Politics of Parenting

I'm going to make a couple bold, sweeping statements.

Conservatives draw political identity from the past, the way things were. They urge caution when trying new things.

Liberals draw their political identity from the future, how things will be. They are more open to new ideas than their counterparts.

I'm super generalizing here but it's a pretty good place to start today's post.

Baby J is always running around, trying to eat things and touch electrical outlets. She wants to push things off the table and take the batteries out of the remote control. In essence, Baby J is always interested in trying something new and finding interesting ways to use things. I spend a better part of my day running around trying to take things out of her mouth, keeping her fingers away from wall sockets, picking things up off the floor, and putting the batteries back in the remote control. In essence, I put everything back the way it was and push Baby J to use things safely.

It's not hard to see where I'm going with this. Children are liberal in their inclinations. Parents are conservatives. It is the interplay between these two ideologies that shape family dynamics. Of course, both are necessary for kids to flourish but we should all remember that children will grow up to live in the future, not our past.