In Praise of Female Sexuality
this is both odd and interesting. I'm no fan of CommonDreams b/c by and large they're a bunch of nutballs. The article is from SMH which may account for the reduction in wackiness. It talks about reproductive pressures that are ignored and suppressed until much later in life usually due to consumerist pressures. I think that may be partly true but also not. The larger problem is the infantilization of young adults that started in the 60's or so and continues unabated. Young adults cannot drink, cannot rent a car, get a loan (other than a credit card) and so on. They are not expected to shoulder any real responsiblilty until years after they leave college.
I am no exception. I was very much a teenager when I entered College. In many ways, I still was one when I left. I didn't really "grow up" until I moved to Charlotte. Even moreso when I got married and had kids. That ages you very quickly.
I was terrified of graduating. The idea that I would have to support myself was overwhelming. I hadn't prepared myself sufficiently for that eventuality. Like most people my age, I moved back in w/ Mom and Dad. I was working in NYC for a pittance. That was part of the problem. There was simply no way I'd be able to live in NYC (or anywhere) on those wages. I would have needed a second job. I should have done it. I'd be better off today. (Not that I'm not doing ok, now just better off then).
If we're going to allow/encourage people to get married and procreate younger, we need to have them grow up sooner. The answer is not twisting employer's arms to make them give a 2 year leave of absence (paid or otherwise) to women who wish to have kids. Rather, we need to have families with support systems to help with child rearing and babysitting/daycare and the like. Making this an institutional thing only degrades the importance and value of the family. Liberals seem to want to institutionalize everything that a family should do. Childcare, elder care, care for disabled, charity becomes welfare and so on.
this is both odd and interesting. I'm no fan of CommonDreams b/c by and large they're a bunch of nutballs. The article is from SMH which may account for the reduction in wackiness. It talks about reproductive pressures that are ignored and suppressed until much later in life usually due to consumerist pressures. I think that may be partly true but also not. The larger problem is the infantilization of young adults that started in the 60's or so and continues unabated. Young adults cannot drink, cannot rent a car, get a loan (other than a credit card) and so on. They are not expected to shoulder any real responsiblilty until years after they leave college.
I am no exception. I was very much a teenager when I entered College. In many ways, I still was one when I left. I didn't really "grow up" until I moved to Charlotte. Even moreso when I got married and had kids. That ages you very quickly.
I was terrified of graduating. The idea that I would have to support myself was overwhelming. I hadn't prepared myself sufficiently for that eventuality. Like most people my age, I moved back in w/ Mom and Dad. I was working in NYC for a pittance. That was part of the problem. There was simply no way I'd be able to live in NYC (or anywhere) on those wages. I would have needed a second job. I should have done it. I'd be better off today. (Not that I'm not doing ok, now just better off then).
If we're going to allow/encourage people to get married and procreate younger, we need to have them grow up sooner. The answer is not twisting employer's arms to make them give a 2 year leave of absence (paid or otherwise) to women who wish to have kids. Rather, we need to have families with support systems to help with child rearing and babysitting/daycare and the like. Making this an institutional thing only degrades the importance and value of the family. Liberals seem to want to institutionalize everything that a family should do. Childcare, elder care, care for disabled, charity becomes welfare and so on.
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