I have little experience in the corporate world, but I get the feeling that the OP's analysis could apply just about anywhere. There's certainly places that are great for 9-5ers to raise families, don't get me wrong. But the bigger picture is that the stereotypical fears associated with entrepreneurship can be in many ways more favorable than its corporate alternative.
Steve Blank's "Epitaph for an Entrepreneur[1]" is a great resource on how to live a fulfilling life in startups. My favorite quote: "Someone gave me a thought that I tried to live my live my life around. He asked me, when you’re gone would you rather have your gravestone say, 'He never missed a meeting.' Or one that said, 'He was a great father.'"
True. In France, you get to spend many weeks of vacation with your kids. But then, you don't see them the rest of the year. Your choice (except that it's not really your choice, you can only change that by moving 5,000 miles away).
You really think that's the average story for both SF and Paris? Quite a lot of people actually live in Paris, and quite a lot of people have to commute in the Bay Area. I'm gonna make a guess that the average for the US is definitely higher than the average for France. And if I remember correctly, you'd have to go to South Korea or Japan to beat the weekly hours of the average US worker.
it's like this in all the big cities, and densely populated areas. the only place I know where its easy to spend time with your family is New Zealand, but the work is nowhere as interesting as is available in the bigger economies.
Steve Blank's "Epitaph for an Entrepreneur[1]" is a great resource on how to live a fulfilling life in startups. My favorite quote: "Someone gave me a thought that I tried to live my live my life around. He asked me, when you’re gone would you rather have your gravestone say, 'He never missed a meeting.' Or one that said, 'He was a great father.'"
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[1] http://steveblank.com/2009/06/18/epitaph-for-an-entrepreneur...