George Zammit, Mosta
Reasons why marriage is on the rocks
Recently I read that the Bishops of Malta were due to issue a pastoral letter before or after the law on divorce comes into effect. How courageous.
Politicians, including our Prime Minister, have been advocating that women go out to work.
Does the Prime Minister not know that marriage in Malta started to get into trouble when women were encouraged to go out to work in factories in the 1950s? I got married in 1960 and my wife was a trained teacher and she knew that as soon as we got married she would be thrown out of her job. In any case, I would not have allowed her to work since I am against married women working. I believed, and still do, that the woman’s place is in the home looking after her children.
At present there is an advertising campaign, sponsored by the EU, which goes something like this: “Dora has three children and she is a full-time teacher. In order to cope she needs help from all her family”. Of course, from her parents, her husband’s parents, her sisters, her aunts etc.
And for what? So that she will pay an NI contribution and the Minister of Finance would have more money to play with and perhaps increase his salary once again. Do not think that the politicians are in favour of women working for some noble reason – far from it.
When women went out to work the family structure was disrupted once and for all. There is no way that life goes back to the good old days when children went home from school to their mother. Children these days go to an empty home to watch TV or “play” on their PC while their mother is at work.
Another reason why marriages are on the rocks is the University.
Once women go to university and graduate their prime target is their career not the family.
Once they get married, graduated women lead a very independent life and their marriage is one of convenience.
The latest nail in the coffin of marriage is the “separation of acquests” as opposed to “the community of acquests”.
What this means is that the husband and wife lead a separate life and there is simply nothing to bind them together.
In the past 60 years I have never heard the church leaders – the bishops – condemning the campaign encouraging women to go to work.
They are now going to issue a pastoral letter – wow.
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M Borg
Aug 24th 2011, 01:23
My mother works, yet I always found her at home when I got back from school. Clearly, this is not the main problem. Besides, families nowadays would NOT cope with just one salary for sure. Wouldn't that create more financial problems within families?
M Ellul
Aug 7th 2011, 20:51
So this isn't a joke?
Chris Sacco
Aug 4th 2011, 10:17
I agree with the fact that kids up to a certain age say till end of secondary should find a mum at home, I dont see why people dont realize that being a mother and housewife is as fulfilling and demanding job as well, and a lot of women do actually get paid for it, I mean the husband provides for all the necessities of everyone including his wifes food, hair do , medical, insurances, cash, presents jewellery,holidays,pays the hse loan and all that there is to do, what on earth do woman want more, independence? how can woman say they dont have independence living like this when the man only gets at home late during the day, when I go out on break at work all I see is women going to the beaches or shopping, thats a great life, I dont think every women prefers to go to Uni. I do not agree that there will be less jobs for men bec woman are competing for them, when a woman gets a job the likely hood is that she will get paid less and she will accept that becaus no woman is the main bread winner were a man has to ensure his offer is adequate to provide for all, in cases where woman isnt working and if she is she still most lkikely wont be working all her life and furthermore as i said she earns less.
When women start getting there independence in terms of money the they think they dont need a man especially when their biggest wish in their life has now been fulfilled having children, she take sthe kids, gets half of the mans hard earned assets he worked for all his life and also gets a cheque a mth for maintenance for the kids, wow now that good, now I see my wife partying in bars and concerts with her other seperated friends and her single sister when I am always at work trying to cope to keep the kids at a private school and to provide for them. No woman should start working after kids finish secondary school unless they have a good reason not to and a good profession to work in, then again not full time.
They can go to work later on in life, there arent any jobs out thee anyways, so work from home,.
Ms S Micallef
Aug 4th 2011, 13:00
I think someone has watched way too many episodes of Desperate Houswives. Your idea of motherhood, family life, providing for the family, is very out of touch with reality.
As for you comment of "what more could a woman want?", does it not occur to you that people get satisfaction out of their work and don't just work to make money? Who are you to decide that a woman should get satisfaction out of her home and children only and not out of work?
You also seem to have some serious issues, you seem to fear your wife going out and mingling with others at the work place, what's wrong Mr. Sacco, scared she'll find someone better than you? There are other ways to hold you marriage together, tying up your wife at home is not one of them.
Corinne Vella
Aug 4th 2011, 13:11
If you see your wife partying in bars and concerts, well, what are you doing there yourself?
