There's something I've been meaning to write about. I think women's liberation is mostly wonderful. My wife of 41 years - the other DrC - is a Ph.D., a career gal who earned the same amount I did, lectured all over the country, we share household chores, etc., etc.
So ... mostly wonderful, but like all things, not an unalloyed blessing. Time was when smart women could become nurses, teachers, secretaries, nuns or rarely, managers in retailing. There were no other serious career options open.
The result: there were many damned bright teachers, nurses, secretaries, etc. Today, fewer of those very bright women go into nursing and teaching. No big deal you say? That depends on how important you believe teaching your children is, how important having smart women watching your health in hospital.
I'd argue both of those things were, and are, important. So ... much has been gained but something has been lost, too. BTW, it is my understanding the other DrC agrees with these thoughts.
What reminded me to write this was a good New York Times article about Sister Dolores Crepeau, principal of a girls' high school in Brooklyn. You'd really like for this nun to run your daughters' high school. Hat tip to Lucianne.com for the link.
When I was a kid most people believed women weren't able to run important organizations. At the same time, nuns were college presidents and managers of large, important hospitals. They managed huge budgets, large staffs, hired and fired, and did it very well.
How did we not notice what we knew about nuns totally conflicted with our attitudes toward women? Why did we think wearing medieval habits made women into men?
