What conservatives mean by “traditional family.”

Pogrebin (1983) "contends that the traditional family really means "keep men in power, women in the kitchen, and children in awe."

 

2006 says - wtf?

 

what do you mean "2006 says - wtf?"

 

that was written 23 yrs. ago . . .

 

It still stands true as it was back then.

 

Yay! Happy International Women's Day! Another thread to try and degrade women! What, are the mens' egos taking a bruising because they don't have a special day too?

 

This thread isn't about degrading.

 

A "traditional family" doesn't exist. Even in families where men and women married before producing offspring, more often than not women are left to care for the children at least 85% of the time, with men contributing very little monetarily, emotionally, and such.

The "traditional" American family would more than likely be a single mother raising 1-3 children alone, with the father contributing small amounts of money every month and hardly any quality time with their children.

Sad, but true.

 

There is no form of "family" guaranteed to work. And there is no form guaranteed not to.

Many successful families are very non-traditional and are very successful and happy. Conservatives hate that.

 

my family is pretty traditional, it's bizarre. it works for us, though. dave works, i raise the children. i come from a pretty untraditional family (at least in my formative years) and i was a latch-key kid. i decided that when i was going to have children, i was going to be home for them like my mother was for my baby brother and sister. it means so much to me to be able to do this. i'll go back to work, part time, eventually. i follow dave's lead because, well, he's a natural leader. he's good at it, i'm not. but i've seen plenty of non-traditional situations work out so beautifully that i can't really see where anyone would have a problem with it. people run in an infinite variety, as do their personal situations & relationships.

 

The thing is, Conservative do NOTHING to really HELP families. The economy is so bad, that womyn have to work, and children have to be left in the care of others. "Traditional Family Values" is really only available to the upper middle class and the rich. Most middle-working class families can't make "Family Values" (dad working, mom at home with the kids) work, because the extra income is neccesary.

IF the Conservatives REALLY wanted "Family Values" we'd have manufacturing back in this country, unions in power, FEDERALLY FUNDED COLLEGES, for everyone, affordable homes, NO penalties for womyn who want to take years off of the working grind, to raise their kids, the Rich taxed heavily, and then maybe Families could have mom at home. But, the way our economy is, this is a dream, and a a difficult of impossible one, for MOST real families.

I'll beleive the Cons when they make it possible for moms to stay home, if they want to.

 

"Family Values" to conservatives is nothing but a marketing ploy. Maggie is right, if they really cared anything about family values they would be making an effort to help parents be able to be home and spend time with their children. Education wouldn't put families out tens of thousands of dollars. Health care would be affordable for families. Conservatives have done nothing to preserve family values, but as long as they use the term it is seems people are gonna vote for them...


This is a particularly frusterating thing for me and my husband. We are ready to start a family - if we could just afford the healthcare. To afford the healthcare I wouldn't be able to quit my job, but if I don't quit my job my baby would have to be raised in a daycare. And here we have a conservative leader, conservative congress, now a conservative supreme court and they all claim to pride themselves on family values - yet have made it no easier for the american family to raise their children.

 

I think this is where you have missed the point. Arent you supposed to be helping yourself instead of holding your hand out?


What you've defined as 'traditional family values' have nothing to do with what conservatives are talking about. I think their traditional family values are things like personal responsibility(not a million lawsuits), religion(being allowed to display your decorations IN PUBLIC on holidays), organizations like the boy scouts(whom are being attacked horrifically by the ACLU) and ymca which have done tremendous amounts of GOOD for this country, things like being NEIGHBORLY...they are definitely not talking about some super socialistic idea that you are...

 

No, Conservatives want you to "save more money" instead of helping out others like JESUS said to do. They say, "You should pull yourself up by the bootstraps." (More macho bullshit-speak) When in reality, a single mom (for instance) working two jobs, barely getting by, can't save money--she lives from paycheck to paycheck. And even if she could, a single medical emergency would WIPE HER NESTEGG OUT! You and your Conservatives need to WAKE UP to reality.

Secondly, PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF RELIGION ON PUBLIC PROPERTY such as COURTHOUSE belong to ALL of the public, not a select few Christians.

Thirdly, the ACLU and Liberals have done more for your rights as an American than any of your Conservatives -- unless, of course, your loaded with wealth or a CEO.

 

You're right! and all that charity is for nothing!


"give a man a fish...."

somehow you took me saying "decorating for holidays" as "allowing the 10 commandments at the courthouse"

my conservatives? Who would that be?

and i'm not quite sure what liberals have done for my 'rights' in the past 22 years. They did, after all, vote for things like the patriot act. Ditto on the conservatives.

