So true.

If anyone other than an officer or CPS agent takes your children, they will face consequences and justice has an opportunity to prevail. If an officer or CPS agent takes your children justice never enters the equation and consequences don't exist for them.

ADD: What can you do? "You might be able to beat the rap but you can't beat the ride. Now comply." In such situations you really are powerless. The worst kind of fear and situation, one where you are powerless.

I wonder how many of your neighbours feel the same as you. I wonder, if after seeing your kids play in the front yard, how many would respond in kind, letting their kids outside to play with yours, assuming that if one parent was willing then they wouldn't feel so guilty about it.

I suppose we just don't live in that kind of world anymore. I used to play the suburbs with other kids, we were rarely in the backyard, going around on the cul-de-sac and the windy roads of suburbia. By the time I was about 10 or 11 I had biked across the entire city.

My daughter is 3, we live in the city, but there are kids. The roads are busier and the neighbourhood more crowded with more cars now. I'm not sure if I'll have the same attitude. Funnily as grandparents even my parents seem much more reluctant, and worried about my daughter than they were about us.

Hardly delusional and seriously un-fun when you are on the receiving end.

When my son was 6-ish and my daughter around 1 years old, we got a visit from DFS(like CPS). This was 8 years ago and the amount of rage it brings up in me is immense. Being immediately threatened with your child being taken away for refusing to do ANYTHING that they ask is ridiculous. I'm sure it is there to be able to have some power over the deadbeats, but when you think you are a normal family doing nothing wrong, it is pure rage inducing.

They tour your entire house. They check your fridge and food preparation areas. They check your yard. They interview your kids wherever they are. So if it is at school, guess what, they school now thinks you are a craptastic parent because only some shithole would have DFS called out on them. Of course, that rumor-mill then goes full force. We were never treated the same by anyone at the school ever again. Our kids never got invited to any more parties. No one there ever wanted to set up play dates anymore.

When the DFS agent finally gets around to telling you the reason for the visit, it is an anonymous complaint. That's right. Anonymous, even if you are proven to be completely not in violation and it is some crackpot calling them up to report you, you will never find out who that person is.

Ours was anecdotes and funny stories we had told some neighbors. Like the time that our son took off his dirty diaper and painted a wall with it, including behind a shelf that he put back and we didn't notice for a month and as such hadn't cleaned until then.

Yeah. Our life got seriously messed up on something we had no way to deter or counteract. Crazy neighbor could call them again anytime and send our lives on a spiral.

Hit by a meteor. I would have much more preferred that as I would have a chunk of meteorite to sell.

Thanks for opening my eyes. I didn't want kids before, and I knew if I had them I'd home-school them, not spank them, teach them negotiation skills and so on, but knowing anyone can call CPS, anonymously and without consequences, and put me through that traumatizing and exasperating ordeal, makes me think it's not a matter of desire but prudence.

I can totally understand your rage. I can't imagine another kind of reaction. It is very irresponsible and callous of CPS to act in that way. But then again what did I expect from the guvmint...

Thanks for relating your story.

Where do you live?

No they are not delusional. I know of many cases (from my sister who worked in child protective services) where spiteful(or even sometimes well-meaning) neighbors report people to CPS for the dumbest things. CPS is required to investigate every one of them, and it is quite a hassle.

I'd say most of the time if you are actually doing nothing wrong the chance of them actually taking your kids is pretty low, but the chance of them making your life miserable for a while is pretty high.

The OP never said "The government is going to take my children for playing in the front yard," so I'm at a loss where you got that quote. Maybe you inferred that's what he meant when he said "I'm afraid a neighbor will report me and the government will come take my kids away." That is a very real concern. When a CPS agent comes calling, any righteous indignation on your part can easily result in your children being taken into custody. If you don't bend over and take it with a smile, they'll make it 1000x worse.

EDIT: I really wish I could down-vote things.

So you agree with keeping your child indoors because of the risk of a neighbor filing a false complaint? That is sad.

Where exactly did I say that?

You seem to love putting words into peoples mouths.

Did you not see the question mark? It was unclear if you agreed with the OP that keeps his kids indoors.

I saw the question mark. I also read the judgment right afterwards.

I am definitely not anti-vax.

Having been on the receiving end of this BS, if there was a way I could sue my neighbor for defamation over their false complaint to win something back, I would.

But since restitution is not part of the law, this is a wonderful tool to bully your neighbors with.

You make a reasonable point, but you say it very unreasonably, with unnecessary insults. This is why you're being downvoted.