I'm Agreeing with a Kardashian. Release the Locusts!

I'm not proud of myself today.  Today I read an article in which Kim Kardashian made some comments about breastfeeding, and .. ::deep sigh:: .. y'all, I totally agreed with her.  Does this also mean I side with Facebook on this issue too? I'm not prepared.

Kim Kardashian was all over Twitter on Friday, complaining about a fellow diner.

And I quoth the almighty Kardashian:

EWW Im at lunch,the woman at the table next 2 me is breast feeding her baby w no coverup then puts baby on the table and changes her diaper

Like, seriously, that's a direct quote. The only massaging I did to that quote was to italicize at it so that my brain wouldn't ENTIRELY implode.

But .. y'all.. I know this isn't going to make me any friends, but .. I TOTALLY AGREE WITH HER.

Look, it's a frickin' restaurant.  It's where I go to order a cheeseburger and fries, perhaps a milkshake if I'm feeling funky and want to sing "My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard" for the next two days, but not where I go to see titties.  It's just not.

And it's not where I go to see babies suckling on titties, either.

Let me state: I am not anti-breastfeeding.  I, myself, breastfed.  I think it's a miraculous thing there, that whole sustaining-a-life-on-your-breast thing, but I can appreciate the magic without it happening over the visual horizon of my salad, is all I'm saying.  There are an ABUNDANCE of cover-ups available on Etsy, at Babies R Us, or HELL, JUST USE A FEW NAPKINS, but I don't need to see it. 

No more than we'd all agree that me urinating is also a natural thing, but it's not appropriate in the middle of a restaurant.

Don't EVEN get me started on the changing the diaper on the table thing.

Photos: Source1 and Source2

Sarah Lena would rather gnaw her own arm off than watch someone breastfeed in public.

Comments

[Karen]

I think the diaper changing on the table pretty much racked that act up to a whole new level. And yeah, it is possible to breastfeed modestly, without throwing a picnic blanket over one's head. I have friends who manage to breastfeed in public without anyone really being aware of what's going on. And that's HOW THEY LIKE IT. They did not start breastfeeding their kids in order to be the poster child for public breastfeeding. It's how they feed their kids, that's all.

[Erin]

Totally disagree about the covering up--breastfeeding can easily be done discreetly with the aid of the SHIRT you're wearing--no extra coverup needed. Diaper changing at the table, though--not cool.

[cindy w]

Oooh, man, you are probably going to unleash the hounds with this post, although I do happen to agree with you.

My cousin nursed her 2 babies, and she didn't use a cover-up, but she had this trick with layering her clothes in such a way that seriously, you would never know what she was doing unless you were really TRYING to notice. And it wasn't super-complicated, it basically involved a tank top under her shirt. One shirt got pushed down, the other shirt went up, and all you could see was fabric & baby head, not bare boob.

But yeah, the diaper changing at the table? Eww. I'm TOTALLY gonna back Kim Kardashian on that one. Which is not something I ever thought I'd say.

[Life of a Doctor's Wife]

I have no feelings about the breastfeeding, but changing a child on a dining table is disgusting. And I say this knowing that most public restrooms are ALSO disgusting and some don't have changing tables and I probably wouldn't want to put my sweet baby ( whic is, admittedly, imaginary at this point, so I should probably shut up on this whole topic) on anything within 50 feet of a public restroom. But come on. EW.

[Peyton]

Yes, public restrooms are icky, but I always had a changing table pad with me (seriously, they roll up really really small) and would NEVER have changed my child on a table. YUCK.

No comment on the public breastfeeding. :-)

[Maria]

Changing a diaper on a table, super gross.

Feeding a baby in a restaurant? Um, not at all gross. A family eats at the table. End of story. There's nothing scatological or unpleasant about a baby at the breast.

And Kim-tits-and-ass-everywhere Kardashian is the last person who should be commenting on how much is too much skin to show ANYWHERE.

I'm sorry to see this kind of forced controversy on a site I visit for pop culture shenanigans and an all around good time. It's ALWAYS a big attention-getter and never in a way that's good for anyone involved.

