Simpson Column: What's the matter with family values?

The race for governor of Virginia has heated up this week. For those who are just hearing about the ruckus — a 1989 Thesis by Bob McDonnell has made its way into the debate and it contains some
statements that the Creigh Deeds campaign has latched onto like a snapping turtle.

Alfred Biddlecomb pointed out in his column on Wednesday a couple of the statements that have caused most of the uproar. For instance, the thesis is said to include an assertion regarding
the “dynamic new trend of working women and feminists that is ultimately detrimental to the family.” I have not had enough time to read the thesis, so I am referencing the quoted statement as a fact.

While I am in no way tied to the McDonnell campaign, nor do I speak for his campaign, I do happen to believe and support this view.

I was raised by two loving parents. My Dad was a lifetime firefighter. My Mom, for a large part of her life, between my birth and when I entered high school, was a stay at home mom — a.k.a. housewife.
The term housewife has been all but removed from the American lexicon as collectivists consider it derogatory and degrading.

The nurturing and direction I received from a parent who was with me through my formative years allowed me to grow up and become a well balanced, productive member of society. In a column a couple
years back I pointed out that, as children, we would be playing ball in the street and a car would turn the corner … we would all yell “car”, grab our stuff, and run off the side of the road. These days the
kids are belligerent and stay on the road — essentially daring drivers to hit them. I know this seems trivial, but the fact is we are now starting to experience a society built by people who had no guidance
and nurturing while they grew up. And I will wager it isn’t going to get better any time soon.

I wouldn’t trade being raised by a stay-at-home parent for all the tea in China. Call me a cretin, and there are many who will, but I also believe that the best person to do that is a Mom. If necessary I think
a Dad should be at home — over no parent at all — but women are better at this because they (usually) have more of an instinct for it. Yes, I firmly believe that there is something deep down inside that
makes a Mom a better caregiver than a Dad when it comes to raising children.

From the sound of it, the McDonnell campaign is distancing itself from the thesis by indicating that it was 20 years ago. John Merli pointed out in his column on Thursday that “One of the convenient
blessings of the digital age is that if you happen to be a writer — or have written anything on any topic that others had access to — then the chances of it being retrievable via the Internet are extremely
good.”

I have changed my position on issues many times over the past 20 years. At times I have voted Democratic and belonged to organizations like the Sierra Club and Greenpeace. At other times I have voted
Republican and belonged to organizations like the John Birch Society. Even earlier, I helped stuff envelops for the Reagan campaign. Most recently I ran for office as a Libertarian Party candidate.

Imagine the fun that opponents would have if I ever decide to run for office again!

Mr. Biddlecomb also inquires: “The thesis revelation put McDonnell on the defensive this week as he initially brushed off the 1989 paper as a simple “academic exercise.” If that were true, then are we to
believe that he was simply saying in his thesis what Regent University founder Pat Robertson wanted to hear?”

I wonder what may be in some of my papers from twenty years ago. When I first started attending college I wrote what I personally thought … falsely believing that professors were enlightened and would
grade based upon the objective evaluation of my submissions. I soon learned that that is not how the game is played. Those who want good grades know that you provide the professor exactly what they
want to hear — nothing more nothing less. When I switched tactics, my grades improved. Of course I was writing opinions that I completely disagreed with, but the objective was to pass … and with the
highest grades I could obtain.

James Simpson lives in Lake Ridge. His Web site is www.OpinionColumnist.com.