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JK
Top Member
USA
7307 Posts |
 Posted - 09/04/2011 : 09:43:58 AM
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A phenomenon in our industry that does not result in death happens some 5,000 times a year, a rider left sleeping on an actual school bus. The same event happens in personal vehicles where death is the result some 50 times per year.
Our industry is virtually silent toward defending school bus drivers caught up in this issue, very little said to help protect our fellow school bus drivers form malicious, slanderous and libelous attacks most often seems from a mob mentality, giving the attackers and lynch mobs much of the say.
Decades ago a lawyer mentioned to me a saying among prosecutors that presents these are not worthy of their title until convicting an innocent person. Supposedly refers to a moment in history that declared, it would be, "better [to] hang the wrong men than confess that British sagacity and activity have failed to discover the real criminals." ~ Thomas Chisholm Anstley.
What is so amazing is that outside our industry involving parents and daycare workers where the same lynch mob mentality is also present (example below) is offset by a flood of responses defending the parent already suffering a most horrific tragedy.
An abundance of parents unintentionally leaving a child sleeping in their vehicle face the gates of hell head on, stand up for their spouse and one another, openly talk about their event in the media to help warn others, present the science, even have a support network to help one another that seems no employee union has the guts to establish in our industry.
In our industry we seem to favor the ‘closet mentality’ escape method, scapegoat the bus driver when workable and even when other issues are present, cower down to the mobs in our industry at virtually every level, starting with the bus driver him or herself, and often including silence from fellows, and even from employee unions from what I can find.
One industry related organization was found that commented with some sort of defense concerning this issue, albeit vague the comment:
"Looking for a child on a bus, on the surface, seems to be a very simple task that, underneath the surface, is much more difficult [than] what we realize." ~ Kathleen Furneaux, executive director of the Syracuse-based Pupil Transportation Safety Institute.
What can be found in defense of our fellows is drowned out by horrific silence, procedural workplace abuse of the employees, and/or by the SCREAMING demands to crucify the accused.
The unintended seems just as vulnerable to attack as the intended – malicious, slanderous and libelous remarks, even from too many of their own fellows and sometimes even by their employer in the press, and sometimes promoted in a few states by the court and law.
I’ve witnessed first hand over the years bus drivers missing their check with no event happening as a result, well aware and warned about a weak spot in management monitoring concerning this issue and the lack of an inexpensive child check alert system.
Although in all my career did not leave a sleeping child on the school bus I was prepared to defend myself, and also available to help defend any fellow driver at our facility were an event to happen. Defended the bus driver in another community when he unintentionally left one of my grandchildren sleeping on the bus.
In for a penny, in for a pound. Interesting finding this usage example in an online dictionary: "I could get fired just for talking to you. Well... in for a penny, in for a pound! Come on in." ~ urban dictionary
Glad to see the support outside our industry in the story's comments for those loving parents and caregivers making an innocent mistake. Sad not to see that in our industry where death is averted time after time, thousands upon thousands of times, 5,000 times each year and for over a decade the same outcome --
This I say: All are vulnerable in and outside this industry. Not to be ready is a foolish career choice. Can not find the appropriate support within this industry from fellows, your employer, or even from your union?
Then go outside: www.Kidsandcars.org is a great place to start when your unintended event happens, and it may happen to you and regardless of the stop-gaps you yourself have in place on your school bus. It can still happen to you, especially to the most confident that think to themselves or otherwise openly boast – “It will never happen to me, I care too much.”
Defend Yourself for the sake of decency toward others: Face hell’s gates. Openly talk about your unintended event in the media with the help of a sharp lawyer or an organization willing to help bring in some science to explain a common phenomenon. (See: authentic self).
Your mind can trick you in to thinking you performed a check that didn’t happen. Self education concerning methods to trick your mind back in to performing the checks may help. Read about them and design your own method that helps your own mind intervene in the distractions and other changes in your routine. Not foolproof but helps.
Here’s just one of hundreds of stories where death had its way, in this story even NHTSA was present and helped to present this issue:
Parents share personal tragedies of unintentionally leaving child in car
"Distractions fool good parents into thinking their children are safe."
By Whitney Mountain
Sep. 1, 2011
Sacramento Bee
The day her daughter died, Haley Wesley changed her routine. She drove a different car to work and took a different route after dropping something off at her old office.
On May 18, 2007, Wesley bypassed the roads she usually took to drop her daughter Maddison off at day care. ...
Click here for story.
Video of public discussion
Click here for story.
Intro: Justin Marson
"I had the privilege of speaking at a press event put on by NHTSA, CA OTS and Mercy San Juan Medical Center on August 31, 2011 with the intent of increasing awareness about the phenomena of children being unintentionally left in vehicles. Please take the time to help people understand this issue by linking and sharing this video."
And look at this comment ... factless and unscientific. False accusers, in my opinion are not exclusive to our industry:
“Laurrie Brooks -- For the people that sympathize for the idiotic parents that LET THEIIR children die because they oops, I decided to use my purple water bottle instead of my blue one, sounds like a good day to forget my child in the car - seriously? "The loss of a child is punishment enough" is a lame point from another person who didn't care enough about their children to put their safety first. There are parents everyday that KILL their children and leaving babies in the car is the same thing. "Distractions fool good parents" is a bunch of bolgna. These parents were too busy trying to impress someone at work, more concerned about their Starbucks or more interested in taking naps. This article is for their community service they have to fulfill and the guilt they have to carry. I don't feel sorry at all for these people but very sorry and sad for the children they are still caring for and can have.”
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Edited by - JK on 09/19/2011 2:44:31 PM
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A phenomenon in our industry?
