[reedF211]

Tiger Moms disgust me. We are born once, we live this life once and after about 70-80 yrs we are dead buried in the ground as our flesh slowly rots away. To waste that small amount of time you have on this planet pursuing success in this ridiculous way is disappointing. There is a reason why asian countries like Japan where the tigar mom phenomenon is a way of life has one of the highest suicide rate in the world. As cliche as that sounds I'd rather have my kid enjoy the childhood and grow up work as a waitress for $15/hr and be happy than working the kid like a dog, have them grow up to be a doctor making millions.

I read part of the book and was completely disgusted by it. This person should be arrested for child abuse and thrown in a Russian gulag and see how it feels when the shoe is on the other foot!

[potatolicious]

Relax. I've seen both sides of the issue - westernized Chinese guy who grew up under a Tiger Mom-esque "regime". It's really not as bad as your mind seems to be making it out to be.

Also, your association between Tiger Mom styles of raising children and suicide rate is pretty specious, and if you'd pardon me for saying so, looks like an outsider with no context making wild accusations. For one thing, Tiger Mom is Chinese, and yet the suicide epidemic is largely limited to Japan.

If Tiger Mom styles of raising children existed in both China and Japan, yet the suicide problem largely contained to Japan, it would seem to suggest that it is not to blame for the high suicide rate.

Also, the "work like a dog, doctor making millions" vs. "great childhood, $15/hr waitress" is really a false dichotomy. Most Chinese people who grow up under a Tiger Mom environment don't end up making millions, and similarly most children who had a more liberal/free childhood don't end up busing tables.

I have to say, I'm a bit disappointed in Amy Chua for being so overly sensationalistic in her book and promotion thereof. I'm not sure if her mother approves of the extreme, polarizing way in which she is being presented to the world. The typical Chinese childhood is characterized by extremely high expectations, but in and of itself it does not entail abuse or even really misery.