the culture wars...

[flea]

In addition to their ongoing anti-feminist articles about young women wanting to stay home with children, the New York Times also has had repeated articles about clashes between people with children and people without children. Today's instalment is here: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/09/national/09bakery.html?8hpib

My response is well-covered by Bitch, PhD in this essay (http://bitchphd.blogspot.com/2005/04/moms-at-work-over-there.html) and can be summed up this way: children are part of society. Yes, parents should encourage them to be well-behaved in public, and should not take one-year-olds to Michelin 3-star restaurants. But a casual neighborhood cafe at brunch time or early evening? Give me a break.

Comments

[sophiap.livejournal.com]

I am childless and plan to remain childless, but the attitude some people have towards children is appalling. It's as if all children are considered guilty of bad behavior until proven innocent, and even then, they're looked upon with suspicion.

One thing I like to do, if I'm seated near a child who is being especially personable, well-behaved, etc. is to compliment the child on his or her behavior. That's the way to encourage polite behavior in society. Rolling one's eyes and saying "we've got a screamer" isn't.