I was having a nice day. My boss and I had a nice conversation earlier, my son had a good afternoon, had noticably grown, and his vocabulary was growing by 2-5 words a day. That evening, my wife and I were spending some time relaxing and catching up on news and blogs.

"Babe, take a look at this article," she says.

I reply, "what is it about?"

"A Chinese mother who doesn't let her kids have fun, but they are geniuses," she answers.

My flippant answer was something along the lines of "yeah. Really depressed geniuses. Oh boy!"

Clearly, this was not the level of interaction or dialogue she was hoping for. She said I might be surprised and should actually read the article. It was disappointing to have my wife point out that I just made the typical mistake of "knowing" the whole article based on a headline.

So I started reading.

Now, before I get to the part where I say, "I told you so", and "yup, I was right", I'll give you a link to the article itself: Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior - Amy Chua

In this article, Tiger Mom Ms. Chua (who clearly did not join her husband's family by adopting his name), explains her theory that a rigorous regimen of constant study with no possibilty of sleepovers, playdates, school plays, complaining, TV, computer games, choice of extracurricular activities, grades below an A, being less than the number one student in the class, or playing an instrument other than the piano or violin is the best -nay, only- pathway to successful children.

Wait, I'm not at the "I told you so" part yet. Keeping in mind that she is a professor at Yale, she attempts to support her theory by citing a study of 50 American mothers and 48 Chinese immigrant mothers. Well, I hope statistics isn't her field, because I don't find much credibility in using a sample size of 48 to represent the approximately 750,000 Chinese immigrant mothers in America.

Sorry Tiger Mom, I can cite statistics too. And (how's this for a typical guy statement) my sample's bigger.

Academic pressure is increasing dramatically in Chinese culture. Each year, nearly 10 million students take college entrance exams. Sadly, there are only 2.6 million spaces available. Those who don't make it to college are shamed and trapped amongst the "faceless masses", according to one Associated Foreign Press article.

A recent Chinese government survey of their college entrance exam system showed 93% of respondants want the system reformed. One Beijing college instructor said the system is "cruel" due to the pressure put on students and their parents.

Sun Yunxiao, the Deputy Director of the China Youth and Children Research Center said, "[students] are overwhelmed by a kind of invisible pressure and can not allow them to feel the pleasures of life." A study done at Peking University found that over 20 percent of 140,000 high school students said they had considered committing suicide. A stunning 6.5 percent of students had actually made the necessary plans to kill themselves. This was the suicide note of a 12-year-old girl who killed herself in China: "Dear parents, I can hardly express my gratitude to you for bringing me up in the past 12 years. But I feel under such pressure. There is too much homework for me. I had no choice but to die. Last words from your daughter."

It is a bit ironic that Ms. Chua singles out "Chinese mothers" for their amazing abilities. According to the most recent United Nations figures, China is the only nation in the world in which suicides among women outnumber men.

After reading her entire article -and saying "I told you so" to my wife- I did take important lessons from it. The most glaring is that her dedication to the success and intelligence of her children is admirable. But such passion should be combined with a moderate approach to full child development. Despite her claim to the contrary, things can be fun without being good at them. Anyone who has seen an infant or toddler giggle uncontrollably simply by falling over, being thrown in the air, or splashing in a tub should understand that idea. No skill is necessary, no drive for perfection is required. Simple interaction with the world can provide enjoyment. Hell, watch me try to hit a golf ball and you'll find yourself in hysterics! But so will I, and I have zero skill with a club. If the "Chinese mother" way is so much better, why is it Ms. Chua's daughter that is "punching, thrashing, and kicking" her? Why is it Ms. Chua who has to threaten her daughter with starvation to get results? She admits having to deny her child water and access to a bathroom...just to learn a musical piece on a piano.

Western parents today focus much more on being a friend to their children instead of a leader and role model. And if Tiger Mom's assumption is correct, I would state that too many Chinese mothers are focused on academic success at the expense of emotional and mental health. A careful melding of the two seems greatly overdue.