But Yep, the ACLU has done a lot of good...they have done things wrong. Wow, an organization doesn't do EVERYTHING right, shocking, i know.

 

Charity. Yep, that's the answer. Depend on charity.

Let's just say, I am glad you aren't in charge.

But, Bush isn't much better, I suppose.

Don't know what Liberals have done, huh? So you don't like having cleaner water, ensured labels on your medication, paid medical insurance, paid medical leave, paid vacations, regulations of saftey on the meat you eat, affordable public transportation, insured bank deposits, student loans, pell grants, safer vehicles, rural electrification, highways, and pensions?

Ok. But, I and millions others do. So, I guess you don't need any of those things. Well, give'em to someone who does--Jesus would, right?

PS. You gonna build your own highway with your tax cut?

 

Megara, you have snide, rich, white, upper-class written all over you when you make comments like that. Let's come down to the real world for a little bit...


Families are completely having to help themselves, and look what's happening. BOTH parents having to work full-time, children being raised by day-care and public schools, children with no healthcare, and all this going on when we have a conservative government that boasts that it has family-value ideals.

Way to put a nasty spin on it though ("holding your hand out"). Just because a person is compassionate enough to want our gov't resources to focus more on helping people doesn't mean you should imply that they aren't helping themselves and only looking to charity. We are talking about doing what's best for everyone here, for the community, not just yourself. The human species survived and is what it is today because we cared for eachother, and worked together. We aren't naturally independant of eachother, we are community creatures. That's how we work best, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with it.

Megara is one of these punks that seems to think that if everyone works hard enough we could all be Ph.D's working in research centers and hospitals making over six figures a year. He forgets that someone is always going to have to serve food, fixed plugged drains, clean buildings, take phone calls, and all that other crap that doesn't rake in enough to even afford a home to live in in today's society. Should we not care of both parents in homes like these have to work their asses off just to put a roof over their kids head, just to only see him asleep in bed when they finally get home from work? Sure, in your perfect world Megara all these people in the country could work HARDER and acheive more, but only to be replaced by more people in the same prediciment. No real resolution to the problem.

Persuing an environment for our society that helps parents be around more than on the weekends is a real family-values ideal. To spin this off as people holding out their hands for welfare is complete bullshit.

 

The government is supposed to be "we the people".All that is done with money in this country,is done with the money collected from "we the people.Our money.Now the question to me is,what do we want done with "our money? War?Helicopters for Columbia?Loans to Egypt?Recalcitrance at helping people here after natural disasters?We are seeing before our very eyes what conservatives have done and will do with our money.We,that is some of us who are old enough ,have seen what liberals have done with our money over the past decades.Referance Libertines list.And add plenty more.Traditional family values that conservatives believe in?What a joke.The arrogant lying bastards care about nothing except the amassing of great wealth from----oh yeah---our money.We've gotten the government we deserve.Let's change it.

 

And that is why I hate Libertarian governmental and social ideals, because of the thoughts of people like Megara.

Sera hit the nail right on the head. When those defending this country don't even make enough to provide for themselves and have to go on welfare besides their pay just to make sure their family is taken care of, what kind of system do we have? When parents work 60+ hours a week EACH to provide basics for themselves and their children, but have to leave their children in the hands of underqualified and understaffed daycare systems, what does that say about how our government cares for our future?

Wealthy, upperclass persons that own homes and have professional degrees can say all they want to about those accepting charity "looking for a handout". But they should try paying rent, buying food, providing health insurance, paying for daycare, and still saving for a rainy day on a minimum wage income! And then STILL have time to have a bit of quality time with their children. It doesn't work.

 

err uhh. What i meant was conservatives families(religious especially) give a lot of money away to charities to help. You basically painted all conservatives as people who are trying to save every penny and do no good

My current tap water is undrinkable. Wow, its cleaner. It is still unhealthy to drink. Who should i thank for that? How about i say a big fuck you to liberals and coservatives + whoever polluted the local water.

highways? i take it you havent been on a highway recently or you would have seen a sign that says "The Dwight D Eisenhower Interstate Highway."

If you want to post congressional vote tallys on each one, do it. Im not going to waste my time looking up each one. The only one i bothered was the social security act, which republicans voted for overwhelmingly. that was 71 years ago...a lot of the things you've state are way older than i am..like the pell grants(1972). I try to judge people on more recent events.

the same problem i said you have with "society" you have with "liberals" and "conservatives" Liberals and conservatives arent one person. You have to look at how people voted on each and everything thing.

Why do people get so locked into "conservative" and "liberal" mode?

if they'd let me, i might!