Shane’s view insensitive to working mums
I'M SURE there were plenty of working mothers incensed by the comments of former Boyzone member Shane Lynch this week who said he couldn't possibly be married to a woman who worked outside the home.
While everyone is entitled to their opinion I think it was pretty insensitive of him to spout such opinion at a time when so many people are forced to go out to work just to pay the mortgage and put food on the table.
For a start in this day and age it is a very rare thing to find any young husband and father that would be so traditional in his views, and rarer to find one that would have the neck to voice them publically.
While each and every couple decides how best their family and household runs it bears thinking about that many people simply don't have that choice anymore.
The choice about whether to work is out of a lot of people's hands and staying at home to raise their children is not an option no matter how much they would like to be in that position.
For both mothers and fathers it must be a terrible pressure to have to split themselves in so many pieces in a bid to provide for their family.
While a parent might prefer to be the primary carer for their children the bills need paying and the majority of households, especially those purchased in the boom require two salaries to stay afloat.
It's all very well and good for a celebrity such as Lynch to say that life isn't for him when he has earned millions in his day and yes he is lucky to have the option of travelling the world to work while his wife stays at home minding the kids.
Those many people who do sacrifice a career for the sake of their family often do so at the expense of having any discretionary expenditure and resolve to cut their cloth where spending is concerned.
Something has to give in these cases because it is simply not a clear cut decision.
There is also the argument that why is it deemed a negative thing that both parents go out to work?
If a person has studied and worked for years to build a successful career when why should they sacrifice it to stay at home when they feel they can balance work and home life?
The debate will always rumble on but times have changed and anyone who thinks that being married to a working mother is a terrible thing needs to get a reality check.