AR - Clifton Kurk, 18 mos, dies in dishwasher, Romance, 30 May 2007

[KarlK]

We don't know why the father was sleeping. Perhaps because he's a lazy bum yes, but perhaps he wasn't feeling well or was just napping after lunch like many people do. After all there was someone of babysitting age in the house and that kid (the 13-year-old) probably thought that as long as his brothers weren't hollering or crying or making excessive noise then it meant they were behaving. A mobile home is a small place, you'd expect to be able to notice if small kids are getting into trouble and in fact the teen became concerned when he heard the dishwasher because it wasn't a noise he was expecting to hear at that time of the day. Of course it took him some time to realize that the dishwasher wasn't supposed to be on but familiar noises, even when heard outside of their usual time frame, don't always immediately register as emergencies.

 

[DBinMA]

As for the father he sounds like a deadbeat loser!! IMO He deserves the charges.

Jobless and napping all afternoon. Why do women put up with such men??[/quote]


Not that I necessarily support this particular Dad, but as a working woman who was previously a stay at home Mom... It's exhausting to take care of young kids, wether you're a mom or a Dad. As a stay at home mom I fell asleep more than once, maybe he was tired from being up at night with one of the kids who knows. There are also lot's of legitimate reasons to be between jobs.

 

[southcitymom]

Don't know about this particular family, but staying home with kids is a JOB - some would say the most important one in the world.

But I do know the type Amraan references - I'm a recruiter and I call job-seekers all day long at home. I can't tell you how many times a lazy-sounding, slurring man has answered the phone at 10 a.m. while tv cartoons blare in the background to tell me the woman I'm seeking "is at work." Later when I finally talk to this woman, she'll tell me that her husband/finace/boyfriend is looking for a job but the market is so bad he can't find one and that she really needs a better-paying job.:waitasec:

But is this family like that? Not enough information to know.

I personally think this was a tragic accident.

 

[feddup]

I believe the 13 yo was zoned on his video game. I have seen teenagers into a video game and they may as well be on another planet.

As for the father he sounds like a deadbeat loser!! IMO He deserves the charges.

Jobless and napping all afternoon. Why do women put up with such men??

I agree! Why is everyone blaming the dishwasher? If the 13 mo old wouldve had a RESPNSIBLE adult looking after him, this woulve never happened! The 13 yr old, you cant expect him to watch a 13 mo old baby! When my son ws that age, I wouldnt have expected him to b responsible for an active 13 mo old.

 

[Spazkat9696]

I would expect the dad sleeping to be awake and watching his kids. The 13 year old should not be expected to handle a 3 year old and 13 month old espically when his unemployed dad is home doing nothing productive towards finding a new job.

 

[Marie]

Just a correction - little Clifton Blake Kurck was 18 months old.
The father's name is Michael Wayne Kurck.

 

[Bobbisangel]

Did the news article say that the father is unemployed or has that just been assumed because he was home and asleep during the day? There is the possibility that the man works nights and sleeps during the day. Maybe the mother was called into work and doesn't normally work on certain days so the dad was trying to get a little sleep while the 13 yr old watched the younger kids. We don't know the whole story here. This guy might not be a deadbeat dad at all. This was an accident that could happen to anyone with a dishwasher that you don't have to slide the lever before it will close and turn on. Anyone of us who has raised children and have been lucky enough that nothing ever happened to them while they were in our care should thank God.
Accidents happen daily to little kids and we never know when it could happen to ours.....never say never.

 

[Spazkat9696]

The link in post 40 says he's unemployed.

 

[Marie]

I don't fault this father, or the 13yo, at all for this accident (I feel much the same as Bobbisangel). And unemployed person is not necessarily a deadbeat - I'm unemployed and stay home with my children just like this father did. Many families chose for one parent to stay home, especially when children are young like these children. I've also taken many a nap, and I dare any stay at home parent to deny s/he has never done the same. There is just no way forus parents to predict every potential danger to our children; we try, we do our best, yet sometimes tragic accidents still happen. We are human after all, and humans are not perfect. There is not one parent, not one of their children, who has not been faced with a potential harmful accident that could have been prevented (if you claim otherwise then I nominate you for Sainthood).

Yes, our laws state that when preventable mistakes (negligence) lead to harm or death we must be punished. It's a lesson for all of us. We can all be thankful that we now know the potential deadliness of dishwashers, of deciding a 13yo is capable of watching two toddlers, of taking a nap while young children are in our care (who perhaps wake from their nap before we do). And we can be grateful that our own many mistakes have not lead to the death of our child. Face it, no parent is mistake free, and the anger and blame placed on this father is done so that parents can find reason to believe that no such tragedy will ever happen to their child.

 

[southcitymom]

I don't fault this father, or the 13yo, at all for this accident (I feel much the same as Bobbisangel). And unemployed person is not necessarily a deadbeat - I'm unemployed and stay home with my children just like this father did. Many families chose for one parent to stay home, especially when children are young like these children. I've also taken many a nap, and I dare any stay at home parent to deny s/he has never done the same. There is just no way forus parents to predict every potential danger to our children; we try, we do our best, yet sometimes tragic accidents still happen. We are human after all, and humans are not perfect. There is not one parent, not one of their children, who has not been faced with a potential harmful accident that could have been prevented (if you claim otherwise then I nominate you for Sainthood).

Yes, our laws state that when preventable mistakes (negligence) lead to harm or death we must be punished. It's a lesson for all of us. We can all be thankful that we now know the potential deadliness of dishwashers, of deciding a 13yo is capable of watching two toddlers, of taking a nap while young children are in our care (who perhaps wake from their nap before we do). And we can be grateful that our own many mistakes have not lead to the death of our child. Face it, no parent is mistake free, and the anger and blame placed on this father is done so that parents can find reason to believe that no such tragedy will ever happen to their child.

Great post.

 

[Dena]

The link in post 40 says he's unemployed.

Why is it that when it's a man, it's "unemployed", but for a woman it's "stay at home mom"?

I refuse to place blame on this one.