Crossing borders with children

Regarding the Aug. 30 On the Spot column [“Permission Slip,” by Catharine Hamm]: It was about a woman and the issues that developed when she took her two young sons to visit their father in Canada. The response was OK but did not go far enough.

There are approximately 1,000 children abducted each year, many internationally. Many of these children are being abducted by one of their parents, never to be seen or heard from again. It is sad that Hamm did not find out exactly why this woman had such a hard time. Hamm could have made a simple call to the State Department, which would have been happy to tell her about this growing problem. She could have called a number of consulates, the Los Angeles Police Department and/or a handful of other agencies to find out about traveling abroad with youngsters.

K. McDermott

Los Angeles