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I saw a post on Taylor's facebook page from David Wegener that I thought was very thoughtful. I'll add one simple thing to it that has been a blessing in both my marriage and my life as I have applied its simple truth to the best of my abilities... "Do all things without grumbling or complaining." Philippians 2:14.

Thank you, dear Michael and Jessica! Love,

Lots of towns have places to buy inexpensive cars and great meat (and we do love Rice Farms meat). My point was that one reason is plenty to keep us here.

Love,

A few months ago my wife read Bringing up Bebe (the book cited by the author of the linked article) and she loved it. It provides exactly the kind of outsider's perspective on our culture of child-rearing that so helpfully points out the things that Americans do that are just plain crazy. And it sounds like it's hilarious, too. Another gem from the book is that French parents know their children will face dangers, obstacles and frustrations as adults; because of this, French parents believe that it is a disservice to coddle their children, or shield them from natural adversities when they're children, because that won't prepare a child for real life. The phrase they use to express that is something like "If a child plays with knives, he might cut himself, but he won't die."

As the father of a child with ADHD I thought I should comment.

For about 15 years now we have been on the receiving end of advice ranging from encouraging and empathetic to rude and completely ignorant in regards to how best to raise our child. Obviously we are rotten parents who refuse to discipline and offer no structure. Yes, sarcasm. Nobody and I mean nobody can understand what it is like to have a child with ADHD, real ADHD. Is it overdiagnosed? It could be. It could be something in the water we drink or the food we eat, I don't know. I wholeheartedly agree that many kids just need proper authority exercised and yes, structure and Godly discipline. The danger with an article like this, however, is that it gives most people the idea that ADHD is not really anything more than parents being bad parents.

I say this because already today my wife has been told maybe we should "move to France", you know; where people know how to parent better.

I caution other christians to be wary of getting up on a high horse and lower ADHD to simply bad parenting. It is bad enough to have struggled to care for and try to understand our child's problem on top of regular childrearing issues only to have insult added to injury by folks who have no clue of what it is like to live with it. "Hey, I read an article about this, it must be bad parenting." It sounds silly but we have experienced it time and again.

ADHD may be overdiagnosed, just be careful not to paint with too broad a brush.

I get the same message that Fr. Bill gets when I click the link for the longer video as well.

Sophie, help me know what I need to repent of first:
Not murdering enough children while still in the womb to reduce the rate of murdering them outside the womb, or for being American?

More and more I'm convinced argument only facilitates the further hardening of men's hearts against the truth. Sophie, if you were actually reasonable you wouldn't say the things you have said. All you've managed to do is add a veneer of "reasonableness" to what is absolutely wicked and illogical.

You make basic category errors. For example, do you lament over murder victims the same way you do over somene who died from congenital heart failure? What about those who die from freak accidents? Suicide? Of course not. Each of these may involve a death, but they are not equivocal. There are many kinds of lamentation, and some cry out for justice. Only a fool refuses to see this.

You mistake unanimity of opinion for truth...an unfounded claim of unanimity, no less.

You rely on circular reasoning, claiming those who agree with you (most of whom appear to be European) are kinder and gentler…but the point of disagreement is over the very nature of abortion. To prove you are kinder and gentler, you must first prove abortion isn’t the deliberate destruction of infants in the most cruel and vicious of ways. You are a hypocrite and your view is the most bloodthirsty and cruel of all because it pretends to care while simultaneously desensitizing consciences to the gutting of the weakest and most vulnerable.

You’re not reasonable, either. Calculating is a better description. Such is most of the world, so I won’t argue that you are particularly unique.