The Perpetual Panic of American Parenthood
Paris — I spend a lot of time listening to parents around the world complain. In Kiev recently, a working mother told me the joke about how Ukrainians are raised by same-sex couples: their mothers and grandmothers.
How hard or easy it is to raise kids, especially while working, is a big part of people’s well-being everywhere. This topic rarely gets much traction in American politics, but it’s become an issue in this election. Even Donald J. Trump, when he isn’t boasting that he can grab women by their genitals, claims he wants them to have a better work-life balance.
.. Ukrainian dads may not change enough diapers, but their government offers paid maternity leave; practically free preschool; and per-baby payments equivalent to eight months of an average salary.
.. While Nordic citizens often don’t realize how good they have it, Americans seem not to realize how terribly they are being treated,”
.. Ms. Partanen points out that many Europeans pay only slightly higher income taxes than Americans do, while Swedes and Britons pay less, and all get far more in return.
.. Mr. Trump (who once boasted that he never changed a diaper, which could explain why he married two Eastern Europeans) said a year ago that he was skeptical of paid family leave and opposed universal pre-K.
.. I’ve already mailed in my ballot. It’s a vote to make America great, by making it a bit more like the rest of the world.