Morgan, there must be a misunderstanding. I dit *not at all* mean to say that you are reducing bf to the product. I meant to agree with Diane on the importance of the process. It was a general statement on a trend, that is clearly visible in the Dutch society, as well as it was visible in the comments on the discussed site/blog. Of course, the general public should be well/much better informed on next-best options. No need for you and me to disagree on that. ;o) Had a high school reunion yesterday and of course people ask: "What do you do?" Says a former male classmate of mine: "Ridiculous, that the Dutch government said the other day that women should breastfeed longer!" (Yes, the health minister actually said that!) "Government has no right to interfere." So I asked how he felt about smoking and using safety belts and car seats. Came a somewhat dumm answer, very inconsistent, and I did not feel like putting myself in the defense chair and discuss societal barriers and attachment, so I left it for what it was. Should have asked what his experience was with his own children (not even sure if he has any, which would have been the best scenario for his answer to my question... hahaha: "So, no experience, but a rigid, not so well-informed vision nevertheless...?!"). Friday evening on the radio, an interviewer asking a question: "Are mothers who choose not to bf, worse mothers than those who do?" What would be the answer to this one: "Are mothers who choose to smoke during their pregnancy, worse mothers?" "Are mothers who willingly neglect their infants needs, worse mothers?" Once again, it is a matter of how to word what you want to say and how willing people are to give things more than one second of thought and then after thorough thought, give a well-balanced answer. Apparently, this is very difficult, even 25 years after leaving high school... Warmly, Marianne Vanderveen, Netherlands ----- Original Message ----- From: "Morgan Gallagher" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Sunday, April 13, 2008 4:38 PM Subject: Re: [LACTNET] mother's right, child's right >I am in no way reducing breastfeeding to the product. *********************************************** Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html To reach list owners: [log in to unmask] Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask] COMMANDS: 1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail 2. To start it again: set lactnet mail 3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet 4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome