William Grobman

1,436 reputation

419

bio	website
	location	Independence, OR
	age	23
visits	member for	1 year, 9 months
	seen	Feb 22 at 6:21
stats	profile views	66

I'm a husband, father, and mechanical engineering student at Oregon State University. I support:

Breast feeding
Cloth diapering
Cosleeping
Vaccination
Home/charter/private schooling
Non-physical dicipline

	1,436 reputation	bio	website		visits	member for	1 year, 9 months
419 badges		location	Independence, OR		seen	Feb 22 at 6:21

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72 Comments

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Dec 13	comment	As an atheist, how should I explain theism to my children? @Martha I'm a linguistic perscriptivist; no matter how many people misuse a word, they're still wrong. Agnosticism is essentially an expression of skepticism's epistemology as applied to a deity and it doesn't even begin to answer the question of whether someone believes a god exists. The latter criticism also applies to apatheism; dodging the question isn't an answer. Theism and atheism are binary states--you either believe or you don't (though it's possible to either change state often or be unsure of what you believe).
Dec 11	comment	As an atheist, how should I explain theism to my children? While I completely disagree with your comparison of atheism to religion (the word really encapsulates both stronger positions and what you think agnosticism means; any lack of positive belief = atheism = without theism = without belief in god), I really like your point about the beliefs being less likely to mislead than a believer. However, your objection to my worry about indoctrination is contradicted by your point that "a charismatic individual" may try to indoctrinate them. If you edit for focus and clarity, you have my +1.
Oct 17	comment	Are vitamin supplements necessary for newborns? @MarieHendrix that's interesting! I'm sure you know what you're talking about. Personally, I thought it was odd that our pediatrician suggested all breast fed babied take iron from birth. Because of the 6mo depletion my wife and I'll make sure our son (5.5mo) keeps taking them then. +1 Good answer.
Oct 16	comment	Are vitamin supplements necessary for newborns? I've heard from numerous sources (doctor, books, websites, etc.) that breastfed babies require iron for a while too. Did you deliberately exclude this or have you not heard it before?
Oct 7	comment	Is “hot saucing” bad parenting? @Kate you're mistaken that they'll understand the cause you want. While it's possible they may, at a young age, a child will likely see the cause as being caught. No one is arguing it won't curb the behavior; only that it won't teach them anything other than sneaking.
Oct 6	comment	What are best practices for managing student-teacher relationships? Lacking substantial enough input for an answer, a comment: Try to teach your children to be respectful of their teachers. As a tutor, the common thread among kids who did poorly is a negative view of their teacher leading to poor communication.
Oct 4	comment	How often should my wife breastfeed our newborn? @Christine Thanks for cleaning up my phone typing.
Oct 4	comment	Are trace amounts of caffeine through breastmilk safe for babies? It's a getting a bit long for comments; let us continue this discussion in chat
Oct 4	comment	Are trace amounts of caffeine through breastmilk safe for babies? +1 After the edit, I think this is a great answer and should get the bounty.
Oct 4	comment	Are trace amounts of caffeine through breastmilk safe for babies? Sorry if I offended; it wasn't deliberate. And sure the sugar will provide energy, but energy isn't a chemical stimulant. Other than a spike in blood sugar that trails off more quickly, eating an apple isn't any different than eating the same amount of calories from a different source. On another note, I downvoted because the answer didn't have much structure and seemed flippant; it also lacked any sources or clear reasoning.
Oct 4	comment	Are trace amounts of caffeine through breastmilk safe for babies? I just noticed that my last sentence in the previous comment is a somewhat rude figure of speech. Don't read anything into it; I really just meant it literally and wondered what your thoughts were. Sometimes concise writing can come off a bit harsh.
Oct 4	comment	Are trace amounts of caffeine through breastmilk safe for babies? I fail to see how an apple--mostly sugar and water--is in any way a substitute for a stimulant that can help with concentration. What were you thinking?
Oct 2	comment	How can my toddler learn to stay under the blanket at night? @BBM I did picture a normal, camping bag. I assumed they'd be indoors, but possibly on the floor. Honestly, they're so light it wouldn't be a problem on carpeting and would even likely be okay on hard floor with the bag as padding. Cultures are different and things that seem normal may be quite different in other places; those kooky Canadians get milk in bags, for goodness sake :) Actually, I think that varies by province too...
Oct 2	comment	How can my toddler learn to stay under the blanket at night? @Sarato Very interesting. It reminds me of Gerber gowns (tinyurl.com/3k4xsd3) but with heavier fabric and closed bottom.
Oct 2	comment	How can my toddler learn to stay under the blanket at night? is the placing of children/babies in sleeping bags common in Europe? In the USA it's normally crib/cosleeping-> small bed-> normal (twin) bed.
Oct 2	comment	Is “hot saucing” bad parenting? @ClarkGable I think that those statements, phrased as an imperative, are good. But if you claim they just happen without cause/effort, it will only breed apathy.
Oct 2	comment	What are the psychological impacts of a split-religion household? @Hendy Well, for one thing, you're talking about physical truths in the comment, philosophical in the question. That said, I never claimed real truth doesn't exist, just that consensus has nothing to do with it. If you aren't a flat-earther simply because more people believe it's round, then yes, you're flying by the seat of your pants. I'm a 'rounder' because I understand gravitational coalescence and trigonometry (towers at diff. latitudes cast diff. length shadows). The Earth was no less round when people believed otherwise.
Oct 2	comment	When should a child see Star Wars: A New Hope As Sarato says, it's too specific in that you're asking about one title; at the same time, you don't list any criteria that are important to you.
Oct 2	comment	Is “hot saucing” bad parenting? @ClarkGable I would argue it's bad to teach 'what goes around comes around'. Often it doesn't! By believing that it does, it breeds apathy toward seeing justice done; why bother working for justice if it just happens on its own? I'd actually argue that it's one of the most dangerous ideas to civilization!
Oct 1	comment	Is “hot saucing” bad parenting? @ClarkGable I was rarely punished as a child; it was a last recourse when explaining the rules and talking failed. As a result, I understood why I was expected to behave a certain way, would request changes to things I felt were unreasonable, and would follow the rules without enforcement/monitoring about 95% of the time. Tell your kids why you don't want them to swear, listen if they have objections, and either relax the requirement or help them understand your point of view more and respectfully ask them to follow even if they don't agree.