Friday, May 11, 2007

Divorce Rates Down

Now that the divorce rate is down, we should be celebrating right? While I think a lower divorce rate is a good thing, I think is is more related to this:
Yet Americans aren't necessarily making better choices about their long-term relationships. Even those who study marriage and work to make it more successful can't decide whether the trend is grounds for celebration or cynicism.

Some experts say relationships are as unstable as ever—and divorces are down primarily because more couples live together without marrying. Other researchers have documented what they call "the divorce divide," contending that divorce rates are indeed falling substantively among college-educated couples but not among less- affluent, less-educated couples.

snip

The number of couples who live together without marrying has increased tenfold since 1960; the marriage rate has dropped by nearly 30 percent in past 25 years; and Americans are waiting about five years longer to marry than they did in 1970.
The decline of divorces is a good thing, but the increase in unmarried cohabitation is not. But when celebrities don't get married, what kind of signal is it providing. Everyone wants to be like their idols, but in this respect, I am not sure that idol worship is such a good idea.

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