[olderwiser]

Great book on the subject: The Meaning of Marriage: Family, State, Market, and Morals" (Spence Publishing)

The English philospher Roger Scruton, among many others, notes that traditional marriage plays a vital role in several areas that make for a stable, virtuous and prosperous society--

--it plays a vital role in handing on the work of one generation to the next

--it protects and nurtures children in a way that is best, compared with other arrangements

--it regulates sexual activity in a socially positive way

--it represents a highly successful form of social and economic cooperation

I agree with all that.  And that doesn't even overtly touch on marriage as a religious sacrament ordained by our Creator, whereby each sex provides unique contributions/attributes and are completed by each other is a transcendent way.

[spinestein]

Good post.