do in case of such emergencies!  Granted, I'm not autistic; but I have been overlooked on the school bus before, and another time I got left behind in a shop while on a field trip.  Scary, but you learn from them and keep going.  Doesn't hurt to take reasonable precautions though.

I wonder why the mother didn't notice until an hour later?  Wouldn't you notice when the bus went by without stopping to let your kid off? 

I think it has to be somewhere in the middle.  We cannot just trust blindly again, but we will never have complete control and cannot drive ourselves crazy trying. 

Live learn, and as just the average jane said "Teach." 

I'm glad he was fired.  People in positions of trust should go the extra mile to make sure that the trust isn't misplaced.  This is rarely an ideal world, even for a moment.

i think that sometimes people just over-estimate their abilities to handle things or their physical stamina, like it or not, everyone has a limit. if you are tired and sick, better stay away from your job than keep pushing for it till you faint and land yourself in the hospital, or worse land everyone else in the hospital.

but once a bond is broken, it will take a long time for people to trust you again. considering the credibility lost as well as the damage you could potentially do to yourself and others.

i think that is horrible. i work with kids a lot and i would never let that happen.

What frightens me is not that people make idiotic mistakes, like leaving a child on a bus, but the number of parents that just "forgive and forget" because it is easier not to make waves, they think they're being "nice and forgiving" or they can't be bothered to inconvenience themselves by standing up for their kid and for possibly having to change something (like driving the kid to school).  In my experience parents put their own convenience over their child's welfare the majority of the time. 

There are, or should be, safeguards in place to make sure this does NOT happen.  When it does happen it is because someone was not doing their job.  A mistake, ok, but also negligence.  When I was working for a daycare center one of my co-workers left a sleeping child on the bus.  Why?  Because she was pissed at the director of the center, distracted and couldn't wait to get off the bus to vent to another co-worker.  Also she didn't check the kids on and off the bus.  The only reason this child was found was because her older sister asked where she was (they attended different schools and arrived at the center separately).  I asked the co-worker and she insisted the child was in the center, actually becoming quite indignant about it.  While I frantically searched every corner of the center co-worker kept up her venting in the infant room.  I finally found the child on the bus after she'd been there for about 10 minutes.  Not that long BUT it was the last run of the day and had her sister not asked and had I not looked she could have been there until 6:00, a full 3 hours.    So you'd think my stupid co-worker would be fired right?  Nope.  She was "talked to" because to fire her they'd have to fire the Director (who the mgrs. loved) and I was instructed to keep my mouth shut or lose my job.  You'd think the parents would be upset right?  Nope.  They never got to know the whole story and they "hoped no one got in trouble over this".  WTF!?!  Needless to say I changed jobs soon after (but not before another stupid employee gave a child peanut butter despite the fact the child was on the peanut allergy list prominently displayed in the classroom.  That employee was not fired either, entire incident was swept under the rug and the center maintained its spotless record). 

So no, I don't trust people with my children and I don't believe a word they say when they give excuses about inexcusable mistakes.  When something like this happens it is not my job to "forgive and forget" it is my job to make sure it doesn't happen again.

i'm still a minor. people talking about children like this makes me feel like an object.

I have a hard time trusting people at times.  I do not take trust lightly.  I am absolutely honored every time someone leaves their kids with me to baby-sit.  I know how huge it is that they can trust me with something that is so precious to them- their kids! 

you can't think that way because things happen in life. you can't base a whole lifetime on one incident. you have to hope that people have the skills, compassion, and respect to do what they have to and to do things out of the goodness of their heart.

I'm glad the child was alright and that the bus driver was fired.

In answer to your question, I think that you have to do a little of both. I think that everyone needs to take a little extra precaution these days. But, something like this is never asked for.

I wonder how that bus driver got off the bus without noticing the child. Even if the child was completely quiet, wouldn't they see the child in that huge mirror buses have? And if not, wouldn't you think it should be procedure (especially if you have autistic children or children with other handicaps) to do a once-over or a twice-over yourself, going down the aisle and checking each and every seat and whatnot?

I haven't read the article yet, but I am about to. But, I'm glad that that irresponsible (or at the very least extremely unobservant and lazy bus driver) got fired for this. There is no excuse!

I really don't think I've ever heard of anything like this before. o.o;

@zockonzockon@xanga - Yes, there has to be a balance but just as some people err too much on the side of distrust other people err too much on the side of trusting anyone, mostly because it makes their own life easier. 

We had a dad come into our daycare center one morning wanting to enroll his daughter, right.that.minute.  No lie, he had NEVER been to our center, not met our staff, not visited a classroom, NOTHING, but he wanted to leave his daughter right then because his regular daycare fell through (I guess) and he needed to get to work.  He was furious that we would not take her without a health form filled out by a doctor.    He was the most egregious example but we had parents all the time who enrolled their kids after barely glancing around the center and asking no questions. 

And it's not just daycare.  You hear ALL THE TIME about kids abducted or killed by someone the "parent" left them with because they wanted to go out/had to go to work/needed a break whatever.  They didn't care Mr. Joey next door had a rap sheet a mile long and is on the sex offender registry they needed a babysitter. 

The fact is kids RARELY die from overly cautious parents who are slow to trust and who demand accountability.  They DO die or are injured from parents placing too much trust in others and not holding others to high standards.