Ha. I don't mean that I don't want a daughter... It's just that every time I think about having a daughter, I think about these issues, and it scares the shit out of me. Raising a son, I wouldn't have to worry that much about this stuff, and I could focus on helping him help make the world a better place, instead of worrying about whether my daughter is gonna get raped because she wore short shorts today. That make sense?
I really have no preference as far as kids go, it's just that when I read articles like this, the idea of having a daughter seems terrifying.
> Raising a son, I wouldn't have to worry that much about this stuff, and I could focus on helping him help make the world a better place, instead of worrying about whether my daughter is gonna get raped because she wore short shorts today.
I understand the comment you made (downthread) about parents being perhaps irrationally concerned about low-probability dangers to their kids, and totally understand: what I don't understand is why you'd be more afraid of your daughter being raped than your son. According to CDC data[1], the 12-month incidence of rape victimization for men is basically the same as for women. Given that the data doesn't support it, is it perhaps possible that your lopsided fear of rape is rooted in more sexism? A la, "Women are frail creatures that must be protected from all the dangers of the world", but "Men are independent, powerful shapers of their fate". I feel like an attitude like that is more of a concern to your hypothetical future daughter than any of the other concerns you've raised.
[1] pp 18-19: 12-month incidence of penetrative rape is 1.1% of women and the data is too noisy for men; non-penetrative rape is 5.3% for men and 5.6% for women.
> I really have no preference as far as kids go, it's just that when I read articles like this, the idea of having a daughter seems terrifying.
This is like the tech equivalent of suburbanites who never go to the city because of all the news reports of murders they see on the nightly news. These outlets take a serious but infrequent problem and exaggerate it into an epidemic for the eyeballs (and hence, ad revenue).
You are not wrong, but I would like to talk to a father who's NOT concerned about that stuff. Just because reality differs from my mental model does not mean that my brain will automatically say "Oh, the odds are overwhelmingly against this, I'll just ignore it." ;)
Ha. I don't mean that I don't want a daughter... It's just that every time I think about having a daughter, I think about these issues, and it scares the shit out of me. Raising a son, I wouldn't have to worry that much about this stuff, and I could focus on helping him help make the world a better place, instead of worrying about whether my daughter is gonna get raped because she wore short shorts today. That make sense?
I really have no preference as far as kids go, it's just that when I read articles like this, the idea of having a daughter seems terrifying.