Boy Dies in Rotating Restaurant Tragedy. I’ll Bet You Can Guess What Happened Next

The parent blaming is ridiculous but if you believe that it was God’s will that did this, your God is an asshole.

Compare this story with the one about the little girl who became separated from her family while at the beach in Florida. http://jacksonville.com/news/national/2017-04-14/beach-photo-captures-beauty-hearts-florida-officer-guides-lost-girl-back. The story and photo are being praised as heartwarming. No one blamed the family for not watching their child, and the parents weren’t arrested for neglect. I’m betting if the child had gotten hurt or kidnapped, it would’ve been a different story.

It always amazes me how many perfect parents there are in the world, always read to sit in judgement for things they have allegedly never done.

The next step, of course, is to outlaw rotating restaurants. Clearly they’re dangerous.

/s

Sorry, Lenore, but this is supremely dumb. I don’t have to believe in an imaginary God or some objective immutable “fate” to accept that accidents happen. Why would you even try to bring mysticism or the supernatural into this?

James brings up a good point – other parents intervening when a child is in danger. A couple of weeks ago a man brought his children (looked like 7 and 4 yrs old) to the pool. He then LEFT THEM THERE, at the pool, alone, apparently to go get some things.

The youngest promptly stripped off his clothes and went into the hot tub. He had swim trunks on. I couldn’t believe a parent would be so irresponsible! I kept an eye on him. If he’d have fallen into the pool, I would have tried to save him, but in this world, I’d likely get sued. :/

The father was gone at least five minutes, hard to believe…

“The parent blaming is ridiculous but if you believe that it was God’s will that did this, your God is an asshole.”

@Roger:

As a Christian I believe that anybody who would say this was “God’s will” is engaging in ignorance. God is not the author of tragedy.

I did see some of these comments below the article and I replied back to many of them and pointed to the ignorance of their judgments. One of my replies was something to the effect of shame on the parents for not looking into their crystal ball before they went to the restaurant otherwise they would have known this extremely rare tragedy would have occurred and therefore could have prevented it. Fortunately many other bloggers replied to the many ignorant comments with similar sarcasm.

Roger, please do not call anyone’s god an a-hole. Inappropriate. I believe in God, and I know that children sometimes die in accidents. So that makes my God an a-hole because he did not stop those accidents? Our small brains cannot comprehend what the greater plan might be. I can’t imagine the reason for these horrible tragedies. But you calling God an a-hole is no different than the people out there posting that the parents are a-holes for “letting” this happen to their child. It’s no one’s fault.

Lenore, chalking an accident up to “fate” or “god’s will” is a total cop-out. Kids need to learn basic restaurant manners – sitting quietly in your seat and not annoying other patrons or possibly tripping up a waiter with a tray of hot food. Sorry, this one was indeed the parents’ fault.

@James and Tonya: If I had been those strangers, I’d done same. But these days, many people are just too afraid to get involved, for fear of reprisal from the parents, it’s happened. So people, unlike in the past, keep to themselves. It’s a perpetual circle of ignorance, arrogance, and fear. More now than ever before.

My rule of thumb with my own, from the day they were born…teach them to be successful adults. I love my kids, when they were born, to this very day. But I have never once thought of them as a hood ornament, a property to show off. They have always been PEOPLE. People who don’t have the experience yet to navigate this world safely and productively. So as parents it’s our job to make sure they learn. And that can start as early as 3-4 years old. Personally, from the day they are born. Teach them habits. Even if they don’t understand yet, they will get used to the habit. It makes for a good base when they do start comprehending.

I just look back at my own childhood, and teach the same values and lessons I was taught. And add from my own experiences based on what I was taught as child. I’ve always said and believe, the best way to protect your children, is to teach them to protect themselves. Sheltering, coddling, spoiling, are never good things for children. It makes things worse for them as they grow up. I know kids 15-17, who are deathly afraid to take transit. They regurgitate what they’ve been told. “Kidnapped, sexual assault, killed”. So their parents (disgruntling) drive them around everywhere. lol Many of those parents do regret that they contributed to their children’s paranoia. They “never expected their children will turn out that way”. lol NO, of course not. They teach them to be fearful about almost everything, and they don’t understand why their kids are fearful of almost everything. smh

