I have listened to this garbage since I was in my early 20's.
Get a career! No, stay home with your kids! Your kids will be ashamed if you don't get a career! Your kids won't bond with you if you are working! What does your husband think about someone who doesn't bring home any money? What does your husband think about someone who isn't there with home-cooked meals?
ENOUGH.
There are a fair number of social commentary authors who play to one side of the debate or the other, always stirring the pot to get women to arguing about their life choices and making quite a few feel guilty.
Work/family arrangements are personal and individual decisions. I think it should be left at that.
You said it so much better than I did..........see my post at #27.
“Work/family arrangements are personal and individual decisions. I think it should be left at that.”
They do have wide social consequences though. Dual income families contribute to inflation if there are enough of them. Entire blocks of empty houses during the day can contribute to crime. There is more sense of community when at least a good percentage of families have one parent available during the day. It is also more difficult for a teenager or pre-teen to get away with poor behavior when many stay at home parents are in the neighborhood.
But, dual income families also increase demand for after school activities, long preschool/school hours, more expensive toys and clothing, and eating out. They have less time to keep gardens, sew, or do many crafts, so that is pushed on the rest of the economy. There are probably millions of jobs that depend on dual income families consuming in the way that they do.
I believe, however, that in general, a good society should encourage stay at home moms, and slightly discourage working moms. This way, the balance doesn’t tip to the point of forcing moms that don’t want to into the workforce and keeps single income families viable for the middle class.