Monday, September 28, 2009
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Breastfeeding (YET again)
Articles like this one make me think. (Thanks AL :-)
They also make me get angry. There are two things that I get angry about in conjunction with the whole breastfeeding/formula debate.
The first one is important but not as personal for me, and has to do with America, its empire, and the business practices of American companies. I was thinking (just today, actually) about how interesting it is that in large measure the classification of a nation as "developing" from an American perspective largely means "able to be exploited for profit, either by stealing their resources or marketing to them in an underhanded way." I think that this article about the aggressive advertising/unjust pushing of formula by these companies illustrates that point. Why do we think we have the right? Just because we have more money. And why do we have more money? Because we have a strong military and enough financial clout (though at least this seems to be changing, to some extent) to land unfair advantages when it comes to our money dealings with these same countries!
The second on is far more personal and much more important to me, and has to do with women and their phenomenal capabilities that are to a huge extent undervalued. It's no secret that our world is a patriarchal one (with some really cool but really rare matriarchal exceptions that are fast being labeled "primitive" or just plain stamped out). The work that women do goes unnoticed by pretty much everyone but them (unless they have exceptional husbands and families....which I like to think I do ;-). The fact that a group of doctors, nutritionists, and businessmen all got together and decided that they would be able to convince the child-bearing population that they (the men) could do a mother's job of nurturing her child better than she can, just pisses me off. And reflects the larger problem of a masculinist society's denigration of a woman's work in general, aimed at creating a self-deprecating self-perception within her.
So stand up. Tell them they're wrong. Breastfeed your baby.
They also make me get angry. There are two things that I get angry about in conjunction with the whole breastfeeding/formula debate.
The first one is important but not as personal for me, and has to do with America, its empire, and the business practices of American companies. I was thinking (just today, actually) about how interesting it is that in large measure the classification of a nation as "developing" from an American perspective largely means "able to be exploited for profit, either by stealing their resources or marketing to them in an underhanded way." I think that this article about the aggressive advertising/unjust pushing of formula by these companies illustrates that point. Why do we think we have the right? Just because we have more money. And why do we have more money? Because we have a strong military and enough financial clout (though at least this seems to be changing, to some extent) to land unfair advantages when it comes to our money dealings with these same countries!
The second on is far more personal and much more important to me, and has to do with women and their phenomenal capabilities that are to a huge extent undervalued. It's no secret that our world is a patriarchal one (with some really cool but really rare matriarchal exceptions that are fast being labeled "primitive" or just plain stamped out). The work that women do goes unnoticed by pretty much everyone but them (unless they have exceptional husbands and families....which I like to think I do ;-). The fact that a group of doctors, nutritionists, and businessmen all got together and decided that they would be able to convince the child-bearing population that they (the men) could do a mother's job of nurturing her child better than she can, just pisses me off. And reflects the larger problem of a masculinist society's denigration of a woman's work in general, aimed at creating a self-deprecating self-perception within her.
So stand up. Tell them they're wrong. Breastfeed your baby.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Thinking, doing, being
So, I've recently become somewhat embroiled in a series of technology etiquette breaches involving comments made specifically about me being addressed to large groups of people. I've been pretty okay with it, I think....but really the whole thing just reinforces the more general alienation that I feel from my acquired family. (I like saying that better than "in-laws"...it reminds me that I did choose them, in however remote a way)
This has caused me to start thinking about how I think, what I do, and who I am. I have realized that through the course of my education I've observed the necessity of evaluating multiple sources and opinions, taking into account the ultimate motivation, agenda, and source of each. This makes me feel mostly overwhelmed, like I can't make a good decision because there are SO MANY options, many with viable points, and some that should be disqualified because of conflicts of interests. I think in a roundabout way, and get bogged down by feeling like I need to evaluate as much as I can (which in this information age is a staggering amount of information).
Thinking this way has caused me to be more cautious about my actions, especially when they involve or affect other people. I always read things that I send, think about things I say, and question things I'm going to do, before I send, say, or do them. I've become much more cautious about my actions than I was before I went to college (at both the extremely conservative and the extremely liberal institutions I've attended).
Acting this way has caused me to become the object of derision in one segment of my family, and a source of pride in another, a misfit to some extent in both. But I'm happy with myself. And that, of course, is a good thing...one that matters more than the other stuff.
I revealed a secret to Ben last night. I feel like I can't quite articulate it without coming across like I think I'm so wise or experienced. Which is not my intent. But what I think is this: if I were an older woman, fewer of the people in my life who have problems with my thinking, doing, and being, would have problems with them. So why is it that we've created a society where young women who are sure of themselves (albeit wrong, at times), whether in terms of their thinking, doing, or being, are viewed as pariahs??
This has caused me to start thinking about how I think, what I do, and who I am. I have realized that through the course of my education I've observed the necessity of evaluating multiple sources and opinions, taking into account the ultimate motivation, agenda, and source of each. This makes me feel mostly overwhelmed, like I can't make a good decision because there are SO MANY options, many with viable points, and some that should be disqualified because of conflicts of interests. I think in a roundabout way, and get bogged down by feeling like I need to evaluate as much as I can (which in this information age is a staggering amount of information).
Thinking this way has caused me to be more cautious about my actions, especially when they involve or affect other people. I always read things that I send, think about things I say, and question things I'm going to do, before I send, say, or do them. I've become much more cautious about my actions than I was before I went to college (at both the extremely conservative and the extremely liberal institutions I've attended).
Acting this way has caused me to become the object of derision in one segment of my family, and a source of pride in another, a misfit to some extent in both. But I'm happy with myself. And that, of course, is a good thing...one that matters more than the other stuff.
I revealed a secret to Ben last night. I feel like I can't quite articulate it without coming across like I think I'm so wise or experienced. Which is not my intent. But what I think is this: if I were an older woman, fewer of the people in my life who have problems with my thinking, doing, and being, would have problems with them. So why is it that we've created a society where young women who are sure of themselves (albeit wrong, at times), whether in terms of their thinking, doing, or being, are viewed as pariahs??
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