[ajnabi]

Yeah... Unless she was using her tits to open the door, handle silverware, and pay for her meal, then the breastfeeding mom's hands are way more disgusting than her boobs as far as cleanliness goes. I breastfed three kids, never using a cover-up and also being complimented on my modesty by women who were surprised that I could do it without baring my entire chest, and the only time someone complained in a restaurant was a very old lady who acted like I'd squirted on the salad bar or something. But it's nice to know people my own age were being disgusted too and just, you know, taking to the Internet with it instead of loudly asking to change tables!

[Alyssa]

Whatever. They are boobs. Do I think it's a big deal to put a cover-up on? No. And I never breast-fed my son in public. But am I going to get all offended and huffy because *gasp* BOOBS-- which are on every billboard and tv commercial you see all day long-- happened to appear at a restaurant where they were being used to feed a child instead of attempt to attract men to buy something having nothing to do with breasts? No. Seriously, who the hell cares either way? I don't get why this is ever controversial. Keep em in, bust em out, do what works best for you and your baby. I've seen it all before. I'm so over the idea of judging how and where and when people choose to feed their babies. You make your choice, I'll make mine and we'll just leave it at that.

Changing the diaper... maybe tasteless, but then again I'm pretty sure she wasn't spreading poop on the table like butter on toast. Maybe she did use a changing pad and the whole thing was perfectly sanitary. Maybe that woman went home and tweeted about how offended she was to have to listen to all the idiotic comments I'm sure came out of Kardashian's mouth over dinner.

[Cristin]

Kim didn't really say if the woman was bearing her breasts for all to see or not. If she was breastfeeding modestly without a cover up I don't see what the big deal is but if she was whippin' out the old boob I wouldn't want to see that either. There's a way to breastfeed in public that doesn't make everyone in the vicinity cringe.
And Ps. I am so sick of the Kardashian's. When is their 15 minutesd up?

[Erin]

Apparently Khloe and Kourtney are on the other side of the fence:

http://www.usmagazine.com/momsbabies/news/kourtney-kardashian-pumps-breast-milk-on-tv-two-days-after-kim-slams-it-2010216

[natalie]

I really feel that kim is the complete last person who should be talking about someone showing too much skin in public, seh seems like a real a**hole anyway...though the changing the diaper on teh table thing is nasty

[Amy]

If you don't like it, don't look. State law in most US states protects a woman's right to breastfeed anywhere that she is legally allowed to be. Without a cover, which is an item neither of my children would tolerate.

[Bryan]

I'm torn on this...and being a man, I will be told my opinion doesn't count. I believe that people should have tons of rights. I’m a liberal that way. but where is that line drawn. Woman are arrested for going topless. Where I live, strippers have to wear pasties. And yet, it's supposed to be ok for a woman to expose herself if she is breast feeding. when my oldest was breastfeeding, we used to pump then have a bottle handy in public. Is that so hard? If your going to breastfeed, fine...but be considerate. It's MY choice when to explain breastfeeding to my children... your "freedom" to breastfeed in public shouldn't force that discussion on me early. So....maybe I’m not torn on this...but I am male, so my opinion is like tits on a bore hog...useless.

[Elizabeth]

Changing a baby on a table? Gross.

Breastfeeding without a cover? Not so gross.

I actually blogged about this the other day. Sometimes, babies make more of a show thrashing around under a breastfeeding cover than they do without. My baby (and several others) tend to think the covers are inviting a game of peek-a-boo.

My friend asked "What's more distracting, a woman holding a baby to her breast? Or a writhing alligator thrashing under an apron?"

Point taken. We're not whipping out our tits. We're feeding and unless you stare, I doubt you're seeing more nip or boob than at the bar.

[Leanne - Momcast]

Your pics of Kim show more tit than I ever showed while nursing. Wow. It's 2010. Can we get over this already?

[jillian]

I nurse in public, uncovered, as do lots of moms in my town, and I have never shown nor seen "a boob" in public -- not even as much as you can see in either of the 2 pictures you have posted.

I can't imagine she would have posted "ewww, I'm in a restaurant and the girl at the next table has a slutty top on" -- probably because she was wearing something revealing herself. No, this is not about boobies, this is about breastfeeding itself. She is disgusted by the *idea* of breastfeeding. That's messed up.