I’m glad you wrote on this. Now, personally, I am the kind of person who gets very annoyed at people who don’t control their kids at restaurants, who let them be noisy, run around, etc. It’s just bad manners. However, with the very limited information we have, there is no evidence these were such parents. I am familiar with this restaurant and have been there, the fact that it is on the fancier side and the fact that it rotates (which could be disorienting) makes me speculate that it is in fact very unlikely the parents were just letting their kid roam around all night. More likely it was a case of the boy just wandering off while they were paying the check, packing up to go, or in some other way distracted just long enough for him to wander off. News reports have noted he was only a few feet from the table, so it isn’t like they would have had to have eyes off of him for long for this to occur.

And you know what, even if this were a case of parents not controlling their kid and letting them act how they want in restaurants, that is still completely independent from what happened and these parents shouldn’t be blamed for endangering them. Parents who do this annoy me because it interrupts my meal, not because I think their kid is in mortal danger by wandering off from their table.

I have also seen people blaming not the parents, but the restaurant. I don’t like that either. Rotating restaurants of this sort aren’t new, and I don’t think there’s ever been a case of this happening in the world (thus the headlines). Just because this happened doesn’t mean 1. The restaurant was irresponsibly putting patrons at risk or 2. We now need to ban rotating restaurants. The world isn’t 100% safe and I don’t think it should be our goal to make it this way. I also think that while business owners of course should have a reasonable concern for safety, that it is their job to foresee every conceivable risk, however unlikely.

Assuming no revealing information becomes available, this is simply a tragic freak accident that isn’t anyone’s fault.

And with regards to watching other people’s kids; I had a really pleasant experience with this recently. I went to a kid café. It’s got the café area for parents, and play areas for kids. It’s designed as a place for parents who want to meet up to socialize with other adults, while also bringing their kids along without having to watch them the whole time. It relies on cooperative parenting. It’s designed for kids to be running around, while the parents relax and eat and drink, but it’s big enough that you can’t always see your kid from your table. So essentially all the parents cumulatively agree to watch whatever kids are closest to them. I went their recently with my friend and her toddler. Even though she’s only two, we were able to sit and have a nice lunch while her toddler ran around, with my friend only occasionally going to check on her. We knew the other parents would keep her from running out the front door or doing something dangerous, and we in turn kept an eye on any little ones that were running around our table area. It was a great system.

@Melissa: “But you calling God an a-hole is no different than the people out there posting that the parents are a-holes for “letting” this happen to their child. It’s no one’s fault.”

Sorry, but if you believe in an all-knowing, all-powerful deity, then EVERYTHING is said deity’s fault.

I tried to read the comments on yahoo, but couldn’t make it past 20. The number of people who never ever ever ever ever take their eyes off their small children is astounding. How are “accidents” even a thing? “I ALWAYS held her hand”…..”I never even have my phone OUT when I am with my children”…..”I NEVER took my eyes off any of my 36 children and luckily I was born without the need to sleep/eat/pee/poop”.

I couldn’t stomach it.

@ Dave, as Judas already said, you simply have no idea if that is what happened.

I was raised by strict parents, and before the age of social media and cell phones. From toddlerhood we were expected to be well behaved at the table, at home or in restaurants, and my parents didn’t give us any leeway in this regard. One of our family’s funniest memories was when we were on vacation in cape Cod. My sister would have been around 4 years old. We were seated at the table at an ocean side seafood restaurant when I got bit by a horsefly. I let out a little shriek, and as my parents turned to tend to me, my little sister slid down out of her seat, dashed from under the table, and over to one of those portable stands waiters use to place trays on. On one of those trays were too huge lobsters. My sister grabbed a lobster by the antenaes peaking over the side of the tray, one in each hand, and crowed triumphantly at her prize. My mortified parents apologized profusely and offered to pay for the lobsters (though the restaurant said no).

Shit happens. Anyone who says they NEVER take their eyes off their kids, even for a moment, is lying.

@ Beth, I also had to stop reading the comments for the same reason

@Judas Peckerwood
“Sorry, but if you believe in an all-knowing, all-powerful deity, then EVERYTHING is said deity’s fault.”

