“Parenting” as a verb didn’t even come along until 1959, so needless to say Baby Boomers, for whom it was a nascent term, really weren’t putting as much thought into their parenting philosophies and styles as we do today. Back then it was basically, “Look, here’s what you do: Just do whatever your mom and dad did.” If you were a rebel, you read Dr. Spock (not to be confused with Mr. Spock, who I’m guessing would make a terrible parent), who was basically the only alternative to the status quo back in the day.