Successful Childless Women

[ljohnson2006]

All Fundies think that having a gaggle of kids is going to make them happy. It seems like most of them are not. They don't have the education or skills to do anything else. Let's think of some women who have been successful and do not have kids. I'll start.

Beth Karas is a lawyer and television correspondant. She's been covering court cases for 20+ years. (OJ Simpson, Jodi Arias, Casey Anthony). Just to name a few of the more well known cases she's done. She's not married, and has no children. She put her career before marriage, and seems very content with her life. I'm sure that many Fundies are depressed, and cannot get the proper treatment because they don't believe in it. (That's a whole nother can of worms). Can you think of any more successful childless women?

[Wolfie]

Sally Stanford

[GolightlyGrrl]

Successful childless woman? Here is exhibit A:

[ladyamylynn]

Sonia Sotomayor. Ellen.

[hywelis]

Florence Nightingale!

[NotALoserLikeYou]

Condoleezza Rice. Helen Mirren.

[GolightlyGrrl]

Dolly Parton

Gloria Steinem

Marlo Thomas

Betty White

Diane Sawyer

Condolleezza Rice

Julia Child

Bonnie Raitt

Margaret Cho

Stevie Nicks

Elizabeth Dole

Tammy Baldwin

Helen Mirren

Harper Lee

Elena Kagan

Kathy Griffin

Donna Brazile

[NotALoserLikeYou]

Dolly Parton. Sally Ride. Blondie. Emily Dickinson.

[Arete]

Sally Ride

[Jinger Jar]

All Fundies think that having a gaggle of kids is going to make them happy.

I don't think happiness plays into fundie thinking about family size. They see each child as an increased chance to see heaven and as a visible reminder to the rest of us that they love and trust God more than they think we do.

Can you think of any more successful childless women?

The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur who teach in my K-12 parochial school are/were successful women. Everyone who comes from the mostly lower middle class/poor, rural community I was raised in owes the SNDdeNs a huge debt.

[louisa05]

Cabinet Secretaries:

Condoleeza Rice, Patricia Roberts Harris, Elizabeth Dole, Janet Napolitano, Janet Reno, Gale Norton, Ann Veneman, Barbara Franklin, Ann McLaughlin Korologos, Donna Shalala, Mary Cino...

And that's just the ones on the list that I looked up to verify if they do/did or not. Seems more women who have served in a cabinet do not have children than do. Not sure that is a good thing as it implies that women have a harder time advancing if they do have children which shouldn't be the case.

[yewchapel]

Jo Frost aka Supernanny.

[ljohnson2006]

Good answers.

[meda]

Susan B Anthony

Alice Paul

Eudora Welty

[gezykah]

As so many of the women people have already listed prove you can be childless and successful not just in the way many fundies imagine where they're self absorbed and only care about superficial things like money but childless women can still devote much of their lives to helping people and making this world a better place.

[August]

Successful doesn't equal happy. You don't knowwhat's going on inside anyone's head, and certainly not that of a a public figure.

Sonia Sotomayor. Ellen.

Weren't Ellen and Portia ttc?

edit: LOL, an article stamped 15 hours ago says no kids for them.

[Rosa]

ha! I just looked that up, August, and apparently not.

http://jezebel.com/ellen-degeneres-and- ... -472775604

eta this awesome quote:

Ellen has previously addressed their choice in her 2001 book Seriously... I'm Kidding:

People are constantly asking Portia and me if we are going to have children. We thought about it. We love to be around children after they've been fed and bathed. But we ultimately decided that we don't want children of our own. There is far too much glass in our house.

And last September, she reminded Jay Leno: "I don't want to have one. I don't want to have six. I don't want to have any. They're precious to look at and I love them; we have nieces and I love them very much. [but I] don't want 'em." [us Weekly, USA Today]

[JenniferJuniper]

....©hildless women can still devote much of their lives to helping people and making this world a better place.

"can still"?

Not all women are interested in having kids. Hell, I know plenty of women who don't even like kids. Some are very successful; some less so. But you seem to be implying that women who don't have them are automatically lesser beings who need to find some other way to devote themselves to society.

Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but if, do you feel the same way about childless men? Should they "devote much of their lives to others" and if they don't, would you view them in the same manner as women without kids?

I have kids, but man, I find the notion that women who don't have them are otherwise obligated to society to be rather a paternalistic one.

[gezykah]

"can still"?

Not all women are interested in having kids. Hell, I know plenty of women who don't even like kids. Some are very successful; some less so. But you seem to be implying that women who don't have them are automatically lesser beings who need to find some other way to devote themselves to society.

Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but if, do you feel the same way about childless men? Should they "devote much of their lives to others" and if they don't, would you view them in the same manner as women without kids?

I have kids, but man, I find the notion that women who don't have them are otherwise obligated to society to be rather a paternalistic one.

I did not state or implying any sort of obligation but merely pointed out childless women are capable of not being selfish. I'm 33, don't have kids, and don't know if I ever will. Some of the biggest criticisms I hear are that being childless I am self absorbed and never know true love.

[JenniferJuniper]

I did not state or implying any sort of obligation but merely pointed out childless women are capable of not being selfish. I'm 33, don't have kids, and don't know if I ever will. Some of the biggest criticisms I hear are that being childless I am self absorbed and never know true love.

And I'm just pointing out that you yourself seem to be buying into the notion that women who don’t have kids have to prove they are capable not being "selfish" by finding another way to devote themselves to society.

Also, if someone has children in order to "know true love", wouldn’t that be the height of self-absorption?

[crazyforkate]

I feel like I'm obligated here to mention the reason for my username, Miss Katharine Hepburn!

[gezykah]

And I'm just pointing out that you yourself seem to be buying into the notion that women who don’t have kids have to prove they are capable not being "selfish" by finding another way to devote themselves to society.

Also, if someone has children in order to "know true love", wouldn’t that be the height of self-absorption?

You are reading stuff into my posts that simply isn't there. Nowhere did I suggest I buy into any notion childless women have anything to prove. Capable ≠ obligation. Like I pointed out in both my previous posts to the contrary of what many feel about childless women we are capable of thinking of others. Many don't believe we are.

I do agree with you that it is a sign of self-absorption to think you have kids to know true love. Usually when people tell me that I usually sarcastically say that if I don't know love I shouldn't have kids.

[bionicmlle]

Me.

They should call me. :)

[GiGi_41]

I did not state or implying any sort of obligation but merely pointed out childless women are capable of not being selfish. I'm 33, don't have kids, and don't know if I ever will. Some of the biggest criticisms I hear are that being childless I am self absorbed and never know true love.

To these people I'd say balderdash! If you have ever owned a dog you know true love (much more so then a kid) :wink-kitty: :wink-kitty:

[JMarie]

Robin Roberts