Mom sells son's car over booze bottle inside
 

Three Cheers for Mom! (We only took the car away until she turned 21 :)

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/app.../NEWS/80108039

It was early last month when Jane Hambleton of Fort Dodge found the bottle under the front seat of her 19-year-old son�s pride and joy.

Her next move was a call to The Des Moines Register's classified advertising department:

OLDS 1999 Intrigue
Totally uncool parents who obviously don't love teenage son, selling his car. Only driven for 3 weeks before snoopy mom who needs to get a life found booze under front seat. $3,700/offer. Call meanest mom on the planet.

The son soon found himself on foot. And the meanest mom on the planet has been showered with accolades from across Iowa and beyond.

*applause*

I mean, he knew the rules and couldn't remember to clean out the car??

I see nothing wrong with what she did. Yay for her.

The mom sounds like she's really enjoying the attention - and if she expects her 19 year old college student son to abstain from alcohol until he's 21, that's fine and well, but her response smacks more of "LOOK HOW GOOD A PARENT I AM!" even more than "I have the best interests of an adult child in mind."

In my mind, the "lesson" would be much more effective if the kid were, say, 16 and not in college. But hey - hopefully it doesn't permanently dent their relationship and everyone lives happily ever after in gloryhound momville.

Hard to say without knowing the mom and the son.

Clearly, she's making a point, but the question is with whom?

I didn't take the time to read the entire link, but I wonder if she bought the car for him, etc.

After raising (mostly successfully) our three, I could understand her reaction.

It's tough watching your kids put themselves in harms way -- no matter how "cool" of a parent you want to be.

He's too old to have his hand held, after you leave the house you need to be given the ability to make your own mistakes. My mom would never go snooping in my car because she knows that a.) I am old enough to make my own decisions and b.) I want to go to law school and can't have a single blemish on my record.

I dunno, I think the mom loves her son. All the kids that could be driving crazy that one time they think they are fine enough to drive, but it is that one time too many--an BAM, your child is dead!!! Well, EFF that, if I were a parent, I could let them do it on my dime. They can get their own car, then I cannot snoop...

Yes, it's helicopter, but if its a difference between prison time or worse, and being the meanest mom... I'd pick the Fear of Mom, hands down...

Obviously he's not. He's drinking under age and his mum had access to the car, so he was probably still living at home.

I agree with the mum. Her house, her car, her rules.

Yeah, this part of the article pretty much says it all:

Well, she probably owns the car, so she can pretty much do what she wants with it. I think selling it is a BIT harsh, but it's her decision.

I think the stuff about "meanest mom" etc is just meant to be funny.

tis better to take the bottle out now and teach him a lesson than to scrap what's left of him off the dashboard later and wishes she had.

yes, he is too told to have his hand held-- but Mom and Dad held his hand when they bought him a car. If he wants free rein, he can buy a car with his own money.

And I agree that the Mom does sound like she is enjoying the attention!

His parents bought him the car THREE weeks before the bottle was found, with the explicit instructions....NO BOOZE or no car. The car was in their name, so it wasn't HIS car, it was their car for him to use. AND it was their financial liability for any injurious actions to other that he might have committed in that vehicle.

IF he had been stopped for any reason, say speeding, at his age, an officer would have searched the car. It happens all the time. So the open container is found in the vehicle....son would definitely get multiple citations for that one.

How is this any different than any number of the ebay listings that garner such attention. For instance the baseball that went through the window that was auctioned for big $$$, or those video game systems because the kids just won't stop.

Leaving the ad up on the Register website bring about the opportunity to discuss a serious topic in a bit of a light hearted manner. After all, we are all discussing it here.

Bottom line for me....Alcohol and vehicles and being underage means you get in a sh!tload of trouble. Face me or face a judge, you decide.

If these were the only two options, I would agree with you completely - but you've presented a false dilemma here, so it's hard to really say.

The mother's actions may be completely correct, and it's certainly her right to do what she did. However, is the car the problem, or a symptom? Is there even a real "problem" or an isolated incident? Does taking the car teach a lesson, or drive the child further from the lesson?

None of us have any ability to judge these questions - all I can accurately judge is that the mother's statements to the press seem just as self-serving as they are parental. Sure, the topic can be discussed in a "light-hearted" manner - but if this action is correct because of the drastic repercussions of being caught, why discuss it "light-heartedly" at all (also, focusing on being caught seems awkward given the potential consequences, but I digress)? Why the onus on "feedback"? Has this woman's radio show had a ratings boost?

They could have just taken the car and sold it discreetly, no need to put the reason for selling the car in the ad at all. You pay by the word, and the fact that she's paying for another week even though the cars sold is kinda attention-whorish.

Fixed that for ya.