Quote:
Originally Posted by FirstMove  The difficulty of running a household on one income is a direct effect of Womens' Lib. |
I think it is more to do with the world wars, where women took up previously male dominate jobs, to help the war effort and then wanted to keep working.
Quote:
Originally Posted by FirstMove When it was normal for only one person in the house to work, the level of income that produced had to be enough to run a household - otherwise everyone would have starved or died of exposure. |
Come on now, I know many single income families who have not as yet died of exposure and do not starve.
Quote:
Originally Posted by FirstMove Now two people need to work to run a househol and the quality of life is no better. |
IMHO not true, quality of life is far higher, let's try a check list...
When I was a kid...
One pair of shoes a year (normally hand me down's re-soled)
Second hand school uniform, normally from my older borother with patched holes...
One christmas present, a cheap one.
Toys were only bought for Birthdays and Christmas, and even then they were normally made up of scraps of wood. Cards were hand made.
A car was seen as a luxury, so we walked, or we saved up for a couple of years doing part time jobs to buy a second hand bike.
Noone I knew expected to own thier own home.
No tele.
Expectations have risen... so 2 people go out to work in a family, for stuff that, is just stuff...
They then say they struggle, so let's see...
They have :
A washing machine
A tele
A fridge
A car
Maybe are buying a house
Bikes for the kids
etc. etc.
So housewifes can be housewifes... if they choose to be.
It is only materialism and not basic survival that stops them.
The bordom factor does come into it as well, as again, people expect more.. As long as you accept it is raised expectations, then sure go out to work during "school time" .
