A Critique of Amy Chua's Views on Parenting

Mr. Stolyarov responds to Amy Chua's provocative Wall Street Journal article, "Why Chinese Mothers are Superior"

Unlike Ms. Chua, Mr. Stolyarov argues that parents should cultivate internal discipline, rather than impose external discipline. He analyzes and critiques Chua's view from the standpoints of individual liberty and empathy. He also argues that humiliation does not build character and that the possible paths toward high accomplishment are far broader than Ms. Chua seems to presume.

Supplemental reading: "Unstructured Leisure and Progress" by G. Stolyarov II

Libertarian Parenting

Two libertarian parents discuss how to best raise confident and freethinking children, including discipline without aggression, Montessori education, resolving conflicts and teaching skepticism and rationality.

StephanKinsella.com

Gil Guillory P.E., PMP, is an engineer and project manager of petrochemical projects, libertarian writer and activist, and entrepreneur. He ran for Congress on the Libertarian Party ticket in 2000 and 2002. He worked in Iraq for 6 months in 2003 after the US invasion assessing damage and repairing chemical plants for KBR. He recently won the O P Alford III Prize in libertarian scholarship for a paper published in Libertarian Papers.

Articles by Gil Guillory on LewRockwell.com

Parental duties in a libertarian society

Since libertarianism is based on voluntary actions, it follows that no duties exist, right? Does this mean that parents have no obligations to their children? Can they leave them to die in the forest if they want to? Or should the state force them to bring them up and take care of them until the children reach a certain age?

And since libertarianism is based on liberty, if follows that no person can own another person, right? Does this mean parents have no right to force their children to do something they don't agree on? Does it also mean that parents have no right to stop their children if they want to move to another family?

-from the Mises forums