"no woman is the main bread winner"
Lots of women are just that, Mr Sacco, even in households that include a husband. Women who are financially independent do not 'get half of the man's hard earned assets'. They get to keep what is their own.
Mr Michael Camileri
Aug 5th 2011, 11:22
Lol Chris! You are very 'blinkered' in your opinions.
Women have very much the same capacity to earn more than the man... Get over yourself, it is 2011
Maria Borg
Aug 4th 2011, 09:32
Yes wages nowadays are so high, a woman can actually afford to stay at home. And cows fly.
Kurt Borg
Aug 3rd 2011, 20:27
Please! stop this! my sides are aching....from laughter!! Mr. Zammit, I do sincerely hope (as Ms. Cauchi said) you are joking. Well if that's not the case, I would suggest you shut your windows, lock all the doors in your house....build a Medieval basement and play Castle there.....that's the only place you will make a good impression with what you've just written.
Claire Cauchi
Aug 3rd 2011, 14:54
Mr Zammit, I HOPE that this is some kind of sick joke. How dare you say that it's all the women's fault for failed marriages! I'm sure men have nothing to do with it... Everyone should have the right to education, career and family, regardless of their sex. I'm ashamed to live on the same island as you do.
Christina Pace
Aug 3rd 2011, 14:51
@ Mrs Zammit...my sincere condolences. No don't worry no one really died...just your freedom.
@Mr George Zammit, since you seem to be such a fanatic of church matters, family matters and women's emancipation or lack therof, I direct you to a chapter from one of supposedly your favorit books: Genesis. God, metaforically, created Eve (all women) from Adam's (all men) rib hence making them equal. Had he wanted to make women a lesser creature he could have metaphorically woven her from pubic hair from Adam's scrotum. In fact your God, had he intended for women to be inferior, could have easily, made her so by giving her a lesser mental capacity.
The truth of the matter is that women have always, since the first steps this human species took, been working. While the hunters stalked their prey the women worked the fields. When the "men" went into battle the women filled in for both. And I quote men because it is debatable, seeing as Joan of Arc lead a fu**ing army for Christ's sake.
An even more important point is that men with your mentality expecting their wives to loose their freedom of opinion, reasoning abilities and life achievments and opportunities are the reason why marriage is on the rocks. Marriages don't fall apart because women succeed in theor career. Marriages fall apart when the husband beside those women refuse to acknowledge their success and indeed chanllenge it and most of the time undermine it. Your version of marriage Mr. Zammit is slavoury. You would rather keep your wife behind the bars of your jailhouse marraige than admit she can be just as successful if not more than you, and that you, as a father and resident in the same house, also had the responsability to raise the children and participate in chores.
@ Mr Zammit's mother...I hope you're proud.
Liana Vella-Zarb
Aug 3rd 2011, 12:49
You wouldn't have allowed her? Great job sir...she's lucky you allow her to slave after you and the kids - otherwise she might still be teaching, earning a salary, and (God forbid!!) thinking with her own mind! I feel so sorry that we are still sharing space with such narrow-minded chauvinists. Good day.
Giov DeMartino
Aug 3rd 2011, 12:06
Min irid jara ghala z-zwigijiet qeghdin jitfarrku m'ghandux jaghmel hag'ohra hlief jaghti daqqa t'ghajn madwaru. M'hemmx ghalfejn imur f'xatt il-bahar, imma fil-pjazza tar-rahal tieghu kull hin u kull mument imma specjalment fil-granet tal-festa tal-patrun/a. Paceville irhilu!
Ms Melissa Bagley
Aug 3rd 2011, 17:45
Ok, keep women in ignorance.....skip education as ignorance is bliss....
D L Pirotta
Aug 2nd 2011, 21:02
I am appalled to say the least that such mentality exists in this day and age. Maybe it is true that educated women are one of the factors to marriages coming to an end. But I applaud them for having the strength to start anew, and to be wise enough to know what is best for them as individuals. Because after all, what is the point in being unhappily married and making yourself more miserable than you are? You think children enjoy living in an unhappy home more than a broken one?
I am currently unmarried, and hope that my future husband has more respect towards me than you have shown towards your wife. Maybe your wife does enjoy staying home taking care of the kids and house, but wouldn’t you rather it be her choice than yours? Maybe in your days, life was affordable on one pay cheque, but with the house loans, and a constant rising cost of living, that women seek work themselves is in some cases a necessity.
