Rating: 
Summary: Right Points, Wrong Tone
Review: Burkett makes a number of excellent points in this book: For instance, child income tax credits are a feel-good measure that benefit the middle-class instead of the kids that need it the most. The federal government is paying people to do something that they've been doing forever, and people who don't have kids are left holding the bag. Also, people with kids often get a better job benefits package than those without: on-site daycare in some places, maternity leave, flextime, etc., and picking up someone else's slack is infuriating.As a person who is child-free by choice, I have always been annoyed by the condescending and sometimes downright ignorant remarks I get from people. If I had a dollar for every time I was told that I would change my mind, I'd be rich. However, Burkett's tone often descends to a similarly snide level. Day-to-day life is more complicated and difficult for people with kids; this is evident and to deny it is naive and whiny.
Rating: 
Summary: Making excuses
Review: If people feel bitter about their colleagues with children, there's something wrong with them - not their colleagues. This book merely points more fingers for the overly embittered to clutch on and follow suit. I must agree that having children and the associated issues are very personal and individual decisions. However, the complaints about parents being "bad workers" can be flipped any which way - the same could be said for a lazy, just-out-of college, underachiver. I don't think many who condemn parents for prioritizing (and taking the appropriate time off) would be very sympathetic to the underachieving party-boy. The issue of taxes is one that most people should see both sides of - I am not sure that a child tax credit is necessary, myself. However, if an extra $500 for families who qualify is to be scrutinized, a lot of tax perks that are even fairly universal should be taken down as well. If the issue is "taxation based on behavior" - we should stop giving tax credits to parents, and stop giving tax breaks to those who have retirement plans, stop giving tax breaks for health insurance, and stop giving deductions to students and for student loan interest. Oh, and the most swooping tax reform would be to stop giving tax deductions to those who pay interest on mortgages. See, each of those tax relief items is a "chosen" behavior on the part of the citizen. In the grand scheme of things, revoking the child tax credit would be a relatively useless measure unless one wants real tax reform. But do the authors want real tax reform? A read through this book should clarify that the answer is a definite NO. I do not see, personally or managerially, what is "criminal" about parents taking leave from their accrual to do things with their children. Parents do not get additional vacation leave in most companies, yet they use their leave for their childrens' functions and needs --- just like anyone childless would use their leave for the functions and needs of someone they cared about/was a family member. Which leads me to my last point. The Family Medical Leave Act can be used by anyone. It can be used to stand by a dying mother's bedside. It can be used to help a spouse with a medical condition (if, of course, one is married). It is not a parents-only perk. This book, in short, takes anecdotal evidence of "lazy workers" and presents it as a universal truth. If the parents of today's workforce were required to cover up the fact that they had children; or were required to lie about the purposes for which they were leaving early... we would see "lazy workers" as a whole. I do realize there are some parents who do function badly at the workplace once they bear children. I'll go out on a limb and say that those people are not good employees in any sense if they cannot balance their time. This would go for a parent, or for someone who can't get over a bad breakup, or for a party-minded young worker. Anyone who cannot put in the work required is not likely a model employee, whether they have offspring or not.
Rating:
Summary: Biased
Review: I think that this book is one that is mostly based on bitterness. While Ms. Burkett claims to have done a plethora of research about family-friendly companies, benefits to parents and situations where society has equated "woman" to "mother", it is clear that her research is skewed to support her point of view. There are parts of the book which are well written, where I can't even guess what her personal opinions are on the topic, and for that I applaud her. This book discusses a topic that most people have strong opinions on and it is geared to get a reaction. I believe that Ms. Burkett intended to show how ungrateful parents are for the "special privileges" that they are awarded. What this book illustrates is that there are people in this world who are ungrateful for everything that they are given, including the author. There have been many positive changes in this world as we strive to make it a better place for the next generation. And parents are the ones who are making many of those sacrifices. I don't agree with parents being inconsiderate to non-parents, whether it's allowing their children to misbehave in public, assuming that other co-workers will take up the slack while they leave early or come in late, or just being such bad parents that their children grow up to be thugs. Becoming a parent is the hardest decision that a person has to make with their life. The problem that Ms. Burkett doesn't really acknowledge is that people do not take enough responsibility to plan having children when they are financially ready and emotionally stable enough to become parents. Ultimately, it makes sense that a country will invest in people who are building the next generation. For people who don't have children, they opt out of taking benefits that are just as available to them. It's sad to see that so many people spend their lives comparing themselves to others to actively search for reasons to feel angry.
