> You in 606: Your belief that state licensure for marriage creates some kind of wholesome social environment is spurious.
> You in 686: the government has abdicated any semblance of protecting society from abhorrent marital exercise, consanguine...
Do marriage licenses serve a purpose or not?
No. They do not, beyond being a source of revenue and control by the state. And not a very good one at that.
Increasing numbers of cohabitants disdain the marriage license as an unnecessary and intrusive impediment to their life style. Many of these same persons would be more than willing to become celebrants in a religious ceremony of commitment.
The state provides a legal entanglement, not a moral protection.
The protection of children is a spurious argument for licensure. Child support is determined by paternity, not a license.