Mika B. fell down the stairs carrying her 4 monthold baby and how it changed her life.

[CTyankee]

http://www.parentdish.com/2010/01/01/mika-brzezinski-msnbc-anchor-fall-with-baby/?icid=main|htmlws-main-w|dl3|link1|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.parentdish.com%2F2010%2F01%2F01%2Fmika-brzezinski-msnbc-anchor-fall-with-baby%2F

Pretty horrifying stuff...she said she didn't see the warning signs...

While I feel sorry for Mika I can't for the life of me understand how she could get herself into such a state of denial. (shakes head and walks away...)

[Don Caballero]

1. Her father is one of the greatest minds of our time

I salute his service to our country.

[WhiteTara]

9. you mean you think that supporting

the Muhajadine (sp) was a "greatest mind" move? Yeah right. He can't play chess more than 2 moves ahead. He is no hero in my book. Look where we are today. We have replaced the Soviet Union, which was destroyed by their war in Afghanistan, and it may do the same to us.

[Captain Hilts]

22. It certainly was at the time. There was a national consensus on that. nt

[WhiteTara]

24. playing checkers in a chess game

doesn't make him a great mind.

[spiritual_gunfighter]

27. +2

Why this guy is lionized by the left is baffling.

[WhiteTara]

28. thanks for the support...I was beginning

to wonder where I was!

[Captain Hilts]

33. He IS a very smart guy, even if you don't agree with him. You've got 20/20 hindsight. nt

[Sebastian Doyle]

68. I've never seen anybody remotely left lionizing him

Lots of self proclaimed "centrists" :eyes: probably do though.

[Captain Hilts]

32. For correctly assessing the path of the Soviet collapse is. nt

[JVS]

46. Yeah, her father was a douchebag just like she is.

[Don Caballero]

56. She is nothing like her father

He is an American patriot she is a bobbleheaded Right Wing dolt.

[JVS]

59. Nah, both douchebags, and he's no American patriot. He's a high born Pole with an ax to grind.

Hence his eagerness to arm the people who we're fighting now. It was more important for him to dick over Russia than consider America's interests.

[andlor]

17. +1 !!!

[Captain Hilts]

21. Yes. He's one of the few that got the Soviet Union right. nt

[Fool Count]

69. The only reason he "got it right" is that he was a born and inbread

rabidly delusional russophobe, sucking in the hatred for all things Russian
with his mother's milk. That doesn't make him insightful or "right", just
lucky.The sad thing is that most of his current "insights" continue to be
sourced from the same poisoned well of hatred.

[elleng]

54. A bit of an overstatement, tho I thank him for his service.

[Sebastian Doyle]

67. I suppose you feel the same way about Poppy Bush and Henry Kissinger?

Greatest minds of our time? Yeah, a lot of folks around here once thought Ted Bundy had a great mind. Which he probably did, aside from that whole "maniacal serial killer" thing.

[Dennis Donovan]

2. That must've been horrifying for her...

[TexasObserver]

3. She was probably drunk or pilled up at the time.

She's a boozer and a pill head, according to Morning Joe, and her behaviors certainly suggest a chronic substance abuser.

I wouldn't let her watch a pet, muchless a child, and I can't imagine she knows the first thing about rearing a child properly. She behaves like a 12 year old. Mika constantly mugs at the camera, puts on pouty faces, and generally makes Sarah Palin appear mature by comparison.

[NNN0LHI]

5. She sounds like a mean drunk too

from the article:

He gave me papers and told me to take a seat. That's when I completely lost it; I grabbed the guy by his neck and I shoved him against the wall and I said, "You better f*****g understand what I have to say right now, this baby needs to get in the x-ray right now. And if you don't put her in, I'm going to kill you."

[TexasObserver]

7. Yes, she's developed her storyline, which doesn't include her failures.

Anyone who pours vodka into their coffee at 6 am is a serious, serious alcoholic.

[Dennis Donovan]

11. I saw that live - it was later revealed as a joke...

...given that she held it, label-out for a second and a half before pouring it into her coffee.

That said, she's NOT a very credible journalist. Her girl-crush on Sarah Palin, right down to emulating her hairstyle, was a career low-point for Mika.

[NNN0LHI]

12. Her constant clinging to beady eyed Joe didn't help much either

She is a disgusting twit.

Don

[TexasObserver]

13. She should be wearing his high school letter jacket.

That's what they act like - a high school couple. She's the doting cheerleader girlfriend and he's the football star.

