It is a shifting view of children. And I am afraid that it is likely to touch Asian nations as well. :( But on the up side, I think some parts of the west might start shifting back. I am seeing a lot of responses to these kinds of stories that seem to condemn this kind of nonsense. I was unaware that it had even reached such a point of insanity. I was left home alone purely on my own all day, very often, when I was 10. I had no idea children were seen as being so helpless that they couldn't be left alone for a few hours. But there is a very strong disconnect between children and adults these days, so I suppose it isn't that surprising that most adults wouldn't understand how capable children really are. Wonder how these idiots would feel about Restaurant Girl who can effectively run the entire customer-side of the restaurant on her own. I'm unsure of her cooking skills, though, so I won't say she can run the entire restaurant without help, but she can manage the rest of it if she actually needed to. :) It makes me feel kind of sad that so many people are blind as to how capable children are.