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> Rather than help address then problem a sister comment alludes to "get a dog" folks are helping to perpetuate it. Sorry, can you help me parse this sentence?

sidlls 9y ago
Sorry, "then problem" should be "the problem", and the "sister comment" is the one about how we (in America, presumably) no longer have "a village" to raise children: parents are mostly on their own for the task. My point is that folks who have the "get a dog" mentality are supporting the forces that make child rearing increasingly burdensome.
- briankelly 9y ago
  I'd say that the "get a dog" mentality is more of a symptom of the root forces than support of them. Others have already explained it but essentially the trend of tribe/village -> urban neighborhood multigenerational/extended family single home -> suburban nuclear family -> transplanted dual-career couple has eroded any support network parents had. On top of other lifestyle, economic, and environmental pressures, the "get a dog" people are just saying "fuck it." Sure they add some social/peer pressure but that's blue on black compared to everything else.
  - monktastic1 9y ago
    > I'd say that the "get a dog" mentality is more of a symptom of the root forces than support of them. Perhaps it is both? These things tend to be cyclic. "Fuck it" tends to breed conditions where more people say "fuck it." That said, I do believe in something like a "get a dog and help care for the community" mentality that's not a "fuck it" at all.
    - briankelly 9y ago
      We're mostly in agreement. By "fuck it" I meant "fuck it" to having kids, not towards contributing to the greater community. Anecdotally the "get a dog"/DINK married couples I know are probably the most active in community building, local political and social issues, helping out the underprivileged in their area... all that good stuff.

sidlls 9y ago

Sorry, "then problem" should be "the problem", and the "sister comment" is the one about how we (in America, presumably) no longer have "a village" to raise children: parents are mostly on their own for the task. My point is that folks who have the "get a dog" mentality are supporting the forces that make child rearing increasingly burdensome.

briankelly 9y ago
I'd say that the "get a dog" mentality is more of a symptom of the root forces than support of them. Others have already explained it but essentially the trend of tribe/village -> urban neighborhood multigenerational/extended family single home -> suburban nuclear family -> transplanted dual-career couple has eroded any support network parents had. On top of other lifestyle, economic, and environmental pressures, the "get a dog" people are just saying "fuck it." Sure they add some social/peer pressure but that's blue on black compared to everything else.
- monktastic1 9y ago
  > I'd say that the "get a dog" mentality is more of a symptom of the root forces than support of them. Perhaps it is both? These things tend to be cyclic. "Fuck it" tends to breed conditions where more people say "fuck it." That said, I do believe in something like a "get a dog and help care for the community" mentality that's not a "fuck it" at all.
  - briankelly 9y ago
    We're mostly in agreement. By "fuck it" I meant "fuck it" to having kids, not towards contributing to the greater community. Anecdotally the "get a dog"/DINK married couples I know are probably the most active in community building, local political and social issues, helping out the underprivileged in their area... all that good stuff.