Parenting threads always raise my hackles, and I’ve been up since 1:30 this morning with a sick kid so can’t not take this bait. In my opinion the issue is soc

Parenting threads always raise my hackles, and I’ve been up since 1:30 this morning with a sick kid so can’t not take this bait. In my opinion the issue is social, and it’s this: kids are essential to society but, these days, non-parents have little to no experience with kids. They’re entirely unfamiliar with even basic child physiology and psychology or the requirements of adequate childcare at different ages. Two top-of-mind examples of this manifesting, in my opinion: - When someone calls into work and says “I can’t come to work today because my kid is sick, I need to reschedule or hand off all my meetings” do they hear “no problem, thanks for being a parent?” or “can you join for just a little bit?” (“I would very much prefer that, but I don’t think you’ll like having a wailing kid on the call. Where would my kid be while I’m joined? Realistic suggestions only, please.”) Since I should probably make my comment relevant to TFA: most daycares do not allow you to bring your kid if they’re sick. So free daycare doesn’t at all ameliorate this very common and very stressful problem. - At the beginning of Covid, Google gave extra leave to parents, and non-parents were up in arms (including on HN IIRC. I’ll see if I can find the thread). How about, you can have extra leave if you spend it caring for kids, since the schools are closed, so there’s a shortage of childcare, which is a society-wide problem. I’m confident you’ll find that programming computers is an easier way to contribute in this crisis.