tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2275418289406135715.post5809889634122269259..comments2009-05-18T15:34:59.363-05:00Comments on Valedictocracy: An Impassioned Defense of the Status QuoCassiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02965179920778924888noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2275418289406135715.post-16381320511731288652009-05-18T15:34:00.000-05:002009-05-18T15:34:00.000-05:00@Anonymous (5/18) I certainly did read the article...@Anonymous (5/18) I certainly did read the article, but it's not entirely clear that you read my post! Given my mention of "the many barriers that prevent American mothers from providing their babies with human milk --- lack of maternity leave paid or otherwise, lack of health care, lack of family-friendly work policies, lack of legal protection for breastfeeding (or pumping) mothers in public or the workplace," it's quite clear that I understand that here in the US there is only the weakest support at a societal level for breastfeeding mothers and children. That said, it's a bit of a stretch to say that women are "being SHAMED for not breastfeeding." (If you actually took a poll, I suspect you'd find just as many women would complain that they have been shamed at some point <I>for</I> breastfeeding.) <br /><br />In addition, there is plenty of scientific evidence to support the claim that formula is not as good as breastmilk. (I didn't focus on refuting Rosin's claims about this but instead just linked to some of the many strong refutations elsewhere, but Jennifer Block had <A HREF="http://www.babble.com/The-Backlash-to-Breast-is-Best-Why-exactly-is-breastfeeding-under-attack/index3.aspx" REL="nofollow">a good discussion of this (with links) on Babble</A> recently.) There is just no getting around the fact that <I><A HREF="http://one-of-those-women.blogspot.com/2009/04/case-against-reasoning.html" REL="nofollow">not breastfeeding increases health risks</A></I>. If you can't breastfeed, then obviously it's certainly a net positive that there exists an option besides letting your child die. (But it would be far better if it that option were human milk rather than formula, <A HREF="http://www.babble.com/Would-you-feed-your-child-another-womans-milk-Wet-Nursing-2.0/index2.aspx" REL="nofollow">another thing there is almost no support for</A>!)<br /><br />I highly recommend reading <A HREF="http://thefeministbreeder.typepad.com/the_feminist_breeder/2009/05/mommy-guilt-its-all-about-perspective.html" REL="nofollow">this post about maternal guilt</A>; I think it's not unusual to feel like <I>others</I> are blaming you, when, in fact, it is a projection of your <I>own</I> internal feelings of shame. Also, "doing the best that you can for your child" does not require raising your child in the best of all possible circumstances. It just requires that <I>you did the best you could given your circumstances</I> (health, money, time, etc.) <br /><br />Nonetheless, individual feelings of shame and guilt combined with ignoring robust scientific evidence that lack of breastfeeding increases health risks are not the basis from which public policy should be formed. And, unfortunately, publishing articles like Rosin in the Atlantic is indeed the sort of seed from which the conventional wisdom that determines public policy in this country grows.Cassiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02965179920778924888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2275418289406135715.post-63315868981090844822009-05-18T12:56:00.000-05:002009-05-18T12:56:00.000-05:00Did you even read the article? It seems as though...Did you even read the article? It seems as though you've constructed quite a straw-man to avoid dealing with Rosin's actual point, which is that women are being SHAMED for not breastfeeding, even though our society doesn't support breastfeeding in any meaningful way. <br /><br />I breastfed my first, and was unable to breastfeed my other children. People like you seem to ignore the fact that some women just can't breastfeed, for whatever reason. I felt so much shame about my inability to provide breast milk because I believed all of the people telling me how much better breast milk is. Like you, I wanted to do the best for my baby. <br /><br />You are faulting Rosin for expressing her opinion on this from her admittedly privileged position, but the fact is, most women who have been shamed by their inability to breastfeed don't have Rosin's soapbox, and they need someone to speak for them.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2275418289406135715.post-26117366973422075662009-04-24T14:45:00.000-05:002009-04-24T14:45:00.000-05:00I agree that her complaint left me cold. My younge...I agree that her complaint left me cold. My youngest sister wanted very much to breastfeed her first child, but she didn't have some cushy reporter's job, she worked at WalMart. And it seems WalMart has a real problem with allowing returning moms time to pump breast milk. When she stopped producing she bawled her eyes out.<br /><br />While it's nice that I can tell her that the formula didn't hurt my nephew, the fact that companies treat pregnancy and motherhood like a regrettable 'hobby' you have to do on your own time stinks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2275418289406135715.post-20238347095887078012009-04-06T14:18:00.000-05:002009-04-06T14:18:00.000-05:00This is a great "rant" -- I couldn't agree with yo...This is a great "rant" -- I couldn't agree with you more. Clearly Rosin knew that her sensational claim -- that breast-feeding is overrated -- would drive traffic and sell magazines. That's why she wrote it. So much for illuminating, well-researched journalism on this subject.Mama Beehttp://themamabee.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.com