[goclark]

65. The Tabs suggested months ago that Mika and Joe were a couple

the link is here somewhere.

[TexasObserver]

66. I felt some time ago they probably had a co worker with benefits thing.

Over a year ago, during the election run up, they looked a little too familiar on the road, and both of them strike me as being persons who would use extra marital affairs to boost their aging egos.

[csziggy]

25. I'd agree with your opinion

But think you used the wrong vowel in the noun you used. :evilgrin:

[madokie]

14. Been there done that

well actually didn't pour vodka in my coffee but damn sure would have a shot of schnapps early on and sometimes often. You won't believe how much I like that I finally found the strength to quit that behavior. A large percent of my friends are from my drinking days and sometimes I just have to get up and leave rather than try to have a conversation with their drunk asses. I hope they can see what stopping has done for me and quit the shit themselves.

[TexasObserver]

19. Good for you.

I've never had a drinking problem and don't drink at all now, but I've seen plenty over the years who have. It's a destroyer of millions, and there are many functioning alcoholics who manage to get through their work day and then pile it on at night.

[madokie]

71. I was a functioning alky for years myself

drink it up at night sweat it out by day.

[CTyankee]

8. I think she's angling for the "Dad was mean and cruel to me so that's why I'm so screwed up."

There's always an "excuse."

[Clintonista2]

15. She was in a hospital with an unconscious baby and being told to sit down and wait her turn

If you wouldn't react the same way then I question whether you are mentally fit to ever have children.

[NNN0LHI]

35. You are believing the version of the story made by a drunk

Good luck with that one.

Don

[Clintonista2]

37. I'm putting into context the cherry picked quote the poster I was replying to used

[Raven]

4. After that experience in the hospital, does she have any empathy

for people who are victems of our health care system? I don't watch that show so I have no idea where she stands on this.

[CTyankee]

6. The funny thing is that she seems devoid of feeling onher show, except for her fake outrage

at god knows what.

She is a bobble head and does that routine when Joe is speaking...

[H2O Man]

16. I definitely agree.

I used to watch the show most mornings, and still watch it from time to time. It is evident that Mika is incapable of viewing anything -- including other people's wants and needs -- from anything close to and objective stance. Everything is in the extremely limited position of her wants and needs. That alone is more than enough to disqualify her from being a decent talking head. But it gets worse, because the more she chatters, the more she exposes herself as being shallow. I can't help but have the mental image of her dressed as a sheep, bleeting, "Mmmmeeee! Mmmmeeee! Mmmmeee!"

[CTyankee]

64. I am humorously reminded of what the great opera soprano Renata Tebaldi, who

travelled far and wide to sing concerts for huge audiences, when she was asked late in life why she never married and had children. She shrugged and said "Who will care for the picolini if I go around the world?"

[hlthe2b]

10. I have a visceral reaction to Mika that makes it impossible for

me to be unbiased towards her... I can understand how intimidating it might have been to be her father's daughter, but she's old enough to have worked through that. She's a pathetic figure to me and elicits really negative feelings when I see her preening for the camera or doing her shocked, pissy mommy routine on the Morning Schmo guests. I saw her book in the store today and the urge to deface it was second only to seeing Dana Perino on the cover of 5128 magazine as a "power hitter." Uggh.

[proud2BlibKansan]

18. The comments are definitely NOT supporting Mika

This woman is disgusting. She blames herself for an accident that almost kills her daughter and this "life changing moment" causes her to spend LESS time with her kids?

Wow- so her balance was spending her salary on childcare and not seeing girls at all some days? That is not a balance and is a regrettable choice. I think she is trying to tell herself that it is OK that she was not a mother when it mattered, but Im sure it was not OK to her girls.

As a mother of two myself, I'm just trying to figure out what this has to do with being a busy mom...aren't "not so busy" moms also at risk for home accidents as well? She fell down the stairs, it could have happened to anyone, for any reason. Heck it's happened to me!!! With one of my boys in my arms. It's called being clumsy and having an accident. I fail to see why falling is grounds for writing a book, seems to me it was just another way to feed her ego, since she seems just a tad selfish to me.

So she chose work over her children. She realized she was doing too much at once and instead of cutting back on work she cut back on her children.
And where was her husband in this?

What a sad story. Here you have two parents( lets not forget the dad) who could care less about their children. Who instead choose to focus on their careers. And this women talks about it like she is doing something wonderful. How very sad. What is the sense in having children if you are not going to spend time with them and enjoy their childhood.

