So I was walking by some places earlier today... I heard some lady yelling so I slowed down and listened a bit. This is what I heard:"You hit him! I can't believe you hit him you idiot! Thay's why he ran away you moron!Oh my god." Now, she was obviously yelling at her husband. As I heard this, a car pulled up to her house and a lady walked inside and closed the door behind, her. I heard some muffled yelling, and decided to continue walking. I thought about what I had heard. I knew who this kid was, I had seen him at the bus stop a few times. He seemed a little weird, but overall a nice kid. I've seen him with his dad. The kid had lost his bus pass about a week before the end of the month. The father was yelling at the kid about how he was an idiot, and if he didn't find his bus pass he was going to have to walk to school (his school is about 5 kms away), and do it in the cold (it's been -15 lately). The kid was obviously afraid, not making eye contact with his dad, he just agreed with him. I haven't seen the kid around for a few weeks now.I don't know, it's just that this guy seems like a real asshole. I mean who in their right mind would literally hit their kid? The way the wife was yelling it sounded like he actually hit him, not some stupid like a little spanking or anything. The guy doesn't really seem like he has a good relationship with his kid either. Then I thought about the kids future. If his dad makes him afraid of him now, is he going to go around being afraid of him? Is this just the start of a downward spiral? All of those things ran through my mind. It just makes me mad hearing about how this sweet little kids father could hit him.Now I don't know, that's exactly what I heard and how I interpretted it. Who else would the mom be yelling at though? It's only her, her son, and her husband. I don't know... it just makes me feel sick thinking that these things are going on...
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Overheard something
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Have you thought about reporting it to the police? If I understood you right, he has been missing for a few weeks. I think that would be the kind of information the police would be interested in.
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No, the kid just hasn't been at the bus stop in the morning for a few weeks... He had been missing for a little while I think. It sounded like the father hitting him had just happened.
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As far as the law goes, you (as a Canadian citizen) have the responisibility, and duty to inform the police, or child and family services regarding this issue. Regardless of whether something happened or not, it is best to have some figure that out, lest something horrible happen.
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You should definatly tell someone. Intervention for this family may really help. There are alot of dads out there like that...I seem to get wrapped up with them all the time.Counseling, and sometimes just "being put on notice" seems to help out.Also, for your sanity, you should say something, what if something happens to this kid, and you ARE correct...You would have that guilt of not doing anything.Good luck hon.
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Thanks everyone,I don't know... it's just hard to do stuff about it. It's a weird situation to me...
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i dont want to sound like a jerk but dude, this isnt your business. you dont know the full story, all you know is what you heard. i dont think you should say anything.
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So if this kid is really in situation where some outside help would be useful, he shouldn't bother to help because it doesn't involve him? You obviously value a very exclusive life that neglects inclusiveness to others, personal value versus community value. What goes on around him should be his business too. If something isn't right and he can do something about it then why shouldn't he? He doesn't know the full story, but he can report exactly what he does know because abuse can be very serious, and if this kid is missing then that's even more of a reason.
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Yeah, I was by their place again today (delivering papers), and I didn't see the kid (who normally snags the papers from me), or the dad. Only the mom and some old guy were there. So I'm kind of worried about the kid.