Rating: 
Summary: I think of this book every year at tax time
Review: Now that tax-time is coming up, I was thinking of this book. I hate the fact that I am in a higher tax-bracket than married couples who make the same amount of income that I do.
Like many single, child-less people, I have had to cover shifts for people who had to leave work pr not come in because of something to do with their kids. One time I was forced to relinquish my vacation to a mother, so her vacation days would match her husband's. This was someone with less senority than me, but I was threatened with termination if I didn't do it. I for one am tired of all the 'for the kids' rhetoric, and would like to see some tax breaks for singles. I also don't like the way that the US seems to be very child-centered now. I can hardly ever go into a restaraunt or movie without noisy kids being there. I don't understand why parents think everyone would be delighted by their kids.
Rating:
Summary: Me and Mine vs. One from Many
Review: While Elinor Burkett raises some interesting points in her book, she misses some key points that should be addressed in this discussion. While criticizing parent's for taking advantage of kid friendly policies and leaving the burden on others, she doesn't seem to count the parent's that work long and hard next to co-workers that are single. Yes, I have left early to pick up my son from school. But so has my employee left early to pick up her dog from "doggie school". The bottom line, is that we need to make society and work more people friendly. Second, yes it is true that there are economic and tax benefits to having children that aren't available to the childless. But the cost of these benefits will be repaid with interest and more by the social security taxes our children will pay that will support the childless in their old age. Yes, children are an economic burden. But as they grow, they are an econmic benefit. The childless person complaining about subsidizing my children would have more credeability if they would forswear any transfer payments from my children when they are older. While intriguing, my bottom line criticism of this book is that it is a part of the "me and mine" balkanization of our society into smaller and smaller fragments. I long for a society that sees that we are interconnected and is willing to pay the price of long-term investments. That we will embrace One from Many and reject Me and Mine.
Rating:
Summary: And you wonder why it's discounted 75%
Review: I have never seen such a bunch of worthless nonsense in my life. This book, and its wretched opinions stated therein, leave little doubt as to why the author has never found someone with whom to have children. As with all I'm-such-a-victim-of-society books I will remind the author, and those foolish enough to read it, that the option of leaving this single-person-hating country is entirely yours.
Rating:
Summary: I can go along with this to a point...
Review: I'm a male who has, thus far, chosen to remain unmarried and childless. Although the main purpose of life is, arguably, procreation, parenting simply isn't for everyone--I understand that, and, while I'm no fan of abortion, I believe that people have both the right, and the responsibility, to decide for themselves whether or not to take on the role of parenting. Either choice is valid, and calling someone "selfish" for choosing not to have children is an unfair cheapshot. On that, I can agree with the author. I also agree that parents should not take advantage of their roles; using them simply to shirk workplace responsibilities or to garner unfair benefits. However, let's not forget that parenting is still the most profound, important responsibility that one can take on. One could volunteer in a plethora of community service or charitable organizations, and their work would still pale in comparison to the value of a parent raising a child well. You can talk about overpopulation all you want, but the fact remains that we need people to create and raise the next generation; the ones that will be taking care of us when we're old. Granted, homo-sapiens aren't exactly on the endangered species list, but we'd be in trouble if three-quarters of the adults in this country chose not to have children. We're still biological, not celestial, creatures. For that reason, I believe that parents should get tax breaks. In all honesty, right now I'm working a pretty menial job for pretty menial money, and I still, quite frankly, have few financial woes because I'm only supporting myself. Being married with children would change this completely. At least ideally, these tax breaks are designed to benefit the child, not the parents. One thing I've noticed about this book, although I doubt that this was the author's intention, is that it's started a miniature war here; the battle line's drawn being parents and the childless. All I have to say about that is this: Like I said before, calling someone "selfish" for not having children is a cheapshot--we're not apes, and we can decide that for ourselves. And calling someone a "breeder" for taking on the most essential role in biology and society--parenting--is just plain obnoxious and immature.
