One of our worst traits in journalism is that when we have a narrative in our minds, we often plug in anecdotes that confirm it. Thus we managed to portray President Gerald Ford, a first-rate athlete, as a klutz.
Nicholas KristofRead
Most moms and dads, they want to be good moms and dads. But it's an incredibly hard job when you are stressed out, when you are poor, when your life is in chaos. And giving them some of the tools to be better parents, to whittle away at that parenting gap, gives those kids a much better starting point in life.
Interpretation
Parenting is a challenging task, especially under stress, and providing support can help improve children's futures.
This quote by Nicholas Kristof emphasizes the difficulties that parents face in raising their children, especially in adverse circumstances like stress and financial struggles. It highlights the importance of equipping parents with tools and resources to bridge the gaps in parenting, thereby enhancing their children's opportunities for a better life.
In practice
This quote can be used in a parenting workshop to highlight the importance of support systems.
One of our worst traits in journalism is that when we have a narrative in our minds, we often plug in anecdotes that confirm it. Thus we managed to portray President Gerald Ford, a first-rate athlete, as a klutz.
A basic element of the American dream is equal access to education as the lubricant of social and economic mobility.
Worrying about bills, food, or other problems leaves less capacity to think ahead or to exert self-discipline. So, poverty imposes a mental tax.
Since the end of the 1970s, something has gone profoundly wrong in America. Inequality has soared. Educational progress slowed. Incarceration rates quintupled. Family breakdown accelerated. Median household income stagnated.
The news media's silence, particularly television news, is reprehensible. If we knew as much about Darfur as we do about Michael Jackson, we might be able to stop these things from continuing.
Why are fanatics so terrified of girls' education? Because there's no force more powerful to transform a society. The greatest threat to extremism isn't drones firing missiles, but girls reading books.
I know my father and my mother, but beyond that I cannot go. My ancestry is blurred.
There are times when parenthood seems nothing more than feeding the hand that bites you.
Gordie, the white boy genius, gave me this book by a Russian dude named Tolstoy, who wrote, 'Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.' Well, I hate to argue with a Russian genius, but Tolstoy didn't know Indians, and he didn't know that all Indian families are unhappy for the same exact reasons: the frikkin' booze.
The family exists for many reasons, but its most basic function may be to draw together after a member dies.
I owe undying gratitude to my patient parents.
When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow.
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