I have come in late to this discussion but fell I must comment on Andrew's
view
that the statement "it feels right to give one a bottle" is absolutely
absurd."

I don't think this is absurd at all.  So much of what we "feel" as right or
not right depends on our cultural backgrounds, the messages we get from our
families, our friends, the people in our neighbourhoods and the
all-pervasive media.  And I'm not just talking about deliberate attempts to
change attitudes and opinions.


The subliminal messages we all receive as we grow up and beyond are a
significant influence on what we feel is normal behaviour.

So, given the almost total absence of breastfeeding in the media, the dismal
stories that are told when it does appear (eg that dreadful "Chicago Hope"
episode which has just gone to air in Australia) and the pressure on women
to hide away and breastfeed, why would it not feel absolutely "right" to
give a baby a bottle, and totally aberrant to breastfeed.

It is easy to forget, as committed breastfeeding advocates who surround
themselves with likeminded people, that for many women out there
breastfeeding is totally invisible and bottlefeeding the norm.

Dot Newbold
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NMAA Breastfeeding Counsellor