'Women should support each other' is fine, so long as it works both ways. Who supports the women who have to work and have to leave their 12 year olds at home? I was the one to say that, and frankly, if my 12 year olds hadn't been capable of letting themselves in and watching TV for half an hour, I'd have been asking myself why. Much longer than half an hour, and I paid for childcare - I had nobody to help out, either.
Yes, some of it is about luck, but some of it is about planning your work and family and making arrangements accordingly. If you can afford not to work, that's great. But IMO, affording it means taking responsibility (both partners) for all that that entails.
Those who work have a lot of expenses connected with working. Transport, clothes, lunches, tax, NI and probably childcare before they see a penny of their income. Someone who chooses not to work has none of that outlay, so why should the workers subsidise the rest?
That doesn't make me unsupportive, incidentally. Playing that card isn't fair at all. I don't see the need to support all women, whether or not I agree with what they are doing. I am perfectly happy to support people (men or women) who are unable to work, or are ill, or who have pre-school children; but not those who choose not to work when their children are at school, if they are otherwise capable of doing so.
Having said all of that, I do believe that as women were told that they would get a pension at 60 whether or not they had contributed to it, and have made life plans accordingly, it is grossly unfair to stop that now.
I haven't worked out the quote system on here yet; but I agree with you, paddyann, that 37 years 'tied to the house' is ridiculous, unless there is more to the story than we know.