And even if a woman wants to pursue a career, what is wrong about that? Maybe she has to balance her time more efficiently, and maybe she needs a husband that doesn't think housework beneath him. If men are so happy to boast how good they are at operating machines...why not learn to operate a washing machine? I ask Mr. Zammit do you know how to use one? Or is that your wife's duty according to your ideals? If it bothers you that woman nowadays think with their own head, that they find satisfaction outside the kitchen walls, and that they have the strength to stand on their own two feet, I personally think that you are the one with the problem and not society.
I hope that when I have my own family I will be able to have a career that allows me to put to use my two degrees and take care of my family. I hope that my children would be proud that both their parents are educated and accomplished people, and that they would thus be inspired to aim to be accomplished people myself. And if heaven forbid my marriage had to fall apart, I know that thanks to my education, career and self-esteem I will always land on my two feet. And those are 3 assets that will never be taken, divided or shared through separation or divorce.
Neil Zammit
Aug 3rd 2011, 09:59
I don't believe that a woman should stay home, but i do believe that someone, the father or the mother, should stay home and look after the children. One individual's salaries should be good enough to maintain all the family.
Christina Pace
Aug 3rd 2011, 15:40
Oh dear Neil,
lets say one earns 1,300 euros net a month.
Now these figures are very rough and are likely more than this in reality.
400 euros go towards house loan/rent
47 euros go to GO/Melita for TV&Internet&phone
100 euros utility bills
50 euros retirement plan
150 euros car loan repayment
400 euros food and groceries
20 for house cleaning goods
leaves the family with 133 euros as pocket money, out of which any emergency repairs, maintenance work, school uniforms, books, medical bills, insurance policies, and the likes have to be paid from. Last I checked that was nowhere near enough to take the family out once, let alone all that.
Eric Frendo
Aug 2nd 2011, 20:45
check out this link! Awesome!
http://www.planetmona.com/opinions-on-planetmona/52-social/3597-reasons-why-some-men-have-such-a-small-penis-and-newspapers-publish-tripe
Mr John Cassar
Aug 2nd 2011, 20:12
Ewreka!!! We cracked the happy marriage code!!!
It's all women's fault for wanting the right to work or study or be financially independent instead of staying at home and raise children.
Politicians please repeal the Equal Opportunities Act, strip out women's rights from the labour laws and ban females from University. Actually a 6pm curfew should be imposed on all married women with harsh penalties for transgressions.
By God, you got it dear George!! We are most indebted to you!!
Neil Agius
Aug 2nd 2011, 18:30
I don't know if you're trolling or just plain ignorant/stupid/mentally unhinged -_-
R Abela
Aug 2nd 2011, 17:37
Sur Zammit insejt tghidilna li xoghol il mara huwa li taghmel hafna tfal min 5 sa 8 biex tkun mara ta veru !!
Fi sena 1960 kien jista jahdem ir ragel biss, imma illum fi sena 2011 ,jekk ma tkunx ministru, ma nafx kif tista tlahhaq mal hajja.
Miriam Sargent
Aug 2nd 2011, 17:15
Is this guy for real!!??? why don't you stay at home and be everyone's slave for a change.
Saveria Cremona
Aug 2nd 2011, 16:56
I'm impressed, how can someone be so sexist and stupid? He should try and stay home all day and take care of kids and clean. He should try and act like the 'woman' in his sick fantasy.
How dare he say that woman should remain locked up and never live an independent and interactive life?
How can he just decide that woman should be the ones to waste their lives? And if he believes that marriages were more successful back then (in the time he seems to be living in) the only reason is because women had no sense of freedom, and believed that the only joy there could possibly be in their lives was too take care of their children, clean the house, and listen to their demanding husbands.
I believe that this man wishes women to be treated in this way because he is intimidated by them. And as for religion, I believe God wishes us to love and respect our neighbors, and to not do to others, what you don't want them to do to you!
