Friday 22 August 2008

When a mummy and a daddy love each other very much

Thanks to Dancer at The Standard for highlighting the ridiculous denigration of early childhood teachers by National MP Craig Foss. Both Dancer and Kristi Lampitt in the Hawkes Bay Today article do a good job of pointing out the error of Foss's ways, so I wanted to pick up on something else Mr Foss said in this regrettable little episode where yet another National MP seems to have been "quoted out of context":
Mr Foss told the women that in the child's first two years it was important to have a mother, or grandmother, involved.
Maybe Mr Foss could acknowledge that men have a role in parenting? How about he consider using terms like "parent" or "grandparent," or phrases like "mother and father"? It's not as if we don't have the language. And it's not as if only women are parents.

Grrrrrr.

5 comments:

Stephanie said...

Well at least there is some consistency with his approach of being an ignorant prick.

Anonymous said...

There is no person more important in a childs first few years than its mother

Anna said...

Arse, anonymous. My kids love their dad every bit as much as they love me.

Anonymous said...

Christ on a bike, Foss, way to be sexist, biology-ist and probably heteronormative in one fell swoop.

Oh, wait, maybe it was all a Cunning Plan to imply that women should get the hell out of the workforce and resume their place in the home as God intended. Suddenly everything makes sense.

Anonymous said...

And to think that Foss represents a political party that supposedly 48% of our voting public are at present likely to vote for!
I'm a granddad and I feel bloody annoyed that I was left of the list!