Jessica Carew Kraft

You know what’s interesting, Steve? It was a woman accountant who gave this advice. A certified CPA. We can differ in opinion, but it’s very impolite to assume that I don’t know about accounting and finance, or that I didn’t consult appropriate experts before writing about a topic.

This story is specifically about women who DON’T want to stay home with their children, but feel forced to because of the economics of it. Women who want to stay home should certainly do so! And I completely agree with you that the work of parenting — especially motherhood — is not valued the way it should be.

I am a journalist. Journalists don’t write headlines, editors do, and we have very little control over that. I agree with you about the title, but I could not change it. So please don’t blame me for something that is out of my control, please take it up with the editors of Bright. Thanks for your considered comments, much appreciated.

All kids learn by exploration, and we are tying their shoelaces together when we emphasize indoor, screen-based learning, no matter how socially progressive it is. Our over-structured, over-managed classrooms and sports teams coupled with the absence of freedom to roam and play, and ever more seductive screens makes our kids distractible and…

Yes, it is gender neutral! Yet there is a well-intended push to get girls interested in all things computational to counteract a perceived bias in our educational system that privileges male participation. It may seem incendiary and attention-grabbing, so I appreciate your calling that out.

Thank you so much — appreciate your take on the new title, too!

Kathy, I love your response! Yes, it’s true that new minds might bring a totally different approach, great point. And I’m totally on board with all the other things you propose we stop teaching girls. So much to tackle!

Thanks so much for reading and writing a response. I think you got my points perfectly. I don’t like the unhealthy lifestyle and the addiction potential in our coding-focused screen-centered culture. We are getting fatter, sicker and less able to function without pharmaceuticals and stimulants the more we spend time inside and on screens. I’m open to…

That’s a beautiful vision. A lot of people have advocated that code is the skill that everyone will need to learn to be functional in society, akin to how we now expect extremely high rates of literacy. My belief is that it’s something that a mature mind should tackle, and as long as it is associated with screens, potential tech addiction and…

I applaud this effort, and I think it is imperative that we also spend an hour a day (at least!) with our kids doing activities in nature. Parents have to balance our future tech economy’s needs with our evolution-designed biological programming. As we spend ever more time indoors in artificial light, concentrating on screens that tax our eyes and…