Well, there’s the Devil …

I have no idea whether these parents were watching or not watching, on their phones or not on their phones, etc. I know that children can get away from their parents in a flash. So I will certainly not participate in judging and second guessing of these heartbroken people.

On the other hand, I do sometimes see parents of small children letting their children run around the tables in restaurants without particularly watching them and I don’t think that is a good idea.

One other thought I had in terms of cell phones after Dave’s comments: does anyone else find that parents are much more harshly judged for using cell phones or social media around kids, when they wouldn’t be judged for being distracted by other things around kids? Or that people are judged more harshly for using cell phones, period?

My mother was a voracious reader, and I am as well. When I was a kid and she took me to the playground, as soon as I wasn’t teeny tiny, she often spent her time sitting nearby reading a book while I played. Sure sometimes we played together, but she often read while I played. My daughter is only a baby now, but when I’ve brought my niece to the park I do the same thing; played with her some of the time, and read some of the time while she played alone or with other kids there. I can’t think of mom or me ever getting criticized or a dirty look for this. I live across the street from the park and love to read in the park. Again, I’ve never been on the receiving end of negative attention for reading out in public.

Yet people are constantly criticized for using their smart phones in public. Now there ARE people who are legit addicted to their phones and can’t function without them, or are rude about it (i.e. you go out to dinner and they spend more time looking at their phone than you). But I regularly hear people complaining about, say, seeing a parent on their phone while out with their kid in the park, even though the kid seems perfectly happy and not in any trouble. Even without kids, I hear people lament others using their phones outside instead of enjoying the outdoors or socializing with neighbors, even though no one ever makes those kinds of comments when I’m reading a book.

There was a case some time ago about a child who got into an accident in their home, and the news made a huge fuss about how the mom was posting on Facebook when this occurred. Now perhaps this was a neglectful mom, but the news story didn’t have any info other than, “Kid hurt while Mom was on Facebook… EVIL MOM!!” Yet if that same mom had been, say, knitting, or reading a book, when their kid got into an accident, I doubt very much she would have made the Bad Mommy of the Week headlines.

“That would be ideal, sure. But if they did, and the boy didn’t get injured by the impending accident, the person who intervened would be sued.”

Yes, that’s exactly what I was thinking, the time a quick-thinking, fast-reacting stranger pulled by daughter off the wall above a 600-foot drop. “Now I’m going to have sue him”, I thought, quickly brushing away any gratitude I might have felt. “He had the nerve to actually physically pick up my daughter, and we can’t have that!” I remember thinking.

“Or that people are judged more harshly for using cell phones, period?”

This one. People assume that if you’re reading you’re expanding your mind, while if you’re on a cell phone you’re rotting your brain on Facebook or Pintrest or something. Everyone just KNOWS that if you’re on a cell phone you’re doing something unimportant.

Regarding the “unimportant” part: How is looking at pictures of my niece on Facebook any worse than looking at them in a photo album? This goes double for people like me, who live so far away from their families that Facebook is often the only convenient way to share photos–which means, to have any connection with these relatives at all.

Plus, there’s the fact that smart phone aps that allow you to read books exist. I used to have to use an iPad for work, and downloaded a few public domain books onto it to read during lunch (when you’re working 12 hours a day 5 miles from the nearest road, you need a break!). Given the popularity of these aps in the Apple Store, it’s extremely like that some parents are using their phones as books. Yet no one ever considers that possibility.

Nothing new under the Sun, though. Even as recently as two or three generations ago adults could be mocked for being “readers” in some circles. Newspapers were blamed for destroying conversation–parents would READ SOMETHING rather than talk to their children at the breakfast table!!! I’m reasonably certain there was a caveman complaining that his neighbors spent all their time painting the walls of their cave rather than interacting with their children. And don’t get me started on video game, the media’s favorite dead horse to beat….. Cell phones are just the latest way to blame the victims of tragedy for not being omniscient.

Someone went off on me and read me the riot act for being on my phone in the grocery store. They weren’t the least apologetic when I replied that I was looking at my grocery list.

I think the constant shaming (deservedly) of people driving and texting has been generalized to the point that it’s irresponsible to do *anything* else while on the phone.

