Another false dichotomy (a popular form of "debate" around here) - as if those were the only two choices in her life. She chose to drop a kid she couldn't afford. She chose to work at Hooters which apparently doesn't have covered parking. She chose to use day care rather than other family to take care of the kid. She chose not to have a checklist of what to do in the morning. Etc.
All that aside, I feel slightly sorry for her and a hell of a lot sorrier for the kid. Moral of the story if you can't afford kids don't have 'em.
And yes the bear thing was one of the dumbest moves in the universe, but the idiot mother wasn't the one who suffered for it. What makes it stick in my mind is that my kid was about the same age at the time.
I did acknowledge there were other options for child care, you’re completely correct there.
However...you had to do the “woulda, coulda, shoulda” didn’t you.
The facts are:
She ALREADY HAS a kid. No amount of preaching in the world will change that now. The question is what does she do NOW. Yeah, she “shouldn’t have” but that can’t be undone.
Would your tune change if she was a newlywed who's husband was a marine who was in Iraq and suddenly their life dream of a stay at home mom and children was now that she was alone with a baby and had to work and was completely frazzled because she took a job that she hated and her husband was critically injured?