60 Minutes - Aussies

Did anyone see the clip on 60 Minutes last night about Attachment Parenting?

What did you think?

The transcript can be read he
http://tinyurl.com/tuqxb

It's a bit hard to follow, but you get the idea.

I've written my comment in to the "Mailbag"



Jo

--
Woman, Wife, Mother, Midwife

"Notchalk" wrote in message
...
Did anyone see the clip on 60 Minutes last night about Attachment
Parenting?

What did you think?

The transcript can be read he
http://tinyurl.com/tuqxb

It's a bit hard to follow, but you get the idea.

I've written my comment in to the "Mailbag"



Jo

--
Woman, Wife, Mother, Midwife


It was pretty ridiculous really - take a few extremists, ignore the good,
capitalize on the socially unacceptable, get an expert to say how bad it is
etc.

It was pretty obvious which way it was heading when they apologize for
ruining dinner and then show a child breastfeeding (interspersed with shots
of cows and calves).
Now I personally would not want to feed a child who is 5+, I certainly plan
on disciplining my DD, schooling is under discussion (I'd like to homeschool
her for a couple of years but DH is worried about her social development), I
do practise elimination communication. DD has never used a dummy, not
because we are against them but she never needed one. She sleeps with us,
because we all get a better nights sleep that way. She gets taken out in
both a pram and a carrier. So we have most of the elements that they were
putting down, but probably not to the level of the people they showed.
The sad thing is that maybe parents who are unsure of what they believe may
be swayed by ridiculous reporting, and it could put future parents who were
considering what path they want to take, off, making them think they are
doing the wrong thing if they breastfeed (past a year?), homeschool, don't
smack etc etc

On 2006-10-23 18:48:25 +0800, "Linda" said:


"Notchalk" wrote in message
...
Did anyone see the clip on 60 Minutes last night about Attachment Parenting?

What did you think?



It was pretty ridiculous really - take a few extremists, ignore the
good, capitalize on the socially unacceptable, get an expert to say how
bad it is etc.

I actually wrote in to the mailbag - I hope they read out my letter!

Here it is:

I am in support of the Attachment Parenting style more than not, so I
was pleased to see it given some airtime.

I understand the need for sensationalism in the 60 Minutes genre of
journalism, but really - by showing only an extreme version of
Attachment Parenting, you have given us softer parents more reason to
feel (and be treated) like we are on the fringe of society. It's not
about never saying "no" to your child, it is about providing all the
comfort and attention they need... not material things.

There are plenty of Child psychologists who agree that children who
have their parents at their beck and call end up being more independent
with a higher self esteem. They know we will ALWAYS be there for them,
so they can be more confident to go out and try.

And by the way, the worldwide average age for weaning from the breast
is 4 - 7 years. So a 5-year-old breast feeding is only 'shocking' in
this selfish society we live in.

Jo Watson
(Mother, Midwife)


--
Woman, Wife, Mother, Midwife

"Notchalk" wrote in message
...
On 2006-10-23 18:48:25 +0800, "Linda" said:


"Notchalk" wrote in message
...
Did anyone see the clip on 60 Minutes last night about Attachment
Parenting?

What did you think?



It was pretty ridiculous really - take a few extremists, ignore the good,
capitalize on the socially unacceptable, get an expert to say how bad it
is etc.

I actually wrote in to the mailbag - I hope they read out my letter!

Here it is:

I am in support of the Attachment Parenting style more than not, so I was
pleased to see it given some airtime.

I understand the need for sensationalism in the 60 Minutes genre of
journalism, but really - by showing only an extreme version of Attachment
Parenting, you have given us softer parents more reason to feel (and be
treated) like we are on the fringe of society. It's not about never
saying "no" to your child, it is about providing all the comfort and
attention they need... not material things.

There are plenty of Child psychologists who agree that children who have
their parents at their beck and call end up being more independent with a
higher self esteem. They know we will ALWAYS be there for them, so they
can be more confident to go out and try.

And by the way, the worldwide average age for weaning from the breast is
4 - 7 years. So a 5-year-old breast feeding is only 'shocking' in this
selfish society we live in.


Very nicely put - I hope it gets a mention

Notchalk wrote:
On 2006-10-23 18:48:25 +0800, "Linda" said:

Here it is:

I am in support of the Attachment Parenting style more than not, so I
was pleased to see it given some airtime.

I understand the need for sensationalism in the 60 Minutes genre of
journalism, but really - by showing only an extreme version of
Attachment Parenting, you have given us softer parents more reason to
feel (and be treated) like we are on the fringe of society. It's not
about never saying "no" to your child, it is about providing all the
comfort and attention they need... not material things.

