Posted on 06/09/2022 10:17:39 PM PDT by Jonty30
Why does the Millennial generation (people born between 1982-1996) have lower marriage and birth rates than previous generations? And when Millennials do get married, why is it at a later age than previous generations? Prominent periodicals like The Atlantic, Time, Washington Post and others have published articles trying to explain the phenomenon.
Some claim that the cause is economic – we graduated from college into the 2008 Recession, we have a lot of student loan debt, and we receive stagnant wages as housing prices soar. Financial difficulty prevents young people from getting married. This is of course part of the problem, but it is wrong. People got married at a higher per capita rate during the Great Depression and the brutal wars in history, which were much tougher than anything we endured.
Some argue that the cause is increased education, feminism and careerism. People want to focus on establishing a stable career in their youth, including women in equal if not greater numbers than men, which makes them delay family formation. This is also a partial explanation. There is no reason a person cannot pursue education and career while married. If the issue is about focus, we would argue that living “the single life” is even more of a distraction from schoolwork. Even if we concede the argument about focus, it still does not explain the large number of Millennials who are now in their late 30s, well-established in their careers, but still remain unmarried.
(Excerpt) Read more at lifeandtimes.substack.com ...
“too chickensh*t to accept any responsibility”
In a society that rewards riding on the wagon instead of pulling it and punishes married men in hundreds of ways large and small, being “chickensh%t” starts to look like rational decision-making.
So, no 16-year age difference, as with me?
(Hah-hah!)
You did good!
I wish that I already had grandchildren! Now would be the perfect time for me to nurture them!
There would even be a prospect of great-grandchildren...
Regards,
What an interesting and thought provoking article. Thank you for posting it.
What a mess.
I remember my grandparents and their friends. Divorce was very rare. Same with my parents generation. Couples stayed together literally for better or worse.
When I was in high school girls were looking to marry after graduation and start their own families.... following family history.
But.... things started to change. The sexual revolution...1960’s. Now we have come so far and there is no turning it back. Morality is no more.
I feel sorry for my grandkids in so many ways.
After reading this article and the comments I am so greatful to God for my husband and my marriage. He is my best friend. Retired.... yet we work and we play together. We have fun.
Corollary:
Why buy a bull when you can get bred for free
I’ll tell you why:
The women are crazy and the men...aren’t ‘men’.
Simple math.
My step-niece was informed by her BF that he was leaving her just last night after 4 years.
The story was underscored by the exact nature of my comment...with one exception:
The manner in which he left her - he wrote her a long, rational letter and offered to pay the rent until September, at which time she needs to move out (there’s a long story behind that: She’s away on an internship) - makes me wrong in that respect but reinforces what I already knew about my niece :-)
About the same for me; first and only marriage at 43, wife four years younger. One kid. Married almost 29 years.
Back when I was a youngster, I was astonished that those girls would move in with single men!
Easy.
If you don’t have a job, women won’t make any long term commitment.
For 10 years, its been a bad time to be young and single.
Young women are crazy drama queens.
Young men act like women, plus can’t hold a real job.
Successful, mid-thirties men and smart, mid-twenties women are finding each other and marrying. Others simply get left on the sidelines. It all works out, and long as reality is understood by both parties at the right time.
The "social contract" which sustained civilization up to this point, is the idea that if you are a man who studies and works hard to turn yourself into somebody who can comfortably support a family, then you can have some reasonable expectation that you will find a woman who will be your wife and in exchange for your support will bear children for you and make a reasonable effort to make you happy.
Now, feminism has decreed that this expectation is unconscionable, and it is misogynistic to have any expectation that the woman in your life will do anything for you (but you must financially support her regardless).
Increasing numbers of men are seeing this, seeing the one-sided nature of the new social contract, and deciding "screw this". If they want sexual release, porn and the occasional paid transaction is much cheaper than marriage, particularly if you have money.
They don’t meet a lot of potential spouses in their parent’s basements?
The women I know found PLENTY of men in their 20s and early 30s. I know, because after seeing them ignore me I learned to play the game and bedded many in my late 20s and 30s. I gave up that life Thank God, but know first hand the culture. The culture is rotten. The only hope I see is that the democrat marxist progressives have pushed so far that the young adults realize how sick things are. Outside of the indoctrinated morons in big cities who really believes “Lia” Thomas is a woman or having children dressed up like harlots stripping at a gay bar is something we should all be proud of.
At least you have grandkids to feel sorry for! Not sure that I ever will.
Oh, BS.
Before covid, the hourly workers at my plant played cards at lunchtime or talked with each other. Now they sit and stare at their phones.
[[To which many modern women will respond, “Oh, so you’re saying I should be a doormat?”]]
Tongue in cheek, but an accurate representation of much of feminist opinions.
If the husband does things to keep his wife happy, regardless of whether he’s personally in the mood, then the wife should make a corresponding effort for him.
If she’s always demanding, but never delivering, then it’s time to either fix that or move on.
[[ I’ve long said the smartest a woman can do is be extremely picky in her 20’s, but marry in her 20’s. Treat her husband well and most men will be faithful if they have a happy home to go to.]]
Excellent advice
[[besides that, women turn into time shares after a few years anyway. You make huge payments for life and you only get to use them about once a year. .unlike a wife, At least you can unload a timeshare ,usually at great financial loss, but its temporary and over once you unload it.]]
This is why people don’t buy timeshare any more, preferring the Airbnb option.
And I’m not just talking about vacation home rentals.
especially when the government will side with whichever of the other two will benefit the government more. Paulina will side with the government while it's helping her rob Peter.
As to marriage vs matrimony, if matrimony was legitimate and a religious ceremony, why would anyone outside of the religion have any say in it?
Churches have become an extension of the state. Try getting married in one without a marriage license issued by The State.
Not BS. A woman who is not actually hideous can very easily find a man willing to spend the night, or the weekend, with her, PROVIDED it’s a “no strings” date, and she is not excessively picky on who accepts her offer.
The same is not true for men.
It’s been said:
Women are the gatekeepers for sex,
But men are the gatekeepers for commitment.
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