Alvaro Santiago
Aug 2nd 2011, 16:34
Well done Mr. Zammit. It's about time someone came out and takes a stand against these rights we've allowed women to carry. I am also impressed that you managed to do so, without bringing any gods into the equation. Of course your argument would be nullified if there actually were families where both spouses had full time jobs, and a happy, stable family. I would also like to comment on the fact that absolutely no one wants to return to 'the good old days' that people keep mentioning. I wasn't alive then, but from the way people talk about them, they were either the best of times, or the very worst. Your good old days were a hell for lots of others. If you would rather have a prisoner instead of a wife, then so be it, always if your poor wife agrees, but I, and I hope many others, would rather have an equal partner with whom I can share a life. One can only hope that you, and those like you, will slowly be relegated to the annals of history, and comedy.
Charlie Borg
Aug 2nd 2011, 17:12
But that is still the case today. Many husbands treat their wives as if they were their slaves. Even the very fact that a husband should 'treat' his wife, is absurd. All over Malta, and abroad, husbands lord it over their wives and it is a known fact that wives often make husbands what they are.
joe Grima
Aug 2nd 2011, 16:30
What a stupid article !! are you living in the dark ages Mr Zammit ?
Mr Joseph Calleja
Aug 2nd 2011, 16:54
God forgive him, because he knows not what he is saying.
Mr Joseph Calleja
Aug 2nd 2011, 16:29
"I believed, and still do, that the woman’s place is in the home looking after her children." And how do you expect a family to survive if the wife does not go to work Mr Zammit? You must be rich and or living in a fantasy world. George Zammit, you are a very sexist person living in the middle ages. Are you for real making a statement like that? You have just insulted every decent woman in Malta and Gozo, shame on you. I think you owe the woman population an apology and that includes your wife Mr Zammit.
riccardo borg
Aug 2nd 2011, 18:00
It all depends on the type of job a woman had/has.
A trained teacher, I know, and a good one at that, took the three children to school, when living overseas, where she worked, with her. As she was trained, she received the top salary.
Children remain children for a period of time, then what?
Locally, healthy women cleaners might get a partime job in later years. Factory workers would be lucky to get one. Educated women could fare better.
Women could still get pensioned off and at the same time go out to work. It's not the money that some of them are after. It is more like the socialising with other people, earning spare money which helps one in keeping with good health, health care and the latest fashions. And what about the grand-children's expenses like birthday presents, National occasions, etc? Often the children themselves need money loans to save on Bank Interest. This is one burden removed from a man's shoulder.
A woman's place is truly in the home especially when there are small children and no help from the many relations. It is the years that follow when children are grown up that one needs to look at.
Antoine Vella
Aug 2nd 2011, 16:19
Are you serious Mr. Zammit???Surely your letter must be considered as a joke of bad taste.
Steve Alamango
Aug 2nd 2011, 16:16
CONGRATULATIONS !! FINALLY!! CONGRATUALTIONS MR Zammit. Mr Z ( is a figure ) could be a ficticious character.. Rather than going on about how disgusting and how sick blablabla, i will congratulate you. and use this example as MR Z. - Il explain . . i have been trying to put my finger on the problem of the maltese community and the source to its ignorance and downfalls in so many areas, and we point to the governement gov points to us and cover ups etc etc. and becomes a vicious circle and the public is kept in ignorance. But mr Z. has pin pointed the problem ... ladies and gentlemen it is becasue of people like this.... and their mentality... that we are what we are. OBviously women are going to want to go out and work ! after a mentality which you subscirbe to has kept them in darkness for so long! and they have every right to . If you didnt realise they are human more than you and I as they give birth you dont. who are you to say she cant! .... the origin of maltas problem is the mentality and so called principles you preach . Congratulations for showcasing it.
Sylvia Schembri
Aug 2nd 2011, 16:05
Wara zmien twil ta' studju fl-Universita, tfajla zgur mhux se tinqafillek fid-dar biex trabbi familja. Huwa dan l-istudju sfrenat li qed ihassar lis-socjeta ghax qed jigi imponut mill-genituri fuq uliedhom biex jiffrankaw li jaghtuhom il-pocket money li kienu jaghtu qabel.. Issa minflok flus mill-genituri qed jiehduh bl-istipendju mill-Gvern minn fuq dahar it -taxxa tal-poplu kollu. Qabel kulhadd kien isib xoghol adattat ghalih u mhux bhal issa qed jiggradwaw qishom pastizzi u ftit huma n-nies li jsibu xoghol ghal dak li studjaw.