There are plenty of Child psychologists who agree that children who
have their parents at their beck and call end up being more independent
with a higher self esteem. They know we will ALWAYS be there for them,
so they can be more confident to go out and try.

And by the way, the worldwide average age for weaning from the breast
is 4 - 7 years. So a 5-year-old breast feeding is only 'shocking' in
this selfish society we live in.

Where did you get that figure? Is from the old "4.2 years" average
that's been kicking around for the past few decades? (Which, has, so
far as I am aware, no actual scientific or socioligical support. Doing
a bit of research, I note that the U.S. and Europe account for about
20% of the world's population, and we all know that 'average age of
weaning' in both those areas is probably around 3 months, if that high.
China accounts for another 20% of the world's population. I located
an article (system won't let me cut/paste the link) giving an average
age of weaning (late 1980's, and it seems probable that those figures
have only gone down in the past couple of decades, as the population
becomes more westernized and urbanized) at 22 months, with only about
12% of women nursing for more than 3 years.
In urban areas of India, the average weaning age seems to be about 19
months, with only one third of women still nursing at 36 months.
(Roughly 1/3rd of the Indian population is urban.)
So, with India accounting for 16% of the world's population, that's
another 5% weaning before 2 years, on average.
A few other random searches turn up articles on bfing rates in South
Africa, (average age of weaning 16 months; only 8% bfing at 3 years);
Viet Nam (80% still nursing at 12 months, average age of weaning 16
months); Argentina (median duration = 4 months); Brazil (9-12 months.
In all these articles it was mentioned that supplementation (either
formula or solids) from a very early age (often 1-2 months) was
extremely common.

So ... with some 50% of the world's population already accounted for,
and an 'average age of weaning' among them of about 9-16 months ...
where are all the billions of women nursing for 4-7 years?

(Let me emphasize that I have NO issues with attachment parenting,
extended bfing, or anything else. I DO have issues with sloppy
statistics. Especially with sloppy statistics that can be so easily
disproven that they weaken your case!)

Naomi


Jo Watson
(Mother, Midwife)


--
Woman, Wife, Mother, Midwife

"Notchalk" wrote in message
...
Did anyone see the clip on 60 Minutes last night about Attachment
Parenting?

What did you think?

What - couldn't you hear me telling Tara Brown (yelling at the TV) what a
one-eyed idiot I think she is from where you are? Surely you heard the
cursing!!!

....and not that I have a problem with little boys peeing (get to see that
myself here but wasn't it interesting that Tara apologised for "putting
(people) off (their) dinner" for the image of a 5yo bf, but made no comment
for the image of a small boy's genitalia and subsequent urination.

....and does she really get paid as a reporter?? ... I thought they were
supposed to do some semblance of balanced research when putting together
their stories ...
Lets see ... Tara's list of jobs when putting together her AP story...
1. Firstly, find the wackiest of APs you could find (need to travel to
England as it turns out) and then trot out your own, in-house medico (being
sure to make it *sound* like he's a real expert and not the quack they
consult on the breaky show) who's so far removed from cutting edge research
its not funny.
2. Artfully ignore William Sears or any other medico who recommends any form
of AP.
3. Bag co-sleeping and assume that its not possible to have sex anywhere
other than in a parental bed.
4. Don't ask the ABA for a comment or check the WHO guidelines for bf.
5. Don't do even the most basic Medline search for any benefits associated
with extended bf, but do show the footage of a 5 yo bf and apologise for
putting people off their dinner.
6. Don't bother to look up any information for yourself and base your
"expert opinion" on the "expert" medico's personal case notes. .... which
also made me wonder if he'd like to tot up the number of patients he sees
that he thinks have been damaged by AP and cite that number as a percentage
of patients he sees damaged by parental neglect.
7. Don't show too much of the aussie chick who's an AP because, as she's
obviously smarter than you are and we don't want the audience to see that.
8. Be sure to edit out any footage of the kids behaving like little angels
and be sure to get as much anti-social behaviour and tanties as you can film
and only show those bits.
9. Make every parent who's ever bf or co-slept un comfortable by describing
bf as off-putting and co-sleeping as inherently damaging.

OK so I'm not a die-hard APer, but on a sliding scale, I'm a heck of a lot
closer to AP than I am to Ezzo. ...as are many many Aussie parents and she
managed to ****-off a whole heap of us in 10 minutes flat. Well done Tara
(you idiot).