What a shame, the children are hurt by the mother's blinding success. Who is encouraging this behavior, the Network who employs her who knowingly allows her to neglect her children or the buyers of her books who support the behavior commercially?

[CTyankee]

23. I know what you are saying. I really don't understand that reaction.

The thing is, children need caring adults around them. If you can't be a caring adult then you should not have children. Children are grounded by adults who watch over them, see to it that they have their needs taken care of and show them love and kindness and spend time with them.

I went back to work full time due to necessity when my kids were 6, 7 and 10. It was difficult but we worked it out and they understood that bills had to be paid, literally (at one point we had the power cut off...no heat in November and I remember having to borrow enough cash to pay the entire bill at the power company's office).

I shudder to think of what life is like for those girls. I truly do not understand people like Mika and her husband...

[proud2BlibKansan]

26. It puzzles me as well

She has a potentially very serious accident and the only change was hiring a sitter to raise her kids for her?

[CTyankee]

29. It shows to me a lack of decision making skills, a serious defect in an adult who chooses to have

and raise (?) children. It's frightening to think about. I cannot imagine being so cold and unfeeling towards my child. There is something seriously wrong with the way Mika thinks and I'm sure a lot of the blame has to be directed toward her own parents. You learn to be a loving parent by having loving parents and experiencing it, IMO. The older I get the more I realize that my mother's greatest gift to me was her unconditional love for me andit is the greatest gift I can give to my kids because I see now, in my own grandchildren, how that gift is handed down...

[Berry Cool]

43. I read the article, and what I see is a woman who saddled herself with total parental responsibility

and allowed her husband to get off having to do nothing. She wanted to do it ALL. She thought she had to do it ALL--be the perfect parent (no fatherly influence required other than what her husband wanted to provide) and the perfect wife, with a candlelit dinner on the table when hubby came home. AND hold down a full-time job. Doing that, it's a shock something worse didn't happen to the kids!

To me, it doesn't look as if she was cold and unfeeling towards her kids at all--on the contrary, she took 100% responsibility for them and their father took none at all! But because she did this and also tried to hold down a full-time job, she's accused of being selfish and unloving as a parent? Spare me.

I think it's sad that the solution to her problem, apparently, was to get outside help rather than to get their father to help more, and that ultimately she had to shuffle her job around to accommodate her kids' schedule. I see her husband making NO adjustments to HIS life at all to take his share of the responsibility for the kids. Which is all too typical. He even says he wanted her to quit work, but he wanted her to quit work "of her own accord," because she found her work too demanding to balance with being a mom--he didn't want it to happen because of an "accident." In short, he set her up to fail. He made it clear that he expected her to be the full-time parent even if she insisted on working, because he wasn't going to step up to the plate. Then he sat around waiting for her to decide she couldn't do it and the job needed to go.

I look at her husband and think "What a selfish bastard." As if he's the first man ever to be in a marriage with a woman whose career was as demanding as his, and try to raise children with her. He could make some concessions too, but apparently the biggest one he's made is to say to her she doesn't need to do the candlelit-dinner thing. Big deal.

This is just going to be another book that preaches to WOMEN about how to "juggle" their busy lives as parents and wage earners and so on, with more advice from a "celebrity expert." When's the last time you saw a book for men telling them how to juggle their busy lives? Right--you haven't--because they're not expected to juggle. All they really have to do is work like dogs, come home, play with the kids a little and fall asleep. No one berates them for being bad fathers or not quitting their jobs to be with the kids.

[CTyankee]

52. Well, I am a lifelong feminist, going back quite a few years. Of course, her husband should have

been there for those girls. I don't let him off the hook one damn bit.

But I find her justifications a bit shallow. I know what it's like to have to work and be a parent. I have been both a full time Mom and a working Mom so I have seen both sides of the issue. She was obviously more interested in her career than in being a mother to the kids and really, I don't think she thought through what it meant to BE a parent...she and her husband should have started that line of thought before the first one was conceived...

[vanlassie]

72. You think she "had to work?" Good Grief. The woman is disgusting.

Here was her response when asked if after this incident she considered staying home with her (FOUR month old and toddler....)

PD: Did you ever think about leaving your job and staying home?
MB: My husband didn't want me to quit that way. He wanted me to leave on my own terms -- not because of an accident. And I still wanted to nurture my career.

:puke:

Vanlassie

[surrealAmerican]

38. I think, in this case, it may be a good decision.

There may be part of her that realizes that her children need a responsible adult to take care of them, and she just isn't a responsible adult.