Issa jdumu s-snin jistudjaw u ghalhekk jaghmlu hajjithom kollha jahdmu. Il-mara maltija mhux se tieqaf biex tiehu hsieb it-tfal. Dawn jibqghu dejjem jaraw fejn jistghu ikomplu jilhqu u addio l-familja. B'hekk gie l-isfruttament taz- zghazagh (xorb ,drogi, flus ta malajr u tifrik tal- familji) Ghidli int kif jista jkollok familja b'sahhitha meta z-zewg genituri hajjithom iddur biss madwar ix-xoghol !!
Ursula Farrugia
Aug 2nd 2011, 15:24
Well isn't the Mrs a lucky gal!!
Jamie Iain Genovese
Aug 2nd 2011, 23:43
Like button fejnu?!
Andre Fenech
Aug 2nd 2011, 15:20
Dear Mr Zammit, please have a look at your calendar its 2011 not 1911! May I remind you that the country has moved on from these dark ages. Why are we investing millions every year on our students, so that all those bright brains stay at home instead of becoming productive contributors to our society and economy. It is truly amazing that people are still writing in this fashion in this day and age. I think, you would do better relocating to some other country which follows your same credo.
Veronica Debattista
Aug 2nd 2011, 15:18
Absolutely horrible article!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How rude!!!!!!! I
Gaby Scicluna
Aug 2nd 2011, 15:03
I think the ideas in your letter only serve to humiliate you Mr Zammit.
Ms Maria Vella
Aug 2nd 2011, 14:49
I haven't decided whether to laugh or cry at this letter. I think I will opt to cry.
It is very easy for a chauvinistic person like Mr. Zammit to put the blame on the wife for the collapse of a marriage because of course as usual men are faultless, and are victims of all that is bad in their lives. I pity your wife but then again am sure you didn't allow her to know better.
How pathetic. And yet there are many men who believe that Mr. Zammit is right.
Have you stopped to think that women might need to go to work out of necessity? And it is not a case of living beyond one's means - it is a case of making ends meet to ensure that children get a decent life?
Is it such a bad thing that a woman has brains and intelligence (which is far mor that what you seem to have) and would like to use her talents - after all, if we so want to quote religion, church etc, God wants us to put our talents in good use.
I have seen many working couples having a happy and successful marriage, each making sacrifices to ensure their partnership works.
I suggest you retire back to your cave and leave your thoughts to yourself rather than sharing all this rubbish with us.
Did you expect to have a standing ovation for this piece?
Sarah Schembri
Aug 2nd 2011, 14:38
I hope this is some sort of sick joke.
Mr Stefan Cutajar
Aug 2nd 2011, 14:08
Family as a social arrangement in modern society may be compared to a living organism. Thus, it must be capable of adapting and evolving to meet the needs of an ever-changing population. We're living in the 21st Century for goodness sake, we have finally realised that the patriarchal society we were living in the past was not only unjust and immoral but it has left us trailing other countries both economically and intellectually. I feel deeply offended by this article especially when he comments that the University was a principle reason for the disruption of marriages, Education is the ONLY way forward for this country, an EU country where thousands of citizens are either illiterate and uneducated, or even worse blindly dependent on whatever the politicians and media want them to know.
maria grima
Aug 2nd 2011, 14:00
Why don't you stay at home yourself and we work?? Why is it a treat? cause if you beat a woman up, she can leave you? and leave a good life? A real man thinks about this issue differently...
WE ARE EQUAL... + MAN LIKE YOU ARE AFRAID OF WOMEN... CAUSE YOU THINK WE MAY BE BETTER...
AGAIN... we are EQUAL...
Mrs silvia debono
Aug 2nd 2011, 13:55
Thank you for the nice trip to the past Mr. George. Now please stay there, in the 50s. And never comeback to the 21st century.
joe Grima
Aug 2nd 2011, 16:32
well said !!
Roberta Sciberras
Aug 2nd 2011, 13:47
I read the first two paragraphs and had to stop.... had to run to the bathroom to puke.
Sorry, I think a health warning should accompany this piece.
Chiara Scicluna
Aug 2nd 2011, 13:40
L-injoranza għandha ssir illegali -.-
Ms Melissa Bagley
Aug 3rd 2011, 17:49
Agreed!
Maria Borg
Aug 2nd 2011, 13:40
I am both speechless and infuriated.
Mr Zammit why don't you try and answer to some comments below.
