a "whirlwind of controversy, animosity, etc"

READERS' PLATFORM

How, a Berkeley mother wondered, could one "innocent article" create such a "whirlwind of controversy, animosity, etc?" The mother was referring to a recent story in the Chronicle Food section entitled "Cafes feed need for play dates, lattes" (Sept. 26), "where kids can play safely while parents have a decent meal."

"Wow," said another mother, from Novato, "some folks really can't stand kids and/or parents of kids." She was referring to a separate story, along with SFGate comments, concerning Southwest Airlines' elimination of preboarding privileges for families with young children.

The two stories, in fact, prompted more than 560 registered comments on SFGate. Many of them were "rants about how today's parents don't know how to control their children in public places and should be sent to the gulag," as Chronicle food writer Tara Duggan noted in a subsequent post on The Poop blog. But, if the number hitting back equally hard is any illustration, hell hath no fury like parents of children scorned.

Herewith a sample of SFGate comments (edited for space) on both stories. . . .

Technorati Tag: childfree