Wow, the comments were unreal. I saw a lot of use of the words; stupid, brats, idiot, moron, just wow. One person even blamed a whole race, it’s white people’s fault, that is just insane. I have a very active 5 yr old & unless I wan’t to duct tape him to a chair he moves about. Only one commenter that I noticed blamed the design of the restaurant. There should not have been those gaps & they should not have been accessible period.

@Jessica- It depends, not all social media crucifies parents over accidents and tragedies.

This past winter after a snowstorm, a local community Facebook page posted that a young child was found unresponsive in the snow, needed CPR, and was being transported to the hospital. He was a preschooler playing on his fenced in yard with his puppy while his mother watched through the window. What looked like a Norman Rockwell moment turned to horror when the dog pulled on his scarf and cut off his breathing, causing him to go into cardiac arrest. He later died at the hospital.

All of the comments were prayers for the family. One mother asked why the mom wasn’t right next to him and was told how inappropriate and unnecessary her words were as the family was likely reading the post and comments. After he died, local families donated tens of thousands within a day for this heartbroken family during an unimaginable time. People are good. Neighbors and strangers do care. My kids were out sledding that day, too. We need to put our pointy fingers away and give more handshakes and hugs.

Thank you, lollipoplover. You are right, and I shouldn’t characterize “social media” so broadly. These anonymous places like Yahoo bring out the trolls (and many comments by the same people changing their usernames so it seems like more people “agree”). They are a cesspool. On sites that emphasize individuality and humanity, compassion does show through, even on the internet.

“You don’t want it with NO gap between the tables and the wall that doesn’t rotate.”

The commenter said that there should be no gap between the tables and the wall which would completely defeat the rotating nature of the restaurant.

“That way, nobody and nothing can get caught between the part of the restaurant that moves (the dining room and exterior wall) and the part that doesn’t (the elevators and the kitchen.)”

The exterior wall does not rotate. I’ve never seen a rotating restaurant where the actual building rotates. I’ve only been in a couple, but they have all been designed similarly – the windows and walls are stationary, but dining room floor rotates very slowly.

I unfortunately saw this in action last week when a boy, maybe 11 or 12, dislocated his shoulder while riding his bike in a parking lot. People who passed by were frantically calling for an ambulance, screaming about him being hit by a car, with absolutely nothing pointing to this. His mom and aunt were standing there with him and everyone was wondering where his horrible, neglectful mom was. As if her super powers would have stopped him from trying to pop a wheelie on the fly, outside of her running behind him holding onto the seat of the bike. It was disturbing and that was just a minor accident.

I don’t how they are designed. I don’t want to pretend that I’m smarter than the engineers that designed this. It’s been deemed safe enough as there are thousands of rotating restaurants worldwide. I think this would classify as a freak accident.

Parent shaming has become a popular sport. It takes a lot less than this to set it off. I’m definitely not suggesting this shouldn’t be investigated or assessed how it can be made safer. I’m just sickened at all the people that point blame at parents, restaurant owners, or the engineers that designed the building when they have so very few facts.

LOL! “Facebook Balls”

Some people can be brave only if they’re hiding behind a keyboard.

Melissa, Roger did not call god an a-hole – he said IF one believes it was god who did this, then he is one. Since I don’t believe in god in any way, shape or form, I would chalk up this tragedy to bad luck. If there are people out there who believe that by virtue of keeping their eyes on their children 24/7 will prevent said children from ever being hurt or killed, then they’re going to be in for a hell of a shocker when it does happen. Either that, or they’ll get their kids through childhood physically intact, but emotionally and mentally damaged.

Funny, I read this on my phone while my 2 young kids were climbing on (and falling off) a bike rack outside the not-yet-open library. I didn’t watch them for a solid 2 minutes. What kind of parent does that make me, according to those people?

I think one of the reasons parents blame other parents is they are scared and by saying it is the parents fault then they are assuring themselves it will not happen to them because they are such a better parent. Like your bad so your kid got killed but I am good so mine will never be hurt.

never mind aka nvm.

I realize this isn’t the point, but I am having trouble picturing what happened here.

http://www.ign.com/boards/threads/this-story-breaks-my-heart-death-of-a-disneyland-cast-member-in-the-70s.452669299/

The accident involved an 18yo employee. Now, how would it be fair to blame someone for HER death?