Ms Nikita Alamango
Aug 2nd 2011, 13:30
Completely and utterly ridiculous ...
If all the women who are eligible and educated to work were in fact out there malta would not be on the verge of having a pension age of 70.
If a working women turns to her family for help with her children that means that there arent decent institutional structures available to help a career women.
We have more female graduates then males from University every year - so what a waste of talent and human resources if all these girls had to go back to the kitchen counter just to please people who think like the author of this article.
My mum also had a job and work and I always found her at home when I came back from school like most of my friends. It is a challenge for every women and mother but it is something which can be reached with a little input from family and state.
Jennifer Cosaitis
Aug 2nd 2011, 13:29
Just because I am a woman, does not give me any lesser right to earn an education and go on to have a successful career. Our brains are just as good; sometimes even better. There is nothing stopping men from staying home and looking after the children themselves Mr Zammit. I pity your poor wife - she'll never know what it is like to living in 2011 and not the Dark Ages.
Andrea Portelli
Aug 2nd 2011, 12:44
sad, so sad...
C Seychell
Aug 2nd 2011, 12:40
Mr Zammit is right!! Working women ruined the sacred institution of marriage. Personally I wouldn't even let them vote, nor drive cars. Women should just accomplish the purpose they were created for....produce babies and clean the house!
maria grima
Aug 2nd 2011, 14:04
I hope you are being sarcastic?? You met our creator? he told you that he created women to be man's slave... If you are not being sarcastic... you are so saddd...
I am a woman... I pracitce a profession... I love my boyfriend... and my attention to him will never be less than if I was at home... so sad
Good Day
Mr S. Calleja
Aug 2nd 2011, 12:31
Mr Zammit, do you think this is ok to keep her tied to the kitchen sink and keep her from running away? http://2.imimg.com/data2/NN/UC/MY-3363085/dog-chains-500x500.jpg Or is it too long? Any personal recommendations?
Christine Galea
Aug 2nd 2011, 12:26
By any chance do you have daughters of your own? If so, I would like to hear their opinion about the matter...
Mr Joseph Cauchi Senior
Aug 2nd 2011, 12:08
Could it be, because of the age we are living in, marriage as we know it today, has become anachronistic?
JC.
Nadya Cassar
Aug 2nd 2011, 11:56
Iiis this letter true?? I think its some kind of joke!! Does Mr. Zammit know we are living in the year 2011!!
Roger Tirazona
Aug 2nd 2011, 11:55
Mr. Zammit, Your arguments have no place in 2011. Not only there are outdated by a few hundred years but they are also sexist. Why make women feel guilty for wanting to have a career and live just as meaningful lives as men do? Why not allow them to juggle between work and family as men do? With you, it's women this and women that. Your argument denies women an education and a career just to save the institution of marriage in the traditional sense, instead of admitting that the traditional view of marriage, as institutions like the Catholic church see it, is outdated. Instead of picking on noble things like careers and education, you should examine the standards of living that require people to work long hours. What is factual is that Burdens on the family such as Electrical bills and low wages are what keeping the family separate and not the noble wish of a person (especially women since you're so keen on bashing only them) to pursue a tertiary education and a career.
The former Bishop of Malta released a pastoral letter saying that women should stay at home instead of working; well then he pays the bills for them if that is the case. I cannot fathom how in this day and age we still find such a mentality.
Mark-anthony Fenech
Aug 2nd 2011, 11:54
Is he serious or is this a trolling letter?
Ramon Casha
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:50
These kinds of problems have been around pretty much for as long humans existed - which means that it was caused when people first started walking upright. We should all go back to swinging in the trees!
Reuben Abela
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:48
I believe this letter was addressed to the wrong planet.
Moira Heath
Aug 2nd 2011, 11:15
@Reuben, Fantastic comment ! I first laughed my head off reading the letter, and then had another good laugh with this comment. :)
@George Zammit, you are priceless ! I just hope your wife's ambitions were to just get married and have kids. If she had other interests in education and self-fulfillment, you would have been in real trouble.
Ms M Mifsud
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:47
.... dare I say that it's because of men with your same warped ideas about women and married life that marriage is on the rocks!
