Jul. 23, 2006 - 22:19 MDT

IN THE U.S.A.

Heart sickening to read something like this. In Sunday's Denver Post in the Nation Briefing. Doesn't warrant big headlines, but raises my hackles. Here in full :

WICHITA

TWO GIRLS FOUND STARVING IN BASEMENT

"Two girls who told police they ate only when their father wasn't traveling on business were hospitalized after police found them in an advanced state of starvation."

"The 6- and 7-year old girls were found Friday in a home's basement, where they were kept."

"The girl's stepmother, whose biological children were found healthy and well-fed upstairs was taken for questioning. Their father, traveling on business, was to be questioned when he returned, police said."

"State social workers discovered the girls after receiving a tip and checking on their welfare. They then called police."

"A doctor told police it appeared the girls hadn't eaten in six days or had anything to drink in three days, despite recent temperatures above 100 degrees. He said the starvation had been going on MUCH longer than six days."

++++++++++

Of course the article didn't mention the amount of time the father spent away from home each trip, nor how long he was home before the next one. And possibly it is too early to hear whether there was discord between the man and wife.

But to my way of thinking and trying to live, no child deserves to be abused in any way, and starvation is an extreme of abuse. Not to mention withholding of fluids when temps were in the 100 degree range or for that matter withholding liquids in the proper amount per day.

According to the doctor the starvation had been going much longer than six days, which seems to indicate that it might have been going when the father was still home before he left on his business trip.

Shades of Dave Pelzer (A Child Named It) make me shiver to think of things like that.

There are people in our country who are so poor that whole families are near starvation and too proud to ask for help. But to think an American mother would treat step-children that way is an amazing heart break.

Pray God it will never happen again here IN THE U.S.A. . . . . . . . . . .

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