• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

High school commencement speaker tells females: stay at home, don’t be CEOs

Aunt Spiker said:
Yes well - we'll see how things fair when my husband dies from heart failure, all too soon in life, and I have to support 4 kids without a decent career under my belt.
Click to expand...

no life insurance policy?......thats what they are for, but im sure you know that
 
fishinRod said:
no life insurance policy?......thats what they are for, but im sure you know that
Click to expand...

How long would that last 4 children can go through alot of money ( not including college )
 
I'm going to venture that none of these girls will grow up and get the proper degree and go through the necessary work to become a CEO. Call me crazy if you want, but I'm going to say I have about 100% chance of being right on that.

Btw, being on call all the time and working the kind of hours CEO's do is something I would agree mothers should not do. Call me sexist if you want, but I find mothers a great deal more valuable to a child than a father. Just sayin'..
 
Aderleth said:
How else can you possibly interpret the phrase "greatest impact?" The clear implication is that anything else a woman (and just a woman) can possibly do is of lesser importance. That's ten different kinds of misogynistic, and demonstrably false.
Click to expand...

There are certain elements of motherhood that, yes, ONLY a woman can do. And the job is one of greatest importance. More important than running a fortune 5 company - yes. No one is saying you have to do anything impotant with your life, nor do you have to go the motherhood/homemaker route. It's entirely up to you. Doesn't change the fact that, if done well, motherhood is the most important job ever. From there everything else flows.
 
One can be a great mom and have a career. My mom pulled it off brilliantly.
 
Helix said:
One can be a great mom and have a career. My mom pulled it off brilliantly.
Click to expand...

Indeed, but one or the other, or both, suffers on occasion. Was she a CEO? On the phone and in meetings almost 24/7?
 
Helix said:
One can be a great mom and have a career. My mom pulled it off brilliantly.
Click to expand...

It's a bit different when you are a CEO. :2razz:
 
clownboy said:
There are certain elements of motherhood that, yes, ONLY a woman can do. And the job is one of greatest importance. More important than running a fortune 5 company - yes. No one is saying you have to do anything impotant with your life, nor do you have to go the motherhood/homemaker route. It's entirely up to you. Doesn't change the fact that, if done well, motherhood is the most important job ever. From there everything else flows.
Click to expand...

Yeah... no. First, the quote said that the most impact a woman can have is as a mother. That's just absurd. Unless you've raised Mark Zuckerberg, there're any number of things a woman can do with her time that will have a greater impact on the world than being a mother. Sure, being a responsible parent (of either gender) is hugely impactful to your child, but it has very little impact on my life. Certainly far less so than the business decisions of, say, Sheryl Sandberg.

Second, there's a long list of jobs that are far more important that being a mother. Even if you just count the things that directly impact children, pediatric surgeons save the lives of thousands of children over the course of their careers, and and teachers teach hundreds of thousands of kids. Both of those jobs seriously impact the lives lots and lots of people, whereas a mother pretty much only influences her own kids.

So no, motherhood is not the most important job ever. It's a perfectly valid life choice; and yes, children need involved parents (again: of BOTH genders) but to suggest that a woman's greatest impact comes from squirting out a baby and taking care of it is just not true.
 
clownboy said:
Indeed, but one or the other, or both, suffers on occasion. Was she a CEO? On the phone and in meetings almost 24/7?
Click to expand...

Mine was and is. She worked at home, as a matter of fiscal need for the non-profit. She's a lobbyist and a leader of a non-profit, soon to be 3 jobs.
 
Aderleth said:
Yeah... no. First, the quote said that the most impact a woman can have is as a mother. That's just absurd. Unless you've raised Mark Zuckerberg, there're any number of things a woman can do with her time that will have a greater impact on the world than being a mother. Sure, being a responsible parent (of either gender) is hugely impactful to your child, but it has very little impact on my life. Certainly far less so than the business decisions of, say, Sheryl Sandberg.

Second, there's a long list of jobs that are far more important that being a mother. Even if you just count the things that directly impact children, pediatric surgeons save the lives of thousands of children over the course of their careers, and and teachers teach hundreds of thousands of kids. Both of those jobs seriously impact the lives lots and lots of people, whereas a mother pretty much only influences her own kids.

So no, motherhood is not the most important job ever. It's a perfectly valid life choice; and yes, children need involved parents (again: of BOTH genders) but to suggest that a woman's greatest impact comes from squirting out a baby and taking care of it is just not true.
Click to expand...

I disagree. You don't have the pediatric surgeons, the teachers and the Sheryl Sandbergs of the world without first some women taking on that job as mother. Also, matters not if the children turn out to be luminary or not. Good people have impact, good impact.
 
Dragonfly said:
I'm gonna guess a few people here at DP think this train of thought hits a big nail squarely on the head. :shock:
Click to expand...

Although I don't presume to tell women what they should do, we DO need more women who are devoted to raising their children, rather than dumping them in day care facilities- especially when their children are 0-2 years of age. The first year is when a child learns to trust, and having a singlular consistent caregiver is essential. Without learning to trust, forming meaningful, long-term human relationships is very difficult.
 
clownboy said:
Indeed, but one or the other, or both, suffers on occasion. Was she a CEO? On the phone and in meetings almost 24/7?
Click to expand...

She was a teacher and a tutor. That kept both her and my dad pretty busy. They always made me a priority, though.

The main point is that a penis is not a prerequisite for becoming a CEO. While I'm not entirely convinced I would encourage anyone to choose that life, I certainly wouldn't try to discourage women from going for it if that's what they want.
 
clownboy said:
I disagree. You don't have the pediatric surgeons, the teachers and the Sheryl Sandbergs of the world without first some women taking on that job as mother.
Click to expand...