[Berry Cool]

44. Sounds to me like she's very responsible--she was the ONLY one responsible for her kids.

Their father sure wasn't. And she was exhausted. I don't really like her, but I can't blame her.

Obviously, her husband wasn't happy that she insisted on working, and he didn't take any responsibility for the kids, leaving her to do it all--hoping that eventually she'd crack and decide it was too much and quit her job and stay home. She cracked, all right.

[Berry Cool]

41. "For HER"?

You're forgetting, they're her husband's kids, too.

[proud2BlibKansan]

49. Yes but he didn't almost kill the baby.

[Berry Cool]

40. CTyankee, are you your kids' father? Or their mother?

I get the impression you are their mother.

[CTyankee]

55. I was/am their mother. nt

[Berry Cool]

39. Hm. Seems the person who made the comment above thinks kids really need only one parent

and that's their mother.

I mean, lip service is paid to the father not being there, but the shame is heaped on the mother, and the conclusion is "the children are hurt by the MOTHER'S blinding success" and her employer is accused of "knowingly" allowing her to "neglect her children" and the buyers of her book for supporting the behavior.

In the end, it all comes down to the mother, once again, having primary responsibility for the children. I can't recall the last time someone suggested that maybe the father should quit his job and stay home with his kids instead of allowing them to be hurt by "their father's blinding success" or when a father's employer was accused of allowing him to "neglect his children." On the contrary, we call fathers who sacrifice everything to work longer hours and become huge financial successes "heroes" who are doing their absolute best for their kids. Hmph.

And we ask why people have kids if they don't intend to spend time with them and nurture them, which makes a lot of sense, but what we mean when we say that, most of the time, is that we don't understand why two people would have a child and both continue to work full time. We expect one of them to either quit or reduce hours. And all too often, the stank-eye goes to the mother.

[CTyankee]

60. But responsible people talk that through and make their decisions after considerable thought.

These things don't just have to "happen." They can be discussed in light of what they believe "parenting" IS. What does it mean to be a parent? What are each of our expectations? How will this work? Who will take primary responsibility?

I don't hear this kind of conversation ever happening in what Mika is telling us...

[UTUSN]

20. So THAT's what happened to her thought processes!1 Wish she'd slam SCAB against the wall !1 n/t

[CTyankee]

31. Could someone who is tech savvy send this thread to her at Morning Joe?

I think she should experience the shame she obviously is trying to wriggle out of. The comments on this thread are damning. She needs to be shamed. It would be nice if one of the guests on MJ could come right out and tell the watchers what a terrible mother and awful person she is, really slam her hard...I'd do it if I got the chance but I'm sure that's not going to happen...

[Berry Cool]

45. What a bunch of bull. She doesn't need shaming. She's not a "terrible mother."

On the contrary, she was the only parent to her kids while her husband was busy pursuing his career.

[CTyankee]

58. She is the routinely scolding "shamer" on Morning Joe, seeing a lot worse in

unfortunate people, poor people, whom she deems "irresponsible" and acting like everyone's Nanny. I am sick of her pose and her hypocrisy.

And as I said earlier, she should have thought of just this situation before she even conceived the first child. Altho I will be the first to say that I had a very unrealistic view of parenthood when I first had children, but I had my mother's example which was wonderful (and she had a career and travelled a LOT). I give credit to my mother and my father for the example they set for me, tho, I just learned the ropes the hard way...

[goclark]

70. I take another approach

I have watched her over the years and she has always appeared to be "self involved" to me.

She has had the means her entire life to have the best of everything -- including Paid professionals to care for her.
Now she can well afford to have a Nanny full time.

Even with full time help, she can still give quality time to her children and from what I've seen of her on television - I would not want her to take care of ME - an adult.

I watched many segment of Mourning Joe to see her look like a space cadet and watched the incident with the coffee as her words and attitude changed with each sip.

I am extremely sorry about the accident but there are so many kind,thoughtful and caring Moms that have grown up with a silver spoon in their mouth that know how to still be there for their children.

I am not blaming her for dropping the child, I pray she was not drinking before dropping. It could happen to someone that is absolutely sober.

[madmom]

30. July 1984, So had a motorcycle accident, put him in the hospital for

2 weeks (to start) I had 2 kids, one being a 3 month old. I worked 3rd shift. SO was in hospital in a different town than we live in,was driving from babysitter after visiting him in hospital ( more like taking care of him, but that's a whole other story), had a head on collision with a motorcycle coming around a curve too fast and he went left of center. He hit my car so hard it totaled my car. My 3 month old was in car seat and other child in back seat. We all went to hospital to be checked out, we were all ok but the guy who hit us, did I mention he was also a good friend of SO, had a broken neck (he survived) Now I had to handle ALL this by myself, SO was off work for 1 year,he was in wheelchair from his injuries, I had to take him to therapy every day,not to mention work and take care of my 2 kids. Also forgot to mention my father in law died in Aug of the same year. This all happened within 3 months in 1984, can I write a book now?

