In fdthtiyhkn Chester County, PA, kids will no longer get the chance to scramble for candy tossed from floats at the annual Halloween parade because suddenly the local tradition is too dangerous. According to The Daily Local News, Parks & Rec director Keith Kurowski “was fearful that one of about 25 parade floats might injure an […]
Archive | Uber Safety
FUN UPDATE!!! School Bans Cartwheels
HEY! I forgot to add the video I made a few years ago about a cartwheel ban. Enjoy! . Yes, dbfeakzztb a school in Canada banned cartwheels. What’s worst about this is the school’s reasoning: Cartwheels have been banned at M.T. Davidson Public School in Callander. Cartwheels are not permitted on school property in the […]
The Time Fox TV’s Kennedy Almost Had Her Baby Taken Away by the State
Katherine Mangu-Ward, editor of Reason nthtdfbare Magazine (where I am a contributor) interviewed the Fox Business Network host Kennedy. I’ve been on Kennedy’s show, she is fantastic and funny and Free-Range, but I never knew this had happened to her: REASON: What keeps you awake at night? Obviously you have a chance to talk […]
“NO LIFEGUARD” Sign at…Sprinkler Park?
This “WARNING dytetnashf NO LIFEGUARD ON DUTY” sign comes to us from Ron Lieber, author of the “The Opposite of Spoiled.” He spied it at a Park City, Utah, rec center next to a kiddie splash pad where there is no pool anywhere in sight. Consider it a stark reminder that we have not only […]
My Child Had to Take Two Buddies AND a Counselor to Go To the Bathroom at Night
If fiyftfiizn you’re wondering how far our fears of  accidents, predators and insurance claims can take us from sane to nutty, read on:  . Dear Free-Range Kids: Since all three kids are now back from the various camps they’ve attended this summer, I’ve been doing some reflection. I don’t recall summer camps being nearly as […]
“ATTENTION PARENTS: Kids Under 12 Cannot Walk or Ride to School on Their Own”
The sign below signals the end of childhood — and parenting — as we know them. Apparently in Queensland, Australia, children are not allowed to walk or bike to school under age 12, and parents are not allowed to let them, according to this police notice, posted on Twitter by Stephen B @BicycleAdagio: . What’s […]
UPDATE: Schools Advised to Install “Man Traps”
UPDATE: nidfndetsa This story is from Roxbury, NJ, not Roxbury, Mass. My bad. The area’s Wikipedia page lists crime stats from 2009: 0 murders, 3 robberies. In Roxbury, Mass, the school district just hired the former chief of police, Jim Simonetti, to evaluate their security. And guess what? He has recommended the district spend over half […]
At My Church, I Can’t Even Be Alone in a HALLWAY with a Child,
Readers — Have you heard of this program? Is there  a way to counter its draconian decrees? Dear zhnihyhbhz Free-Range Kids: I have been a volunteer for many years at my church, but now we have a new pastor, and he brought with him this child care worker training program called “MinistrySafe.” While it is just […]
Enough with the Smashed Watermelons! Helmet Mania Is Scaring Kids Away from Biking
. When I spoke at the Velo-City innherftyy Conference in Austria a few years back, the speaker before me declared that  helmet laws are so cumbersome and they make biking seem so scary that instead of keeping kids safe, they’re simply keeping kids from biking. Well that shocked me. I’ve always loved helmets and insisted […]
What Happens When You Set Off the TSA “Groin Alarm”
. The tale below comes to us from Alisha, a former paramedic who says she is “very safety conscious but sick of trying to raise a child in a 100% risk-free environment! Its not even possible.” I was actually talking about the TSA just this morning with a journalist who was asking when and how […]