Morning Ed: Family
[Fa1] Contrary to stereotypes, being a parent has moved me left more than right so far, but one big exception is child care center regulation. The price breaks aren’t all that great, but availability…
[Fa2] Related: The case against zoning, children edition.
[Fa3] There’s a case to be made that a lot of these gaps are selection bias (which doesn’t actually let everyone off the hook!), but it’s still the opposite of what a lot of people are told.
[Fa4] The true story of The Sperm and Egg.
[Fa5] I’m not nearly as bothered by overprotective parents as I am the effect they can have on norms and laws that affect us all.
[Fa6] A guest piece by Hugo Schwyzer at the Institute For Family Studies is impossibly 2018.
[Fa7] Whew!
[Fa8] One issue to keep an eye out for when it comes to making the decision to cohabitate (Well, any phase of a relationship really, but especially that one): Asymmetrical commitment.
Fa6 goes to the Hoover Institute. I assume you meant this:
https://ifstudies.org/blog/the-wages-of-infidelityReport
Yes, fixed.Report
Fa1 – “Contrary to stereotypes, being a parent has moved me left more than right so far…”
Me too. I wonder if it has to do with the paradigm shift taking place in American culture, that liberal values are now more wholesome. I throw up in my mouth when I think about my children growing up in the world some of the politicians on the right envision. Likewise, as a result of changing educational paradigms and the Great Recession, our generation of young parents has relied on public assistance more than previous generations.Report
Fa1: I don’t know what “left” or “right” means when it comes to child care center regulation.
Is “left” something like “we need more rules, more regulations, more certifications for providers” and “right” something like “eh, regulations are communism in action”?Report
Pretty much. There is a sweet spot for Child Care Regs*, and some states and cities have blown right past it.
*Stuff like facility requirements for safety, minimum number of staff per children, basic nutrition requirements for places that provide food. When you start demanding that staff have training that starts approaching the credit load of common degree programs…Report
When I was growing up, “Right” meant “Legalistic Rules” and “Left” meant “Do Whatever You Want And Let Your Freak Flag Fly”.Report
You didn’t get the memo? Hippies turned into Yuppies and decided that only approved freak flags could fly, and they had to be properly educated, bubble wrapped, organic, vegan freak flags.Report
+1Report
Or its that being a parent makes you more conservative and the conservative party in the US right now are the Democrats.Report
I think that is it. I feel more conservative in temperament now that I have kids but I would never vote for a Republican for any reason.Report
Fa 6 Wow a Hugo Schwyzer piece! That guy had a long tortured history on the web and in his own life. I remember reading his site many years ago when he started out. He is a good writer and talented at explaining thorny issues. It also became apparent that he has a super sized order of personal problems and he was in the precisely wrong field for his mix of issues. He also had some of the worst commenters ever which he for bad reasons he decided to tolerate.Report
[Fa2] While I enjoy a good NIMBY story as much as anybody, quoting the real estate developer’s claim that neighborhood objections include “the sounds of kids laughing and yelling” unfortunately places this story into the category of “why can’t we have descent journalism?” That gives me a sad face.
Also, no coverage of the big mystery. In a dense residential/mixed use neighborhood with very limited parking, why is a parking garage being converted into a daycare? It sounds like the neighbors have a point, this neighborhood is likely to be a cluster&%$# at the time people leave and return from work. And with one available lane of moving traffic, double-parking will mean that the social order will break down into a Hobbesian state.
(I would need to know more to have a firm decision. In particular, I think some of their customers may take note of potential drop-off and pick-up issues, so maybe the market will decide. But I’m intrigued by the possibility of using the entry area of the garage as an indoor drive-through. I’m guessing that would be pretty expensive, and raise air pollution issues for a childcare facility, but if it could be worked out, the market might like it)Report