[CTyankee]

34. Your story is one of those that wonderful people have happen to them and they

rise to the occasion, without asking for praise or monetary gain. You stand in sharp relief with this vanilla colored zombie whose soul shrivelled up and blew away like so much dust a while back.

People like you are an inspiration...

[madmom]

36. Thank you.. sometimes it just makes me so mad that privileged people think they

should be patted on the back for handling a situation that "regular" people get thrown at them everyday and deal with it and move on. It's called LIFE!

[Berry Cool]

47. Actually, you might write a better book. You dealt with some damn difficult stuff

and shouldn't minimize it.

This book, OTOH, is going to be another book that makes women feel responsible for their children, their job and everything else in life and give them the impression that they're hearing about how to do it from some glamorous "expert." Bleah.

[mnhtnbb]

42. Gee whiz, there are LIMITS to what one can do. What a novel concept for

American women.

[Berry Cool]

48. Well, as long as they allow American men to keep feeding them the line that they have to do it all

on their own, because a man's responsible only for his career and earning the money to support his kids while a woman is responsible for nurturing her kids, and should only have another job if she can also handle nurturing the kids at the same time, because it's not their father's job, except to do it when he feels like it/he has time/it's the fun stuff...

[mnhtnbb]

50. Precisely. Men are willing to set limits for themselves; women need to learn to do the same.

[Gormy Cuss]

51. Where the hell did someone her age get this idea:

PD: What about your relationship with your husband? How did you keep that going strong?
MB: That was one of the reasons we got into this mess. I was trying to be perfect for everybody. On Fridays, I'd come home, try to sleep, go running, shower, get pretty for him, get the kids ready and be the perfect wife at the door with candles and dinner on the table.

Get pretty for him? With a full time job and two babies, that was her priority? Mika, the 1950s are calling. They want their "perfect wife" stereotype back.

[Cleita]

62. My reaction too.

However, I was a teenager in the fifties and was able to observe my own mother and my friends' mothers first hand and none of them fit the fifties stereotype except the TV mothers like Lucy, Harriet, June and Donna. Yes, they stayed at home, cooking, cleaning and raising the kids, but none of them made pretty before dishing up the meatloaf. The only time they dressed up was to go out shopping or church on Sunday. The husbands weren't off the hook either, and besides bringing home the bacon, were expected to do a variety of chores when home from work and on weekends, some which included helping with the dishes and putting the younger children to bed. Families were larger then too with most families averaging around four kids so everyone had to pitch in.

[SoCalDem]

53. You never "get over" working those wacky hours, if you do it too long

I still cannot sleep at night..I worked those weird hours for 10 years...a LONG time ago.. My internal clock just re-set, and has stayed that way.. I usually sleep in 45 minute to 1 hr segments..and for some odd reason, I still snap awake at 2:11 or 2:12 AM..every day (night?)..and cannot go back to sleep until at least 5 AM..

[Skidmore]

57. You know I'd be happy to pile on Mika B. for a number of reasons

but this is not one of them. Having been a working mother with small children and watched my daughter do the same, I can appreciate the stress she may have been under. I won't pile on another woman on this basis, and neither should any other woman.

[CTyankee]

63. I'd "pile" it on both of them but she is writing the book.

It's not that I cannot appreciate her stress. I had it, too, as a working mom after being an at home mom. But what I'm not hearing is the kind of taking stock of the situation that you would hope mature people would do before deciding to become parents. And she was working at glamorous jobs; believe me, my job wasn't glamorous and at holiday times I often took on another part time job just so we could have xmas presents. It wasn't much fun but my husband decided he didn't like being a responsible parent so I had a situation on my hands that was not of my making...

[krabigirl]

61. I don't even know who this person is, but she sounds unstable.

Also, her advice is crap. Put the kids on the back burner, oh of course, but NEVER the all-important "career," right?! A job is one thing, but she didn't choose a job over her kids...no, she chose a "career" as a plastic news "face" over her kids. No thanks. I'd prefer to find a different job or stay home if I'd had the accident she did. I guess you don't need brains to be a face on the news.