Disgusting....?

[londonblue]

Ok, just went to our reception to meet someone who had an enquiry. When I got downstairs to meet her, I couldnt help but notice just before offering a handshake that she was in fact sat there breast feeding a baby.

I found this pretty disgusting, and also slightly awkard as we had to go to another room for a chat and therefore she had to 'adjust herself' before getting up.

I can understand its all part of nurturing the young, but am I wrong in thinking this was rank, and also pretty insensitive given there were other clients about?

I find it completely disgusting. How dare these women get their tits out in public and then put a baby's head in the way of the view.

 

[Rayleigh Weir]

I also think breasts are great and have no problem with seeing them. I'm also unlikely to be shocked by seeing a woman breast feeding - and I think it's perfectly natural to do so.

However, I'm also aware that some people do still feel a little prudish about such things, so as a common courtesy if I was a breast feeding woman I sure as hell wouldn't whip the funbags out in public without being certain I wasn't going to make anyone feel uncomfortable. At a dinner party there are plenty of opportunities to feed the child in a more private environment - to do so at the table without considering others or checking first is rude and inconsiderate...

 

[BrettieAngell]

So you're saying breastfeeding is perfectly acceptable at the dinner table? You really don't think it might have been better to go and do it in another room? I have no problem with public breastfeeding but there is such a thing as courtesy. I can't schedule my Tommy Tank needs but I don't unleash the old boy and start the five knuckle shuffle while everyone is still polishing off their banana splits anymore!

edited for accuracy!

 

[Usual_Suspect]

Bitty? .

 

[osymandus]

My bladder and bowels don't work to any recognised schedule, but I generally don't whip the old chap out and pee in the salad bowl when I need to go...

Well neither of those functions are providing food are they ;) , and ive never heard of a splash effect from breast feeding either ;)

 

[osymandus]

I dont have kids and so really dont know the ins and outs of it....but are there not alternatives, otherwise there would be breast feeding going on all the time and Ive not come across it before....

For health and futuire benifits for teh child , no there really arnt better alternatives , you can use powder however recent medical studies show theres are a pale comparrison , plus a law has been passed to say it is now illegal to prevent a mother from breast feeding.

 

[osymandus]

I can't believe you think it's acceptable to breastfeed while you're in the middle of a dinner party! Yes the baby needs feeding but you don't have to do it in front of everyone else, you could easily go to another room. I'm sorry but it's just courtesy.

Disagree everyone is feeding communial . Now if its a very formal affair to be honest you proply wont have a young baby there ;).
However informal dinner no problems ?? Its just social conditioning we could propably do with breaking.

 

[MrB]

Disagree everyone is feeding communial . Now if its a very formal affair to be honest you proply wont have a young baby there ;).
However informal dinner no problems ?? Its just social conditioning we could propably do with breaking.

As I mentioned, it was there as they couldn't find a babysitter so we said they could store it upstairs.

Maybe at the next dinner party I go to I'll get my date to have a nosh on my old boy and see whether my fellow guests can be conditioned to that.

 

[A Century United]

Blimey, is there constant harrassment of women?! I really do live a sheltered and insular existance!

To the extent that the law is being updated to make it illegal to discriminate against women who choose to breastfeed.

 

[A Century United]

So you're saying breastfeeding is perfectly acceptable at the dinner table? You really don't think it might have been better to go and do it in another room? I have no problem with public breastfeeding but there is such a thing as courtesy. I can't schedule my Tommy Tank needs but I don't unleash the old boy and start the five knuckle shuffle while everyone is still polishing off their banana splits!

But that is a completely different thing. Breasts are primarily for feeding babies and only secondarily a sexual object. Feeding a baby is absolutely not a sexual act, and as such I would sugest that the problem is cultural not one of of innapropriate behaviour. Babies need to eat at dinner time to, would you have objected if she had produced a bottle to feed it?

 

[Tommy2holes]

I havent got a problem with breast feeding.

People fart/burp in public
Use the word cunxt in public
Get drunk in public

yet for some reason we are having a debate about a child being fed naturally by its mother. I think that its acceptable wherever and whenever the baby needs feeding. Its just as natural as a women spreadin her legs to have the kid in the first place and some male midwife having a rummage.

 

[OldBlueLady]

Although I see nothing at all wrong with breast feeding in public places, I think it was maybe a little insensitive on the woman's part - if the baby was that hungry she might have done better to feed it first before asking to see someone, baby would then have been fed, content and liable to sleep. If it was just a "top it up to shut it up" one then she'd better learn that stuffing her breast in its mouth every time it gets agitated is only going to store up trouble for the future!

With regards the dinner party, to me that's not acceptable, the woman should've excused herself from the table and fed the baby quietly away from the guests.

I do hate the militant attitude of some women that they have the absolute right to breast feed their baby whenever and wherever they want. Common decency should dictate that a breast feeding woman should show a little sensitivity to those in close proximity and vice versa of course. Most women can feed babies unobtrusively anyway so just a little discretion and everyone would be happy. Having said that though, a public toilet is absolutely NOT the best place to feed a baby, and if in the first scenario this was the only other option then it's understandable, I suppose it also depends a bit on what her attitude was anyway.

