How can a parent do that?

Question

Every now and again I keep hearing about horrific cases of child neglect by parents and social workers, like this one:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080731/ap_on_re_us/starvation_death_charges The last case I heard was a woman and her parent in England who beat and starved their 3 year old girl to death.How can a parent do that?

Answer 1

some mothers who neglect or kill their young children are going through postpartum psychosis. my sister is going through it right now. parents who do this were obviously not capable of dealing with a child. I think that parents who do this have had to " them" be a logical and well balanced reason. and in worse cases they hate them so much "for whatever reason" that it becomes so easy to hurt and abuse them.  

Answer 2

I don't know how and I don't want to know how. To know how a person can do something like that is to think like that person. I think though when a child is abused like that the abuser should be forced to have their tubes tied or have a vasectomy (depending on the gender of the abuser).

Answer 3

Usually the parent does not love the child, and does not care about their well-being. A child is a lot to handle, most parents struggle, but they do it because they love the child. I guess some people can't handle it. Any parent that harms their child does not deserve the child, and should be punished severely.

Answer 4

Its most likely a mental, psychological or emotional thing.  No one in their right mind would do that to their own child.

Answer 5

That is just horrible and sickening.  Poor child. I can't believe DFS or CPS didn't think anything was wrong with that.  If I had a disabled child, I would raise it to the best of my ability, not murder it.  Every child is a gift from God, no matter if it is disabled or not disabled. People like this should be forcefully sterlized so they can't have kids. This just makes me sick.  

Answer 6

They themselves were probably abused as a child and they never should have had children in the first place. A lot of the times people think that babies are cute and ooh lets have one. Not realizing that they grow up and they are hard work. Parenting is a job. Then when its too late they grow weary and want to take it out on the child. Then there are people who are just sick and demented

Answer 7

I don't know but it makes me sick.  There was a story out in New Mexico where the mother, father & father's brother were raping, beating & starving a 6 month old.  The child eventually died but they all only got 18 years!!  I hate the justice system!

Answer 8

Not all people should be parents. Some people just are not capable of being responsible for others. It's terrible and heartbreaking!

Answer 9

Well they are clearly not "parents" in the true sense of the word. I have to question why on earth the parents even had children or did not adopt them, seeing as they did not want them - obviously.

It makes me sick to the stomach.

Answer 10

Sometimes their actually killers who have the babys, and when the kid grows up they dont want the kid to tell the truth, when the killer kills someone so yeah, and sometimes they really are not ready, and they dont want to put then into adoption,or thye sometimes are very mad at someone else and need to take it out on someone, then when they do they start yelling "what have i done!!!!!!!!". anyway i would never do that ever!

Answer 11

I do know one thing: most every parent like that never intended to be that way when they first became a parent.

I think they were very unprepared for parenthood and I agree with Glenna:  No one in their right mind does that to a child and if they are in their right mind they have no heart.