Marriage-Lite, by Patricia Morgan. Are we sacrificing our children on the altar of political correctness?
Institute
for the Study of Civil Society
ISBN 1-903386-04-7
Are we in danger of sacrificing the well-being of our children to a particular 'politically correct' view of family life?
It is politically incorrect these days to favor one lifestyle over against another. We are told that all lifestyles are equal, and that we must not be judgmental of other people's choices.
Thus, for example, it does not matter whether you choose to marry or just to live together. Marriage is, after all, 'just a bit of paper'.
But there is an increasing body of evidence which shows that nothing could be further from the truth. However, this evidence is often suppressed by the elites in government, media and family charities, because it does not fit with their own agendas.
According to family researcher Patricia Morgan, in her new study 'Marriage Lite', the official pretense that marriage is just a bit of paper is leading to a generation of children with poor mental health and educational achievements. She lays the blame for this squarely at the feet of a 'bohemian elite' who advance the propaganda war on behalf of cohabitation, and who are less than honest about the facts.
People who live together without marrying:
- are likely to suffer from more stress
- are more likely to be depressed
- are more likely to be unfaithful to their partners
- have children who are likely to do less well at school
Four popular myths about marriage and living together
Myth no. 1:
Living together sets women free from the shackles of a male-dominated, dependent relationship in marriage.
Fact:
Women and their children are at greater risk of being abused in a cohabiting relationship than they are in a marriage.
Myth no. 2:
'It's the quality of the relationship that matters, not the bit of paper'
Fact:
Where people live together without marrying, the quality of the relationship is often significantly worse than it is in marriage.
Myth no. 3:
Cohabiting relationships are just as stable as marriage. The 'bit of paper' does not mean anything.
Fact:
Cohabiting relationships break down more easily than marriages do. Couples who have children without getting married are very unlikely to stay together while their children are growing up.
Myth no. 4:
People live together until they have children and then get married.
Fact:
Couples who have children and then marry are more likely to divorce than couples who marry first then have children. Cohabiting couples with children are more likely to break up than those without children.
But these facts are often suppressed by the media, government, and family agencies, all in the name of political correctness.
For example, Morgan identifies a document from the Lord Chancellor's Department which claims that:
Another, from the Law Society, claims that the increase in births outside marriage:
But there is no evidence to support either of these claims. In fact, the evidence contradicts them.
In spite of the pro-family rhetoric, government policy is directed to giving the same rights to cohabiting couples (or those in other kinds of relationships, called 'alternative lifestyles') as to married couples, to lone mothers as to married mothers - all because we must not judge people's lifestyles - even when those lifestyles are obviously harmful.
For example, former Home Secretary Jack Straw said recently:
In the past people sacrificed their children to their gods in the hope of obtaining some kind of blessing for themselves. In other words, they put their own well being before that of their children. Are we in danger today of doing the same thing? Of sacrificing our children on the altar of our political correctness?
Could it be that marriage really does work better than any other family arrangement? That in fact, it reflects something of the way we are meant to function, because it is something God-given? (Of course, we must not be simplistic: this does not mean that all marriages are perfect, or that all kids from non-traditional families will become mentally ill, or educationally challenged.)
Isn't it time that we let these facts be known?
Isn't it time we acknowledged that the anti-family agenda coming from government, media, and agencies, is a reflection of the personal biases of the individuals involved, and does not promote the best interests of our children?
For more about 'Marriage-Lite', or to buy a copy of the book, go here