Calling all shoppers...

I was out shopping yesterday - something I hate to do on the weekends since it is so very crowded - when out of nowhere I heard: "What the hell is wrong with you?!?"

I turned around to see a young girl, no more than fourteen or fifteen, yelling at a much younger (4, 5?) girl that I assume to be her sister. As I watched her continue to berate the child to tears, I was speechless for two reasons: One, no one else seemed to be bothered by this despite the fact that I was at a BabiesRUs, and the store was packed. Two, children who are that aggressive at such a young age should never be given charge of a smaller child. Where was their mother?

I thought about stepping in and saying something, but the girl was gone before I could even begin to think of something to say that would diffuse the situation without making it worse. I felt dirty for the rest of my shopping trip, like I'd witnessed something out of a movie where the little child crying needs help and everyone is too worried about "offending" the parents to do something about it.

But what bothered me even more was the lack of shock from everyone else. There were a ton of mothers around that could have been thinking the same as me, but they didn't even flinch or turn to look in the direction of the girls. Is this how things are nowadays? Am I now considered "old-fashioned" to still have concern, or is it that everyone else is just de-sensitized to the angry words and swearing being used by children? Perhaps it is just me, but few things disturb me quite so much as seeing a child who speaks as crudely as a trucker, especially when their parents condone the behavior!

What does everyone else think?

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I did find out something helpful while I was at the store: Any items at BabiesRUs or ToysRUs that have an "8" at the end of the price (ex: $17.98) are items that are going to be discontinued! So if you are buying a set of something and just buying the pieces as you need them, buy them sooner if the last number in the price is an "8" - they might not be there for long!!