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Comment by leipert | Hacker News Reader

Anecdotally from the generation of people that lived in Eastern Germany, especially in rural areas, a sense of community, solidarity and purpose is what went missing after the Berlin wall came down.

I have never thought of having more women in the workforce as "anti-family", and will definitely research on that, but personally I am happy to have a more diverse workforce and not stigmatize men if they want to stay at home.

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> I am happy to have a more diverse workforce and not stigmatize men if they want to stay at home.

I dont think Eastern Europe is the place more accepting of men staying with children at home.

> I have never thought of having more women in the workforce as "anti-family"

In lieu of their mothers, children need to be looked after by professional caretakers. This weakens their bond with the mother. And even in the evenings, when mother is back from the job, she's beat and can't give the same level of attention to their children.

As a teacher, I had the great benefit of staying home with my toddler over the summer, and I can decidedly tell you that my wife was far more chipper and ready to provide positive attention to our son in the evenings than I was.

There are two parents! Is it still 1960?

Both parents are working, so the children are cared for by the state in Ganztagesschulen (Germany, literally Whole-Day-Schools). It's a mix of "we must raise the children because some parents are unwilling/unable to do it themselves" and necessity for average parents who cannot afford for one of them not to work full time.

Similar in here in Sweden, but my point is to highlight the focus on the mother as the primary and default child carer.

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