4 ms·

> There's a big problem here: Parents are judged poorly no matter how they oversee their children. You watch over your children and make sure they're safe and s

> There's a big problem here: Parents are judged poorly no matter how they oversee their children. You watch over your children and make sure they're safe and supported? You're a helicopter parent. Took your eyes off your child for five seconds and he jumped into a cage with a gorrilla at the zoo? You're a horrible neglectful mother. Spoke to the principal of your kid's school concerning a bully or about putting some padding over the concrete at the playground? You're creating a "safe space" for your child and raising them to be a sissy. Being a parent is a no-win scenario in the eyes of public perception. Replace "parents" with "people" and "oversee their children" with "live", and you get the problem on the higher level.

taneq 10y ago
True, but the special case of "being responsible for the wellbeing of another person while simultaneously needing to respect their autonomy to some degree" is significantly more fraught than just "people gonna judge how you live". This also applies to other situations, like the government's role in dealing with indigenous populations. The government can't force them to attend school, study, work, create healthy family environments, moderate substance use etc. because that impinges on their rights. The government is then taken to task for the indigenous population's lack of education and employment, their living conditions, problems with substance abuse, and so on. There's no way to win.