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Where are we N.O.W.

Dr. Domenick J. Maglio, Ph.D. Neo-Traditionalist

Americans, after forty years of National Organization of Women propaganda, are coming back to their senses. A series of polls conducted by the Washington Post and Harvard University found that two- thirds of the people interviewed said although it may be necessary for a mother to work it would be better for the family if she could stay at home and care for the house and children even when the children are in their teens. Kirsten Grimsley, “Homemakers Get Plenty of Support”, Washington Post, March 22, 1998 . p. A16. This change in attitude is translating into a change in behavior. Working mothers with a child younger than one year dropped from 59% in 1998 to 50% in 2002 according to the US Census Bureau. Professional mothers are beginning to relinquish their paychecks and dubious prestige for the privilege of being a stay-at-home mom.

The reason for this cultural shift is reality. Many professional women are jealous of women whose husbands support their decision to be homemakers. Mothers are annoyed at missing the development of their children while realizing a childcare worker, friend or relative is experiencing those precious milestone moments. Super moms are tired of carrying two-thirds to four-fifths (depending on the survey) of the domestic housework while working a full time job. The accumulation of objects for status, consumerism, loses its appeal as compared to the gratification of mothering loved ones. The juggling of their job, advanced education, petty office politics and home responsibilities creates a stressful lifestyle that is far from glamorous.

The modern enlightened woman has come to an age-old observation that her husband is genetically ill equipped to care for their children on a long term basis. The current acceptance that breastfeeding is preferable to bottle feeding for the development of the child’s immune system provides a concrete reason to tip the scale for the mother to stay home. Their husbands need them there when they get home as much as the children do. The wife is willing to give up autonomy to keep the family functioning as a unit. Through praising and encouraging the husband’s effort the wife helps him understand and appreciate his contribution to the family as role model, breadwinner and leader. Behind every successful husband and father is a self-less wife and mother. Women as wife and mother are the irreplaceable glue that holds the family together.

Although women are the center of the family, there is an increasing understanding that a strong husband reduces the workload of maintaining a family. The evidence is overwhelming that children with involved fathers are less prone to acting out behavior, drug addiction and dropping out of school. Statistical studies are demonstrating married people are happier, healthier and live longer lives than those unmarried. Modern women are noting the positive side of living a traditional existence.

Feminists Gloria Steinem, Bella Abzug and Betty Freidan’s Women’s Liberation Movement has produced an unexpected negative results. Divorce, illegitimacy and abortion exploded as the WLM sexual revolution embedded itself in the modern culture. Some women are realizing their once attractive, sensitive house husband has turned into a couch potato with little interest in doing his fair share. Burning their bras to denounce their sexuality has backfired. Women of all ages especially young women act more like sex objects today than they did in the late 50s and early 60s. The detested symbolic Playboy bunnies are tame in comparison to our modern day provocative, hedonistic culture. Case after case of older women are convicted of being pedophiles with young boys. The number of female prisoners rose 4% from 2003 and 2004 which is more than double the rate of increase for men during the same period according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. The WLM has allowed females to adopt the most base traits of males while denying their most nurturing qualities.

Yet human nature cannot be totally denied even with the most sophisticated brain washing. The most liberated professional women who have broken through the glass ceiling are choosing late in life to marry, have a child or adopt one. Hollywood narcissistic celebrities are attempting to imitate traditional lifestyles. Gloria Steinem, the model for the liberated female, succumbed to the natural human urges and married.

Where are we NOW in the Women ‘s Liberation Movement? There is still immense confusion how to play one’s role and what lifestyle to choose. One thing is coming into focus that the utopian Marxist ideals of the Women’s Liberation Movement are not as fulfilling as once advertised. More American women and men are returning to traditional time tested ways of living including how to raise a family. Parents are choosing a lifestyle that is best for the child rather than just for themselves.

Self-worth is not derived from career status nor self-pleasure but from having a purposeful life that touches others especially family members. We are beginning to make significant readjustments in the American culture. The pendulum is swinging away from individual liberation towards the stability and legacy of one’s family.