P.J. O'Rourke: Irish Setter Dad
I just wasn’t cut out to be a Chinese Tiger Mom. I’m more of an Irish Setter Dad. Here are some of the things my daughters, Muffin and Poppet, and my son, Buster, were never allowed to do:
• go to Mass naked
• attend a sleepover at Charlie Sheen’s house
• mix Daddy a martini using sweet vermouth
• play the violin within earshot of me
Have you ever heard a kid learning to play the violin? A cat in the microwave is nothing to it. And let me add an addendum to the things my children were never allowed to do—put a cat in the microwave. I’m not saying it didn’t happen; I’m just saying they weren’t allowed to do it.
~P.J. O'Rourke in the Weekly Standard
7 Comments:
Didn't I read recently that most teachers are coming from the 3rd quintile of their graduating class these days?
Does that mean C students become teachers of the D students children because A and B students send their kids to private schools?
Think about it Cooper a PhD gets A's. Who teaches at universities? PhDs...
It seems that the cubs only outperform as long as "Tiger Mom" is around to brandish the leash and whip:
Studies find a decline in Asian-American students’ success once they move away from home and go to college.
the way most schools seem to be run these days, isn't the 3rd quintile about an A-?
don't about 90% of harvard grads get honors these days?
I'm thinking more along grade schools. You are right though most professors in college's have PHDs and school advertise their PHD percentage.
"It seems that the cubs only outperform as long as "Tiger Mom" is around to brandish the leash and whip:"
On the other hand, the practical life skills training advocated by O'Rourke usually sticks for life.
Once a child has learned to make a proper martini, they never forget how. Kind of like riding a bicycle.
It is an old law school quip, taught to me by a criminology professor (from the article): “A” students work for “B” students. Or not even. A businessman friend of mine corrected me. “No, P. J.,” he said, “ ‘B’ students work for ‘C’ students. ‘A’ students teach.”
"A" students become judges. "B" students become district attorneys. "C" students become millionaires.
But I graduated summa cum laude. I did get a B in Micro Economics. On the evaluation, I wrote: "Professor, 35 years ago, I was a C+ student. I am still a C+ student. Thanks for the learning experience."
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