 

[number11]

I havent got a problem with breast feeding.

People fart/burp in public
Use the word cunxt in public
Get drunk in public

yet for some reason we are having a debate about a child being fed naturally by its mother. I think that its acceptable wherever and whenever the baby needs feeding. Its just as natural as a women spreadin her legs to have the kid in the first place and some male midwife having a rummage.

But irrespective of legality, using your examples, if someone came into my reception and farted, used the word **** or drunk then that to me would be discourteous as it is likely to offend me and others. I just cant see why someone who was in our office for all of 10 minutes had to breast feed at that very moment, when it may have been courteous to consider other options, eg to do it before, after, or use our bathroom facilities. Equally someone at a dinner party could easily excuse themselves....

As I said, Im sure if I ever had kids my opinion would change....just seemed very odd to me.

 

[South Bank Hank]

I believe that A Century United won this particular debate some time ago when he posted the following...

You just can't argue with a smiley of that quality!

:clap:

 

[OldBlueLady]

I believe that A Century United won this particular debate some time ago when he posted the following...



You just can't argue with a smiley of that quality!

:clap:

I know this is completely off topic, but we've been saying this for ages now, ACU has found some absolutely brilliant smileys recently.

 

[South Bank Hank]

I know this is completely off topic, but we've been saying this for ages now, ACU has found some absolutely brilliant smileys recently.

:offtopic:

There are some great ones, but I've tried to keep the smileys to a manageable number which will generally see a fair amount of usage. Can't see the "nipple-sucker" cropping up too much in future.

Well I probably can, but you know what I mean.

Now anyway Kay, back to breasts out in public!

:thump:

 

[OldBlueLady]

:offtopic:

There are some great ones, but I've tried to keep the smileys to a manageable number which will generally see a fair amount of usage. Can't see the "nipple-sucker" cropping up too much in future.

Well I probably can, but you know what I mean.

Now anyway Kay, back to breasts out in public!

:thump:

Oo-er, not sure about that!

Never got on with it myself with my kids, ended up in hospital with a massive infection in my left one after my son was born. They put me in a mixed ward, which was fun as I had to be "uncovered" because of the infection. Hubby was left to cope with a 3 week old baby and weaning him straight onto formula.

I admire anyone who is relaxed enough to breastfeed comfortably in public, but I've known so many who found it all a real performance, coupled with the fact that very young babies invariably fill their nappies at the same time with a very embarrassing cacophany of sounds and accompanied by equally embarrassing smells! Even with bottle feeds, I always used to try and work trips out around the feeds.

 

[South Bank Hank]

Oo-er, not sure about that!

Never got on with it myself with my kids, ended up in hospital with a massive infection in my left one after my son was born. They put me in a mixed ward, which was fun as I had to be "uncovered" because of the infection. Hubby was left to cope with a 3 week old baby and weaning him straight onto formula.

I admire anyone who is relaxed enough to breastfeed comfortably in public, but I've known so many who found it all a real performance, coupled with the fact that very young babies invariably fill their nappies at the same time with a very embarrassing cacophany of sounds and accompanied by equally embarrassing smells! Even with bottle feeds, I always used to try and work trips out around the feeds.

I hate myself now for getting you back on topic!

:'(

 

[MrB]

But that is a completely different thing. Breasts are primarily for feeding babies and only secondarily a sexual object. Feeding a baby is absolutely not a sexual act, and as such I would sugest that the problem is cultural not one of of innapropriate behaviour. Babies need to eat at dinner time to, would you have objected if she had produced a bottle to feed it?

I objected to it being there at all to be honest! We were assured the baby would be out of the way all evening but it ended up being in our faces most of the night.

Anyway, I'm not debating a womans right to breastfeed, I'm just saying you can be courteous and consider other people when the need arises. There were four other couples there and I could see they all felt uncomfortable about it. Belching and farting are natural functions but I wouldn't let rip at a dinner table, I'd go out of the room and do it and I'd expect others to give the the same consideration whatever they were expending from thei body, be it milk or deadly gases!

And yes, in that environment I'd expect someone to go out of the room to bottle feed.

 

[A Century United]

I objected to it being there at all to be honest! We were assured the baby would be out of the way all evening but it ended up being in our faces most of the night.

Anyway, I'm not debating a womans right to breastfeed, I'm just saying you can be courteous and consider other people when the need arises. There were four other couples there and I could see they all felt uncomfortable about it. Belching and farting are natural functions but I wouldn't let rip at a dinner table, I'd go out of the room and do it and I'd expect others to give the the same consideration whatever they were expending from thei body, be it milk or deadly gases!

And yes, in that environment I'd expect someone to go out of the room to bottle feed.

Fair enough. I used to be embarrased by exactly the same sort of thing, but I have come round to feeling that we get too worried by some of this stuff. It's all right to have page 3

but not public breastfeeding, and children aren't really accepted in this society as they are in many of the continental ones. I don't think it's a coincidence that we have the highest underage sex rates and the most teen pregnancies.

I hope oneday that breastfeeding a baby will be completely unremarkable, so much so that people won't even really notice because I think we will be a maturer society for it.