The decline of America? Are you trying to tell us Digger that not being married contributes to the decline of America?
No, I'm not one of those right wing nut-jobs who sees marriage as the end all and be all of a person or couple. Let's take a little look at the story first.
The word from the New York Times is that married households have fallen below 50%
Married couples, whose numbers have been declining for decades as a proportion of American households, have finally slipped into a minority, according to an analysis of new census figures by The New York Times.
The American Community Survey, released this month by the Census Bureau, found that 49.7 percent, or 55.2 million, of the nation’s 111.1 million households in 2005 were made up of married couples — with and without children — just shy of a majority and down from more than 52 percent five years earlier.
OK, now let's get to the decline of America part. Before we start let me state that I was raised by a hard working single mom and that I currently am married with two kids. I have sat by and watched as the children in this country have declined sharply. Not only in general manners and respect, but in terms of discipline, motivation and innovation. Sure, there are those who are raised properly, by either a mother and father or a single parent, but when you take out the good ones it seems that the bad ones these days far outweigh all of the good ones.
Beyond the typical stated conditions of being a bad apple - teen pregnancy, juvenile hall, prison, drug use, alcohol use, vandalism, gangs and other assorted illegal activity - you have to take a look at the general state of the youth. They are being thrust through our schools without proper education in order for them to graduate. They are not being supported by role models or mentors or anyone looking out for their best interests. They are not being properly prepared for the realities of life by being coddled by the politically correct crowd all these years.
This is the first generation that has grown up with overly heavy political correct bullshit shoved down their throats at every turn. 16-year-olds today were born in 1990.
So what does this have to do with marriage? Well I'll tell you this first hand, if I had a father when I was younger I believe that I would have become a better person in the long run. The sheer lack of discipline during my youth allowed me to get into so much trouble that could have been easily avoided with a little guidance. Sure, not all kids with two parents are going to turn out perfect, but I honestly do believe having lived through not having one that it would have had a positive influence on me overall. I didn't learn true discipline until I joined the Navy.
If the current total number of married couples has declined below 50% that means that there are even fewer married couples with kids, leaving a glut of single parent kids or those being raised by relatives.
As we see the married couples with children decline I believe that we will see an even greater increase in generally misbehaved kids who are getting themselves into things that could have been avoided by having a two parent household.
While the New York Times seems to trumpet this as some sort of accomplishment, I find it just a further warning of the decline of America.
I'm sure some of you disagree, if so, comment below and tell me why I'm right, wrong or misguided.
Other Commentary:
PoliBlog who takes offense to the way the NYT story was written and breaks the numbers out.
Outside The Beltway says it's a worldwide trend and tells us his own experiences.
