I am sad to report that I consumed about 4 pounds worth of Russell Stover chocolates during the course of completing my project and left about 40 pounds of laundry undone...
The meat of the matter brings me to thoughts of a new year filled with using more efficaciously the resources available to my family. I have recently read More with Less along with a wide range of blogs, forums, and websites on subjects ranging from environmental friendliness through reuse/recycling, frugality, and thriftiness. What surprises me the most is that even in a book like More with Less, which even encourages you saving all meat drippings from all meat dishes to use instead of vegetable oil and other oils to prevent waste, they don't mention breastfeeding and extended breastfeeding as viable feeding alternatives that are both earth and budget friendly. They simply do not even generally address the feeding of infants, and the profound effect it may actually be having on our economy in terms of use of resources - water, fuel, grain, packaging, etc.
I am also interested in the level of hostility that seems inevitably present on mother type forums on this issue. It seems, to me, to be directed at breastfeeding mothers that are lactivists from formula feeding mothers. Perhaps I can understand a mother having some residual anger if for health reasons she cannot breastfeed when she wanted to do so, but I have no understanding of the hostility coming from formula feeders that chose for other reasons to formula feed. Why the hostility? If they are truly comfortable with their decision, then there shouldn't be any residual guilt or anger to resolve....perhaps there wasn't closure in that decision after all... While I make no judgements on other people's family choices, we have decided as a couple that breastfeeding is the best choice for our children for health reasons. I strongly empathize with mothers, and I know a few, that cannot breastfeed for their own or their children's health reasons. The ache and anger they describe is similar to my own concerning being pushed into a surgical delivery for my first pregnancy by an aggressive doctor.
Questions for the day...
Have we become so focused on maintaining status quo that we cannot discuss the best alternatives for fear of disturbing the masses?
Why do environmentalists not routinely discuss extended/exclusive breastfeeding as a means of conserving precious resources? or family wipes for that matter?
Why exactly is breastfeeding so taboo in this country?
Where does the anti-breastfeeding hostility come from in terms of formula feeding mothers that made a conscious decision to formula feed? Why does there have to be hostility over other's parenting choices at all when the health and safety of children are not at stake?
How to heal from ideas and decisions that have been thrust upon us by factors outside of our control?
Hmm, I'm not sure - I BF my son and I do see what you are saying!
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot of angst in America over breastfeeding.
ReplyDeleteI think as a nation we've gotten so obsessed with the notion of "everyone's equal" that the suggestion to treat a segment as not equal bothers some. The fact is that breastfeeding women require support. They literally can't do it without some basic assitance, and that makes them "special" and not the same... and that bothers people I think. They would rather have a more simple world where women formula feed and thus need no special dispensation.
Plus, being a fine capitalist country, we are obsessed with making money, and there's very little money to be made with breast feeding.