POINT/COUNTERPOINT

I saw these articles in their respective newspapers. Normally I wouldn't post, but since they were about the same thing albeit from a different perspective, I thought them worthy of inclusion.

POINT:

The Nation's Schools Are Failing Boys by Maggie Gallagher

COUNTERPOINT:

She Works. They're Happy. by Tara Parker-Hope
 

As a boy, I tend to see things more from Maggie Gallagher's point of view. I do feel that the pendulum has swung a bit too far in favoring girls at the expense of boys. That being said, I do NOT believe that the man's place is at work and the woman's place is at home. I don't care who actually occupies those roles. The trouble I perceive is that boys are punished for not acting like girls. I don't know what the solution is. Perhaps we need more male teachers at the elementary level or just in general to provide balance at the administrative level?

I suppose we're going through another one of those social upheavals and we're simply witnessing the mess that's created as one social paradigm yields to another. I do worry about my sex though. It seems that this latest upheaval has revealed us for what we men really are...lazy...and it's a shame really. I'm embarrassed that far too many men are willing to father children with no intent of ever actually being fathers. Ever time I hear "baby mama", I cringe inside. And I blame the women too who are willing or are even encouraging such arrangements. It's frustrating that the social shaming that once came with being a low-life, no job having loser has disappeared...hell, it's practically celebrated now. I wonder how the portrayal of men in media, especially commercial media, is affecting us. When was the last time you saw a man who was both in charge, respected, and competent on television? It's honestly strange watching old TV shows like Leave It to Beaver and seeing the father being both the head of household and respected for it without a hint of irony. When did it become so totally unacceptable to have men portrayed that way? I'm rambling so I'll drop this now and yes, for those of you keeping track, I count myself among these low-life losers and know that I ought to do something about it but still don't.

That being said, the last lines of the Times article are more in line with the way I think as opposed to the way I feel. "I get the same reaction from all the moms," he said. "They say, ‘That’s great, my husband wouldn’t be able to [be a househusband].’ I think they’re selling their husbands short. All guys could do it, just like all women can be the breadwinners."

(originally posted to That Other Journal on January 26, 2010)