Tiger Mom

Has everyone heard about Amy Chua by now?  She wrote a memoir about how she raised her children with Chinese traditions and believes that Americans spoil their children and do not require enough from them.  It’s called “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother”.  Remember Joan Crawford in “Mommy Dearest” when she’s flipping out about the wire hangers?  This lady may be even scarier.  I wish I had more time to write this morning because there’s been steam coming out of my ears from hearing about this lady and her stupid-ass opinions.  I really tried to see her side, but I just can't agree with her parenting methods.  

Chua believes that Americans praise their children for doing the simplest of tasks and that praise should only be used when a child does something remarkable that requires actual effort.  She believes that children are capable of much more than we ask of them and that by enforcing strict rules she is helping them meet their potential.  Her children were not allowed to attend sleepovers, have play dates, watch TV, or play videogames.   She enforced rules and gave little to no praise when they followed them.  She called her daughter “lazy” and “garbage” if she produced something that wasn’t perfect.  For example, her daughter made a card for her and she threw it back in her face because it wasn’t good enough.  She threatened to burn their toys if they didn’t play the piano to perfection.  She says that it's not about achievement.  How’s that?  If you are expecting perfection from a human being, let alone a CHILD, then you are going to be disappointed because human beings are not perfect, moron. 

She says that the Chinese are appalled by American’s parenting styles.  Well, honestly, so am I sometimes.  But I am appalled by the fact that the Chinese try to turn their children into robots, put them on a track when they are young that decides what they will do for a living, and pressure them until they put a gun in their mouth.  Another thing, if they are all about pushing kids to meet their potential, then does that mean that they tell kids that they aren’t capable too?  If they are the ones deciding who can succeed and achieve then what happens to the kids that don’t have gifts and aren’t extremely intelligent?  We may spoil our kids and we may be too lax and we may need to toughen up, and maybe we are producing a generation of kids that are lazy and spoiled…..but isn’t there a happy medium between too lax and PSYCHOTIC??? 

I really don’t think that Americans should be taking advice from a woman practicing traditions from a country that kills baby girls just because they’re baby girls.  There’s no compassion in her style of parenting just like there’s no compassion in gender genocide.  Sorry, Chao.  You’re a psycho and you can kiss my American butt.  At least my kids know what love is.