[geeks] Breeding

[Ken Hansen]

Well, remember, the role of Dad/Father hasn't changed much in the last 30-40 years - still works a full time job, etc. - it is the role of Mom that seems to have evolved from "do it all" to "do it all *plus* hold down a full time job."

I loved the John Stossel report last year that debunked the "we need two jobs just to make ends meet" argument. The short version was a family with two or three kids, mom worked at a sightly professional job (administrative assistant/office manager/something like that), and the father was a lineman for the local phone or power company. Becuase of their schedules, they ate out *a lot*, and the father had to turn down overtime opportunities, since he had to pick the kids up at night from *daycare*.

After running the numbers, and making a leap of faith, the mother quit her job, the kids came out of daycare, they started eating at home, and the father was able to take advantage of the occasional overtime that was available.

End result - the family was *much* less stressed, they spent a lot less money trying to "unwind", and the ends still met at the end of the month.

Basic math/home economics/tax planning would all be great pre-requirements before starting a family...

Ken

-----Original Message-----
From: amy [mailto:nospam at frenzy.com]
Sent: Thursday, April 26, 2001 5:49 PM
To: geeks at sunhelp.org
Subject: Re: [geeks] Breeding

<snip>

they're pretty much ignored by their mothers and they eat frozen food
all the time (interestingly enough, i've noticed that in the newer
parenting generations, the quality of fathering hasnt changed--it's
still quite good). when i look at it in comparison to the way my sister
and i were raised, it just sickens me. its like a million people out
there went out and had kids instead of getting a dog or a cat.