[Monica]

I would not enjoy somebody changing a diaper on a table next to me...certainly. But the breastfeeding thing, really? Were you by any chance a flight attendant back in '06?

[Erin W]

What a disappointment this post is. Aren't restaurants for eating? Breastfed babies aren't allowed to eat in restaurants? Should Mom have gone and sat on the toilet to breastfeed her child so that Ms. Kardashian would feel more comfortable?

Not to mention the freaking picture on this very post exposes way more boob than most breastfeeding mothers show while nourishing their children. If Kim "T&A" Kardashian and the wise and learned Sarah Lena don't like the sight of a breastfeeding child, perhaps they should put blankets over their own heads.

[Kelly J]

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that at least a handful of the MamaPop writer mamas are going to disagree with this post as well.

I, too, would be disgusted by a fellow diner changing a diaper at the table. But breastfeeding without a cover? Unless the mother in question whipped off her entire top and sat there bare-breasted (both sides exposed) for the duration of the meal, get over yourself!

I breastfeed in public - quite discreetly - and am doing so more and more often without any sort of cover because my son is growing less and less tolerant of it, and using the cover can, frankly, be a pain in the ass.

Nobody is forcing you to "like" me breastfeeding in public any more so than they are forcing me to like you chewing with your mouth open or anything else you may do while you are eating, but the same solution is available to us both - don't look. Didn't your mother teach you that it's not polite to stare anyway?

[Fawn Amber]

This whole debate makes me tired.

I breastfed all four of my babies...with a cover. What is wrong with a little modesty? Those same kids I nursed myself, as teenagers today, would be completely grossed out at the sight of a baby nursing. And no matter how natural and beautiful I think it is, my thirteen year old son just shouldn't have to look at it.

Just like an earlier commenter said, peeing is natural too but you don't see people dropping trou and doing it in the streets. Cover. It. UP.

[MichelleH]

The diaper is beyond gross. The boobies-I agree with the poster who pointed out the same thing I noticed. The two pics you included of Kim show way more boob than I ever expose breastfeeding. Not that I'm saying it's so scandalous for Kim to dress that way....but that the pics kinda undermine your point.

[Siobhan]

I'm sorry but when people compare peeing and nourishing my child it really pisses me off. Yes they are both natural functions. One belongs in a bathroom and one doesn't. Unless the chick had whipped them both out and had them laying on the table I don't see the issue. This is L.A. Have you seen how most women dress there? Ms. Kardashian is usally wearing something that pushes her boobs up and out as much as possible. So according to her you should only show your boobs if you're hawking diet pills or your cheap perfume. But seeing them used for their natural purpose is so EWW!! Not to mention the women is 30 years old and sounds like a 12 year old.

And to the man who posted earlier about how it's so easy to just pump and take it with you. Maybe for your wife it was. Some babies refuse to take bottles. Sometimes we don't have time to pump before we leave the house. For me I think it's considerate to not let my baby scream with hunger. I think that would bother people more then seeing a flash of skin. And I honestly I don't understand people that are worried about having to explain it to their childen. If they were breastfed or even of they weren't it a pretty quick explanation of, that mom is feeding her baby and it's not nice to stare. I'd much rather explain that than them seeing Kim K. in her Carl's Jr. commercial generally acting like a skank.

[Elizabeth]

Deciding what is socially acceptable based on a teenager's view of it's "grossness" is absolutely ridiculous. If teenagers find their parents kissing to be disgusting, should the parents stop doing that too?

[Elizabeth]

Please pardon my typo above. It should have been "its" not "it's".

[G.G.R]

I'm going to say that breastfeeding without a coverup in a restaurant is inappropriate. Go outside sit on a bench, do it in the car before you come in, or get a coverup.

I go to restaurants for the ambience, not so much for the food (I can cook!), to feel a little posh really so someone whipping out their boob and sticking a human being on it would ruin my lunch/dinner. If that person is sitting right by your table it may not be easy to just not look there.

I get that babies are preshus and the future and get hungry - but seriously, their needs and convinient ways to fulfill those needs don't always have to trumph everyone else.

In short - In a restaurant, it's not appropriate.