One of the greatest ironies of our time: Today’s women have inherited from their mothers the freedom to claim authority in the military, corporations, churches, the professions, politics and higher education, but have been persuaded, largely by their own gender, to all but completely abdicate their authority over their children. Sixty years ago this month, I entered first grade in Charleston, S.C. The class picture shows 50 children. There are no names under the picture save the teacher’s, so I only know that 50 kids showed up the day the photo was taken.