Bill Michtom

My blogs

About me

Gender Male
Occupation pre-occupied
Location Portand, Oregon, United States
Introduction Published in the NY Times, April 19, 2001
To the Editor:
As a single father who raised his son, I dispute the definition, as put forth in a study by the National Institute on Child Health and Human Development, of child care as ''care by anyone other than the child's mother that was routinely scheduled for at least 10 hours per week'' (news article, April 19).
This definition suggests that all the time my son spent with me is ''child care'' time. This also leads to a problem with one expected response to the study: its contribution to the debate over whether it is better for mothers to work or stay home.
Why are fathers still not considered to be caregivers and mothers given all the responsibility for raising healthy children? This underlying bias in the study -- and in society -- undercuts any validity it might have. Until we realize that fathers and mothers are equally responsible for and equally capable of raising children, we will be doing our children and ourselves a huge disservice.
BILL MICHTOM
Portland, Ore.
Interests reading, politics, jazz, rock, blues, technology
Favorite Movies 2001, On the Waterfront, Groundhog Day, more when I think of them
Favorite Music Thelonius Monk, Bill Evans, Lloyd Jones, Curtis Salgado, Bach, Mozart, John Philip Sousa, Bagpipes, more when I think about it
Favorite Books Catch-22, American Gods, Harry Potter, The Making of the Atomic Bomb, the OED, and yet more to come

What kind of tape is best for creating a sculpture?

duck tape