Not necessarily. You think all of the most successful people in the country had stay at home moms? I guarantee that's not at all true (I actually know for a fact that it's not). Also, why does the woman have to take on that role? Several Scandinavian nations have been utilizing paid paternity leave for some time, and they have some of the best educated and wealthiest populations in the world.

clownboy said:
Also, matters not if the children turn out to be luminary or not. Good people have impact, good impact.
Click to expand...

...and you're still thinking of a woman as primarily an extension of her children. That's a very backwards and illogical attitude to have.
 
Helix said:
She was a teacher and a tutor. That kept both her and my dad pretty busy. They always made me a priority, though.

The main point is that a penis is not a prerequisite for becoming a CEO. While I'm not entirely convinced I would encourage anyone to choose that life, I certainly wouldn't try to discourage women from going for it if that's what they want.
Click to expand...

On that last I agree and never implied or inferred it was. I don't think that's what the OP says either.
 
Un biased said:
In 2013 people need 2 incomes to support themselves and their children llpeople can litterally not afford to stay home all day to look after the children . The greatest impact for a women was raiseing children in the 1950's . Besides I met a few males who are practically arm candy for woman those roles are changing .
Click to expand...

It's do-able, but admittedly difficult. You have to set priorities with family in mind, and cut expenses where you can. I did it when my children were young, and was married to a man who only had a high school education, and worked in the HVAC industry.
 
fishinRod said:
no life insurance policy?......thats what they are for, but im sure you know that
Click to expand...

Wow - that's just depressing as hell.

He wouldn't have had to put himself through the rigors of the military life as he has done if I was gainfully employed all this time. He wouldn't have been injured and now dealing with a large plethora of health issues because we chased the idealized lifestyles of the gender minded modern couple.

And what - some health insurance is going to compensate for the children not having a father?

I don't think so.
 
Aderleth said:
Not necessarily. You think all of the most successful people in the country had stay at home moms? I guarantee that's not at all true (I actually know for a fact that it's not). Also, why does the woman have to take on that role? Several Scandinavian nations have been utilizing paid paternity leave for some time, and they have some of the best educated and wealthiest populations in the world.
Click to expand...

Yes, I think the BEST people in the world come from GOOD homemakers, not somethiing either of us can "know for a fact". You can give examples, but they can easily be knocked down. Same with me. But what is not subjective is the role of the mother in a child's life. With rare exception mothers are the central important figure for a child, yes, more important than fathers. It's great to have both, but when it comes down to it, there's a reason mothers generally get custody.

Aderleth said:
...and you're still thinking of a woman as primarily an extension of her children. That's a very backwards and illogical attitude to have.
Click to expand...

Nonsense, you have that reversed. The egg does not precede the chicken in this context.
 
Last edited:
Helix said:
The main point is that a penis is not a prerequisite for becoming a CEO. While I'm not entirely convinced I would encourage anyone to choose that life, I certainly wouldn't try to discourage women from going for it if that's what they want.
Click to expand...

The only thing I would say to both sexes is that if you are going to be a CEO you should not also decide to be a parent. I don't know about other people, but I just think such a decision means more towards the child if it's a woman than if it is a man.
 
clownboy said:
Yes, I think the BEST people in the world come from GOOD homemakers, not somethiing either of us can "know for a fact". You can give examples, but they can easily be knocked down.
Click to expand...

Not really. You said this:

clownboy said:
You don't have the pediatric surgeons, the teachers and the Sheryl Sandbergs of the world without first some women taking on that job as mother.
Click to expand...

If I point to examples of pediatric surgeons, teachers and Sheryl Sandberg analogues who did not have stay at home moms, your assertion is blown out of the water. And guess what? There are plenty such people. I know some of them. QED.

clownboy said:
Same with me. But what is not subjective is the role of the mother in a child's life. With rare exception mothers are the central important figure for a child, yes, more important than fathers. It's great to have both, but when it comnes down to it, there's a reason mothers generally get custody.
Click to expand...

There are several reasons why the mother generally gets custody, and some of them stem from precedent that pre-dates modern feminism and gender roles. Again: being a parent is important, but the notion that it's the most important/impactful thing a woman can do is quite simply false. The Sheryl Sandbergs of the world are pretty convincing proof of that obvious fact.


clownboy said:
Nonsense, you have that reversed. The egg does not precede the chicken in this context.
Click to expand...

Fair enough. I'll rephrase: You're still thinking of a woman's worth as being primarily a function of her children. That's a very backwards and illogical attitude to have.
 
clownboy said:
Indeed, but one or the other, or both, suffers on occasion. Was she a CEO? On the phone and in meetings almost 24/7?
Click to expand...

My mom didn't have a choice, she had to work. She didn't become a CFO until a few years after I left home, but while I was still there, she was running her department (keeping a financially struggling company solvent) and helping my dad start a business. I did not suffer for it and she was a great example for me, not only of what women are capable of, but of a great work ethic. All that and she still had time for parent club, attending performances and weekend fund raisers.
 
Aderleth said:
Fair enough. I'll rephrase: You're still thinking of a woman's worth as being primarily a function of her children. That's a very backwards and illogical attitude to have.
Click to expand...

I don't think you're understanding his point. It's not that the woman's worth is a function of her children. It's that the childrens' worth, as future healthy functioning adults, is a result, in part, of what kind of mother they had. Mothers are highly important in the development of children.
 
Gina said:
My mom didn't have a choice, she had to work. She didn't become a CFO until a few years after I left home, but while I was still there, she was running her department (keeping a financially struggling company solvent) and helping my dad start a business. I did not suffer for it and she was a great example for me, not only of what women are capable of, but of a great work ethic. All that and she still had time for parent club, attending performances and weekend fund raisers.
Click to expand...

And of the two (the job and you), YOU were obviously the priority.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom