General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: "Gun nut" kills 38-year old. [View all]The Straight Story
(48,121 posts)Animals/kids/etc are not inanimate objects. Guns and Drugs are already covered under law (ie, if a child obtains them than the parent can be held responsible).
And it is not a straw man, it is called, generally, a value judgment. You have value X, you apply to Y. If you do not apply it to Y it is attempted to ascertain why and if it is a valid exception that is covered under a larger value Z.
A child is expected to be in a home. An uninvited person is not. You are under no obligation to hide things in your own home from intruders. If you believe that you should then you ask why not apply that same value to other things.
If the value is that some will attempt to steal that which they want and you have a legal obligation to prevent them either by tempting (displaying cash on your dashboard, for example) or securing things, then you are transferring the responsibility from the person that desires to steal to the person that it is being stolen from.
This gives the thief power over victims even if nothing is ever done and allows them an excuse from a moral ground for their actions.