I hate woman’s libbers. There have been some good things to come from legislation they managed to get passed. However, I believe they’ve done more harm than good to our society as a whole.
There are women who would rather have careers than have babies. They have a right to that choice and they should be paid the same as a man doing the same job.
What I object to is that women who chose to have babies have bought into the idea that they should be able to be both mothers and career women. Very few can succeed at both. One always suffers and it’s usually the family. Just look at the generation of young people produced by the “liberated” woman. They were raised by day care workers until they were old enough to be home alone. Mom came home too tired to do what a mother should do – mother her children.
When my daughters were toddlers, I remember going to cocktail parties where the first thing another woman would ask you was, “What business are you in?” Most of the women there had started their own business in town. One opened up a kitchen shop (she was divorced four years later), one opened up an exclusive women’s boutique (she went bankrupt), and another started a catering business (she quit after two years). The point is, at the time, they looked down their noses at me for being satisfied to be a stay at home mom (one had the gall to say, “Oh how plebeian.” )
Being a stay at home mom may not be rewarding and fulfilling on a daily basis. But neither is being a career woman. I know because I was one before I had children. I’ve never regretted being a stay at home mom. In the end, the woman who can look at her offspring with pride can pat herself on the back and say, “Well done.”
I subscribe to President David O. McKay’s saying, “No other success can compensate for failure in the home.”
While I’m on the subject of Women’s Liberation. I’d like to put in my two cents regarding their change of focus over the years. In the sixties, I actually supported the movement because they were giving women options. They supported women. They encouraged women to dare to dream. They gave women a voice. But somehow that has taken a back seat to the current focus which has evolved into a strictly left wing political agenda and they only support women who share their political views. Two current cases in point: Sarah Palin and Carrie Prejean. Their silence in support of these women was deafening.
There are women who would rather have careers than have babies. They have a right to that choice and they should be paid the same as a man doing the same job.
What I object to is that women who chose to have babies have bought into the idea that they should be able to be both mothers and career women. Very few can succeed at both. One always suffers and it’s usually the family. Just look at the generation of young people produced by the “liberated” woman. They were raised by day care workers until they were old enough to be home alone. Mom came home too tired to do what a mother should do – mother her children.
When my daughters were toddlers, I remember going to cocktail parties where the first thing another woman would ask you was, “What business are you in?” Most of the women there had started their own business in town. One opened up a kitchen shop (she was divorced four years later), one opened up an exclusive women’s boutique (she went bankrupt), and another started a catering business (she quit after two years). The point is, at the time, they looked down their noses at me for being satisfied to be a stay at home mom (one had the gall to say, “Oh how plebeian.” )
Being a stay at home mom may not be rewarding and fulfilling on a daily basis. But neither is being a career woman. I know because I was one before I had children. I’ve never regretted being a stay at home mom. In the end, the woman who can look at her offspring with pride can pat herself on the back and say, “Well done.”
I subscribe to President David O. McKay’s saying, “No other success can compensate for failure in the home.”
While I’m on the subject of Women’s Liberation. I’d like to put in my two cents regarding their change of focus over the years. In the sixties, I actually supported the movement because they were giving women options. They supported women. They encouraged women to dare to dream. They gave women a voice. But somehow that has taken a back seat to the current focus which has evolved into a strictly left wing political agenda and they only support women who share their political views. Two current cases in point: Sarah Palin and Carrie Prejean. Their silence in support of these women was deafening.
4 comments:
Don't you think, especially in regards to the divorces, that the men are at least partially to blame?!?! Men, now more than ever, take an equal part of child raising, which I think is good for not only the fathers, but the children, and ultimately the family as a whole. I do agree that it would be nice to have mothers stay home, but it'd also be nice if both parents can stay home and raise their kids. But that isn't practical and in most places these days, even having the mother stay home isn't practical or provide the best solutions for your children. Like you post above says, having money to meet your needs and provide for a future, such as college (this last generation is the most educated one ever thanks to dual income families that can afford to send Jr and Sally, now, to a 4-year degree). I've met a lot of amazing women that are both workers and mothers. No one expects them to be perfect at either, just like even if they only did ONE thing, no one would. So why criticize those that are trying to do what they think is best for their family, often when they already feel conflicted thanks to traditions and stereotypes?!?
My complaint about the women's lib movement is that it is inherently sexist in nature! According to that philosophy, a woman is not "liberated" unless she is more like a man (business oriented, sexually promiscuous, etc.) If the movement were truly about expanding women's options, then the choice to be a wife and mother would not be looked upon with condescension and/or scorn. Unfortunately,we have lost all of the privileges of being a woman without ever gaining full equality with men.
Steve, I always appreciate your comments. I apologize for the appearance of "criticizing" women who work. I realize that now, more than ever, families depend on dual incomes - and that women do feel guilty for their time away from their kids. I empathize.
Jeri, don't worry, I didn't take it personally nor did I think you meant any scorn or contempt for working mothers, but as I've seen my wife struggle with her guilt about not being able to stay home with our baby after her 3 months of maternity leave, I know it isn't her fault. In fact, I don't know whose fault it is, other than ours for choosing to work for the govt in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Even if we were just renting, it'd be the same price or more than our mortgage.
I guess my main point was, and I struggle explaining this to my wife as well, is that there ARE good things to come from her working. I think I see this more than she does b/c I came from much more humble upbringings and want to be able to do more for my children than my parents could monetarily for me. We work in secure, 40 hour a week jobs, and get paid fairly well to live in a very nice neighborhood and many other perks of the job, that to me growing up would have sounded impossible to obtain. Thus, she, our daughter, will have the world at her feet where as I at best, had the next town over. :)
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