Posted on 02/08/2008 12:52:43 AM PST by a_chronic_whiner
Two trends bedevil America. One is taxes. The second, more important, is marriage.
Those who pay no taxes have no check on their appetite for services. If somebody else is paying, nothing’s unaffordable.
At the federal level, 41 percent of the U.S. population is totally outside the income tax system, according to the Washington-based Tax Foundation. Since 2000, the number of filers with no tax liability, zero, has increased from 29 million to 42 million in 2005. Of 132.6 million returns filed in 2005, only 90.6 million paid taxes. The rest got back all they’d paid in — and more.
The second and more important concern, largely because of its impact on children, is the rise of single-parent households. Over the past 25 years, the percentage has grown from a quarter to a third. In Georgia, 35 percent of children live in single-parent homes and 39.2 percent of births in 2004 were to unmarried women, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Almost 70 percent of black children, almost half of Hispanic and a quarter of white children are born to unmarried women.
The liberal polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research singled out unmarried women and their potential impact on future elections. What it found should chill the spines of those who wish to reverse, or even slow, the growth of government — not so much because of its cost, but because Big Government steals the initiative and enterprise and independence of its wards.
“Because of the often stark economic reality of a single-income family, they [unmarried women] support an active government that will give all Americans a chance to get ahead, not just the affluent,” the organization reported.
As the nation discovered decades ago with welfare policies that pushed men out of the lives of poor women, except for procreation, women who previously found security in marriage turned instead to government. As Greenberg Quinlan Rosner find, unmarried women are a rich vein to be mined by Democrats. From its findings:
• “Marital status is playing an increasingly defining role in elections. For the 2006 congressional elections, the ‘marriage gap’ was 32 points, far bigger than the gender gap, which was just 9 points. Among women, the marriage gap was an even bigger 36 points … unmarried women tend to vote like other unmarried women, regardless of other powerful demographic variables such as age, income and education.”
• “Unmarried women are easily the largest segment of the Democratic base — bigger than Hispanics and African Americans combined.” And the second most loyal, second only to blacks. They favor Democrats over Republicans by a 70-24 margin, and Hillary Clinton over Rudy Giuliani by 66-30.
• “From 1960 to 2006, the percentage of the voting age population that was unmarried grew from 27 to 45 percent … If this trend continues, the unmarried will be a majority of the population within 15 years.”
• Their top economic concern is health care. “This group strongly supports fundamental reform to provide universal coverage that can never be taken away.”
• “In total, there are over 53 million unmarried women of voting age, a number that dwarfs the percentage of seniors, people of color and even union members.” Of those who voted in 2006, two-thirds chose Democrats. Some 20 million, however, did not vote. That’s 41 percent of the unmarrieds. Among the married, it was 29 percent. But “2008 could be very different if progressives see the opportunity before them.” Unmarried women “emerge as the largest contributor to the Democratic vote in 2008.”
Greenberg Quinlan Rosner views them as the “Democrats’ evangelicals.” opining that “if progressives turn them out, unmarried women can be as important to Democrats in 2008 as evangelicals were to Republicans in 2004.”
Combine the two: fewer people who pay taxes and a growing bloc of women who rely on government for their financial security and their household’s well-being.
The challenge for the nation is to rebuild the traditional two-parent family — primarily for the sake of children, but also as a balance to more and bigger government.
You are bit behind the times. Young women these days are as eager to give the milk away for free as the men are to get it.
The old idea you describe of men as sort of alley cats going around trying to get women to have sex with them, whereas the women are having sex with these men hoping these men will want to marry them, just isn't the predominant way it works anymore for a very large part of young people. Sexual attitudes of women have now fully caught up with those of men. Young women nowadays see sex as recreation just as much as young men do, and place as little value on marriage as the men. The only difference comes when the "biological clock" has struck, and women want babies. For a large part of these women they want the babies, not the husband, and they don't really need a husband, anyway.
Margaret? Izzat you?
Ahh, The temptations of Eve.
Very well written piece. I don’t think the debate of who is to blame will ever end as long as there are men and women. It gives me headache trying to analyze it logically (I’ve come to the conclusion that it can’t be done unless you’re God). All there is to do is love and comfort each other best we can.
What is true though is that human nature will lead single mothers to turn to government for a safety net and politically, Democrats are the one who offer them such. It is inevitable.
Niiiiice. Fortunately, I married much better than that.
What is this and how do I make one?
agreed.
Spell check will do that for you at random.
That’s what it thinks a bullet • looks like...
beats me (scratching head).
I only do copy + paste.
I’m sure someone who knows will come along shortly.
Is it even possible to sell conservatism anymore? We have well over half the people in this country who are taking government welfare in one form or another. How is it even possible to sell the idea of cutting government spending when the majority of the voting population is a big beneficiary of it?
“It is still women who primarily want to make a marriage work and try to stick it out, and men who stray to greener pastures. “
Baloney.
Stats show that 70% of the time it is women who file for divorce. And the majority of those are for “irreconcilable differences”, not marital infidelity.
Your anecdotal or personal data might be different from that but those are the facts.
Actually, it takes two to make a marriage, and two to make a divorce. There are selfish immature men, and there are selfish immature women. There are many, many ways to leave a marriage. Withdrawing emotional support and giving your best to your friends rather than your spouse is another form of ‘cheating’. I’m sure I’ll catch flack for saying that, but it’s true.
Marriage is a commitment that absolutely requires fidelity, but that commitment goes well beyond the narrow definition of fidelity. It’s not about cooking, or cleaning, or bringing home the paycheck either. Those are just parts of life that you have to do whether you are married or not. It’s about loving and respecting someone with all your heart, and being there for them emotionally when they need you. From where I sit, men and women fail at this at equal rates.
“Not saying it doesn’t happen, but the dumped man who did no wrong is a rare species in the scheme of things.”
That’s right. Don’t let an annoying little thing like facts get in the way of your opinion.
Not correct. Infidelity, spousal abuse and financial impropriety are a factor in a relatively few divorces.
Women initiate most of the divorce claims and there is no reason other than “I’m not getting out of it what I thought”. So a guy who did nothing but stay faithful, bring his paycheck home, pay the bills and keep the house in good repair ends up losing his kids and most of his money including an obligation to pay for most of his adult life.
That is a very profound observation. If you are saying that divorced women replace their spouses with government? This is what they are taught or more accurately, what they have been indoctrinated to think and do. The more reliance on government the more socialism will flourish. Was that not the plan? Strong men of character and honor, who are self-reliant, are the natural enemy of American Socialism, that is no longer, just creeping.
Thanks. I see it often and it’s “comforting” to know how it happens.
And don’t forget the important link that the Nanny State gets its funds from the tax base...which consists largely of men.
So, the way to look at this accurately is that women grew so furious at being ‘subservient’ and ‘oppressed’ that they revolted against depending upon me so that they could become dependent upon middlemen.
Most women believe they deserve someone better that their dolt husband. Hence the no-fault divorce.
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