while camping in yosemite the other weekend, we couldnt help but overhear the heated discussion developing at the campsite nextdoor. there was a guy, about our age, explaining that npr was biased towards women. he said this because a woman, i'll call her nancy, was complaining on npr about how she wanted more vacation time from work. she is also raising a small child, her three weeks just isnt enough, and npr supports this position. the poor guy next door thinks that is unfair, and he is right. he was getting slammed by his fellow campers, but he missed the entire issue which is that nancy is in the bad position of climbing the corporate ladder while raising a kid. and that is the problem. women are faced with this dichotomy from the very beginning, they are told they will need to be independent, self-sufficient, and they will need an advanced degree to win their fields medal. yet, at the same time, they are given dollies and told to have babies and kittens and families. they are the ones expected to keep the household together. i think it's A+ fantastic to have a guy willing to stay home and take charge of this, but do you find it often? i think not. women then have to choose, or else they do a half-assed job at both. it's totally unfair, and its amazing how few men admit that. young men love to say how it'd be great to be a house-husband, but it's just big talk. its sad when you see a young, well educated, white man not taking advantage of his world of opportunities. the world is his oyster. i am bitter, i know. i am 25 and in a serious relationship that i expect will result in marriage within the next couple of years. i have a job that annoys the shit out of me, but provides the opportunity to go get whatever advanced degree im interested in. i've been fancying an mba lately, lets say i do it. i work long hours, go to school night and weekends, and i have the degree by the time im 28. then, i become a mckinsey consultant. (you didnt expect me to stay with this place, did you?) im working my way up, up, things are going great. well, wait, i expected that id be thinking about the babies and the kittens around thirty. so i have a kid. im thirty. if i dont want to put my newborn child in daycare for his first five years, ive got the put the mckinsey thing on hold. does anyone really expect i'll be able to take five years off and then simply pick up where i left off? what about having another kid? it just doesnt work to do both, it's one or the other.