Mr Alfred Hili
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:44
In the 60's a teacher's wife, and many other wives, could afford to stay at home and look after the family. The man's wage was sufficient. It's a different matter now. Both man and wife work and could hardly cope with the bills. A wise couple could save enough money to build their house in a few years' time, then. Now it takes a lifetime to own your own house.
Mr Edgar S. Galea
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:26
Very well said, Mr George Zammit. Truly, a married woman's place is at home with her children and obviously, in this way, keep the family together.
Mr Tony Gatt
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:13
I'm sure you don't mean it but you seem to be against women's education- at least beyond secondary school. Many women go to work out of financial necessity- to pay the mortgage etc.
Mr Edgar S. Galea
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:28
One should learn to live within one's means.
Kenneth Cassar
Aug 2nd 2011, 12:14
I think he actually means it. Men with a low self-esteem feel threatened by educated women.
Ms Christine Galea
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:10
I am amazed that anyone living in the 21st century can make such a blanket statement. To state so uncategorically that “marriage in Malta started to get into trouble when women were encouraged to go out to work” or graduate from University, seems to be totally unfounded.
in a family, both the man and the woman complement one another and cooperate with one another for the full realization of their conjugal life and the rearing and well being of their children. The specific contribution that both a father and a mother offer through their work to society should be recognized.
Of course, one cannot deny that the specifically maternal contribution can be seen more obviously in the area of up-bringing, health, education, religious formation and all the activities that affect the well being of the family and its members - and any woman who is willing and able to fulfill her vocation as a stay-at-home mother is commendable. That being said, the mother’s contribution should not overshadow the importance of the father’s specific contribution, because their contributions remain complementary.
According to the Pontifical Council for the Family, it is "the absence of a true family policy" which is "one of the major tragedies of most societies". The organization of society and State laws should make it possible for the structure and the remuneration of work to aid women in fulfilling their vocation as mothers, should they wish – or need - to go out to work.
If our Bishops are going to issue a pastoral letter to this effect, then yes, I certainly echo George Zammit’s “wow”.
Joe Scerri
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:02
So you are suggesting that my two teenage daughters be denied going to university and stay at home?
So your wife just does everything you say?
I know of many older women who have been living for decades in hell because of medieval husbands with this type of mentality but are afraid to open their mouths. Just because certain couples stayed together it does not necessarily mean that they (usually the wife) are happy.
Yes the wife stays at home and slaves all day so that when her husband comes home from work he puts up his feet doing nothing whilst the wife is treated like a servant.
Mr Eric Soames
Aug 2nd 2011, 09:12
"I would not have allowed her to work since I am against married women working." Attaboy. Way to start a marriage of equals! A waste of a mind, potential and education just so Mr Male Ego can have his little woman.
K Farrugia
Aug 2nd 2011, 09:10
How about you, Mr Micallef, staying at home and leave paid work to your wife or partner?
This line of thought, which is the belief of many men, is really unbelivable. Is a wife worse off when staying alone at home or when staying, still away from their husband, at a proper place of work? In the latter case, a wife has the chance of enjoying esteem and self actualisation? Maybe you wouldn't like a wife to have a social life as you would like to have complete control over her.
Indeed, the best family structure was the medieval one wherein both the husband and the wife worked in their agriculturual fields together. The family structure faced threats at Industrial Revolution where a proper disctint place of work became the norm for men. Maybe people who think like Mr Micallef prefer the medieval times to stay with their wife on a 24 hours. Or else, men want to go out to work "alone" leaving their wife vulnerable and completely dependant on them for some reason....
Kenneth Cassar
Aug 2nd 2011, 09:03
Sometimes I wonder how sexist letters such as this one are published by a reputable newspaper like The Times of Malta.
Who said dinosaurs went extinct?
Mr Tony Gatt
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:15
They get people going, though! The only people I've heard of who do not want women educated are the Taliban.
Ruby Jenner
Aug 2nd 2011, 08:57
Are you for real? I suppose you would like to see women covered from head to toe and walk three paces behind her husband. In your world women would not be educated but trained to look after the husband and kids! Welcome to 2011 Mr Zammit.
Mr Tony Gatt
Aug 2nd 2011, 10:17
Well, Prince Philip has to walk three paces behind the Queen. Sauce for the goose!
Annabelle Spiteri
Aug 2nd 2011, 17:12
I think MRS GEORGE ZAMMIT needs professional assistance for bullying .... and fast !!!!