The "Mommy Wars" is the Americanised term coined to describe lively arguments between mothers who have diametrically opposed views on "what is best for baby". A small skirmish broke out recently when the Duchess of Cambridge left her eight-month old son to go on holiday in the Maldives. While some people wondered what sort of callous mother would "abandon" her baby for a week, others said they'd do the same given half a chance.
Then there were the mothers who thought everyone should just leave Kate alone to raise her baby as she saw fit. But this last group missed the entire point of the Mommy Wars which, of course, is to generate as much ill-will as possible. Hostilities are unlikely to flourish in the face of reason, respect and understanding so there's no place for conciliatory tones in such dialogues. (And, if it's true Prince George started to crawl while his parents were on holiday, then Kate's critics can dine out on her missing that milestone.)
Favourite Mommy War topics typically centre on breastfeeding versus bottle-feeding, cloth nappies versus disposable, routines versus freestyle, working mothers versus stay-at-home mothers - and nannies versus day-care. Such debates have no doubt raged since time began.
The reason they've developed a life of their own of late is thanks to social media platforms which allow views to be exchanged publically and uncensored.
Despite calls for a ceasefire, there's no end in sight for the Mommy Wars. When you're absorbed in baby-land, up to your eyeballs in milk, dribble and poop, perspective is sometimes lost and these issues become the Only Things that Matter. And even though such topics are well-worn territory and one would suspect there's no fresh opinion left to share, newly-minted mothers continually enter the fray and reignite the dilemmas.