Amanda

On Mon, 23 Oct 2006 13:56:33 +0800, Notchalk wrote:

Did anyone see the clip on 60 Minutes last night about Attachment Parenting?

What did you think?

The transcript can be read he
http://tinyurl.com/tuqxb

It's a bit hard to follow, but you get the idea.

I've written my comment in to the "Mailbag"



Jo

I saw half of it on Youtube. Yeah it sucked, but it is 60minutes so that
is to be expected I supposed. It made me so angry I decided not to watch
he second half just yet.

What I hated was callers opinions, on stupid, radio morning programmes.
Most comments were along the lines of 'Ewww how disgusting'.

The Aust. Breastfeeding forums and counsellors chat forum were running hot.

I am mostly AP but my babies all weaned on their own before the age of
2.5. I am not adverse to older children bf, most children
older than 2 or 3 would not be bf in public very often.

Feelin a bit sad about society's views on all things a little outside the
range of normal.

Larissa

On 2006-10-23 21:22:44 +0800, "Linda" said:



Very nicely put - I hope it gets a mention

Thanks, Linda. I often have trouble expressing how I feel in words
with these things, without being seen as an extremist myself

Jo

--
Woman, Wife, Mother, Midwife

On 2006-10-24 02:31:16 +0800, said:


(Let me emphasize that I have NO issues with attachment parenting,
extended bfing, or anything else. I DO have issues with sloppy
statistics. Especially with sloppy statistics that can be so easily
disproven that they weaken your case!)

Naomi


Jo Watson
(Mother, Midwife)


--
Woman, Wife, Mother, Midwife

Ack Naomi! I can't even remember where that figure came from, but it's
the last known stat I remember 'knowing' on this issue. I most likely
got it off the 'net somewhere, or in a crunchy book. It's just
something that's been in my head for a few years, and it fell out onto
the screen and got sent without me even thinking to reference it.

Now I'm a bit scared incase they DO read it out!

Thanks... I think

Jo


--
Woman, Wife, Mother, Midwife

On 2006-10-24 12:52:24 +0800, "FlowerGirl"
said:


"Notchalk" wrote in message
...
Did anyone see the clip on 60 Minutes last night about Attachment
Parenting?

What did you think?

What - couldn't you hear me telling Tara Brown (yelling at the TV) what a
one-eyed idiot I think she is from where you are? Surely you heard the
cursing!!!

...and not that I have a problem with little boys peeing (get to see that
myself here but wasn't it interesting that Tara apologised for "putting
(people) off (their) dinner" for the image of a 5yo bf, but made no comment
for the image of a small boy's genitalia and subsequent urination.

...and does she really get paid as a reporter?? ... I thought they were
supposed to do some semblance of balanced research when putting together
their stories ...
Lets see ... Tara's list of jobs when putting together her AP story...
1. Firstly, find the wackiest of APs you could find (need to travel to
England as it turns out) and then trot out your own, in-house medico (being
sure to make it *sound* like he's a real expert and not the quack they
consult on the breaky show) who's so far removed from cutting edge research
its not funny.
2. Artfully ignore William Sears or any other medico who recommends any form
of AP.
3. Bag co-sleeping and assume that its not possible to have sex anywhere
other than in a parental bed.
4. Don't ask the ABA for a comment or check the WHO guidelines for bf.
5. Don't do even the most basic Medline search for any benefits associated
with extended bf, but do show the footage of a 5 yo bf and apologise for
putting people off their dinner.
6. Don't bother to look up any information for yourself and base your
"expert opinion" on the "expert" medico's personal case notes. .... which
also made me wonder if he'd like to tot up the number of patients he sees
that he thinks have been damaged by AP and cite that number as a percentage
of patients he sees damaged by parental neglect.
7. Don't show too much of the aussie chick who's an AP because, as she's
obviously smarter than you are and we don't want the audience to see that.
8. Be sure to edit out any footage of the kids behaving like little angels
and be sure to get as much anti-social behaviour and tanties as you can film
and only show those bits.
9. Make every parent who's ever bf or co-slept un comfortable by describing
bf as off-putting and co-sleeping as inherently damaging.

OK so I'm not a die-hard APer, but on a sliding scale, I'm a heck of a lot
closer to AP than I am to Ezzo. ...as are many many Aussie parents and she
managed to ****-off a whole heap of us in 10 minutes flat. Well done Tara
(you idiot).

Amanda

Amanda, that was EXACTLY what I was trying to get accross in my email
to the mailbag... Well said!

Jo

--
Woman, Wife, Mother, Midwife