Raised By Wolves

So, I am just wondering when it became an acceptable practice for parents to drop their kids off at the mall play areas and leave them unattended while they shop? I'm not talking twelve or thirteen year olds either. I'm talking two, three, four, and five year olds. We were at the mall twice over the weekend and both times there were kids under five left unattended for long periods of time. Their parents would emerge later, with bags of purchases, to round up their spawn. It is always these kids that climb up the slides while other kids are trying to slide down. It is these kids who hit and yell and otherwise behave as if they are being raised by wolves. And, as my husband pointed out, these are the kids that are never the ones abducted (not that in any way he feels they should be; merely an observation).