Rating:
Summary: Food for thought certainly, but...
Review: A book that raises a point and starts a heated debate justifiably receives a positive rating. However, judging from the reviews I have read, the very high rating of this book is more due to the fact that the reviewers are of the same mind as the writer than to the merits of the book itself. So let me play the role of the devil's advocate. I give the 3-star rating to this book because I, although I am single, childless, in my thirties and employed in the private sector, don not agree with the main premise of the book. I don't agree, because parenting is a duty as important (not more, nor less) as all the other duties we have as individuals towards the things we consider important : God, our country, our profession, our family (other than children), our friends, our own fulfilment as human beings. And parenting is a full-time responsibility. So parents actually have two, often conflicting, duties, their work and their children. This is no platitude, although it may be that non-parents do not understand it. This being the case, any effort of the state or the business to alleviate the double load is positive. Not for the sake of the children, but for the sake of the parents. Let me give an example : The book starts with the complaint of a certain young lady, childless, who would like to devote her free time and the extra money she "loses" due to less tax exemptions to her hobbies, something she suposedly cannot do because she has to "support", through the mechanisms imposed by the "system" other people who happen to be parents. This argument is misleading. It rests on the assumption that parents do not have hobbies to which they would also like to devote some time, since they have children. The truth is that parents as well as non-parents would like some quality time to themselves, but have two jobs instead of one, therefore free time is a luxury as much for them as for the non-parent working overtime in his/her company. And if a University reserves "family" residences for parents with children, it may well be because only these residences have space enough to accomodate two adults with one or more children - or would you have us admit that a family with two children needs the same space as a family with no children at all? With the above examples I don't want to diminish the value of the arguments presented. It is possible that the US government & businesses err in the side of parents. This does not mean, however, that parents should be treated as non-parents. Whether non-parents like it or not, parents do have a heavier workload, both inside the workplace and inside theis homes, do have increased responsibilities, do have higher bills to pay & greater uncertainties/risks to face. Consequently, and assuming a country wants to continue growing from the inside (and not from the outside, accepting hordes of refugees and immigrants), parents do need more support from the state than non-parents. So let's view the arguments of Ms Burkett soberly, giving them the consideration the require but not forgetting that they present only one side of the coin, albeit the less talked about.
Rating: 
Summary: She's saying what we're all thinking!
Review: This book is a great read. It not only confirms all of my suspicions about how we child-free are being discriminated against, but it showed me many more reasons I should be worried. Discrimination stinks, no matter what. And this book brings to the forefront a very subtle discrimination that hurts active, productive contributors to society, only to favor "breeders" and their spawn. I'm an extremist who would love to see mandatory classes, parenting licenses and required income levels in order to have a baby. So whereas Elinor's book is a great start, we need to keep moving on and making this issue even more important.
Rating:
Summary: What a waste of time and paper.
Review: Raising a child is real work but an unracognized one. I know nothing of the so-called advantages mentioned. But I know that a chilfree person is free from waking ten times a night to give water to a sick child, free frompediatrician bills and free to spend his/her spare time anyway your want. I wasn't especially rich, but I used to travel once a year to a foreign, country. I used to spend $ 200 a month just on books. Now I have a child and travelling like I used to do is now just a dream for my retirement (which by the way will be finance in part by my child). It was my choice and I don't regret it. I am very happy with my little boy. I also have a lot of respect for people who choose not to have one, but the fact remains that a child is expensive. In Switzerland a study made by the government estimated that a child cost $ 700'000.- in effective costs like pampers, food, closing, etc. (well Switzerland is an expensive country). This amount includes also the lost incomes that come from part-timejobs and/or loss of promotion to a better one. An other study shows that having a child is for a woman the biggest risk to fall into poverty. Brukett sounds like a child "He has more than me". She speaks about her rights, I don't worry so much about my rights than the rights of children to be rise lovingly by parents who really have the means and the time to do it properly, which is the most important thing.
And whether childed or childfree, what we should think of is to make this planet a better place to live for all of us.
|
