Babies and Knitting

What does babies and knitting have in common? While prowling the blogs, I came across a NYT article about a protest at the ABC headquarters because Barbara Walters was complaining about having to sit next to a nursing mother on the plane.

Here's the news article - 'Lactivists' Taking Their Cause, and Their Babies, to the Streets. (Note that you might have to register at NYT site). What caught my eye was this section:

In interviews and Internet discussions, hundreds of women recount being asked to stop nursing in public spots, including the Children's Museum in Huntsville, Ala.; a knitting store in the East Village; a Radisson Hotel lobby in Virginia; a public bus in Los Angeles; and a city commission meeting in Miami Beach.

I'm really curious . . . which knitting store was this?

I think it's sad that we're told that breastfeeding is the best thing to do for babies, but then nursing mothers are too often told to go to the bathroom or driven out of the store or whatever. Look, babies have their own schedule and needs that have to be met in a timely manner, so the mother has to do what needs to be done to meet these needs immediately. For thousands of years it was a given that nursing mothers would feed their babies any where.

So what's with the squeamishness? Perhaps it's the eroticization of breasts. Breasts are designed to feed babies - that's the first priority. Any other benefits are secondary. Babies are to be nurtured in a healthy manner . . . shouldn't we all be understanding of this?