Live data from Hacker News

The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

theatlantic.com

21–30 of 89 posts

Re: The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

#22
post #16

A question I have is...why marriage at all? Is there a reason I need the government to recognize the union between my and my SO?

If you merge assets, marriage is a useful legal vehicle covering a common societal practice.

One could also establish an LLC for the purpose, or not merge assets, of course.

Re: The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

#23
post #16

A question I have is...why marriage at all? Is there a reason I need the government to recognize the union between my and my SO?

Raising kids is hard enough with two dedicated parents. Marriage at least comes with the promise of staying together in the long term. Makes it a little harder for one partner to just leave.

I have two kids. The idea of raising them by myself seems nearly impossible. Maybe it's doable if you're already independently wealthy or can heavily rely on nearby family or both. Still doesn't sound as healthy as having two dedicated parents.

Re: The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

#24
post #2

Could part of the reason be that online dating pairs people who are more suitable for each other? There are less people just settling, to start a family. Some of those who, in the past, found someone who had just settled for them. May find it more difficult to find someone, willing to do that.

>Could part of the reason be that online dating pairs people who are more suitable for each other?

I’d want a source on this because an algorithm matching people does not seem to be the most effective. yes there are special occasions where lifetime partners have met online but I don’t think online dating is the sole purpose behind the decline of marriage.

Currently waiting for class to start so I can’t search for a link right now but iirc, the economy health is one of the main driving force behind marriage numbers dropping. In a healthy economy, more people are willing to marry, start a family, purchase land, etc. When economy is bad, all of these extra costs become more of a risk than before.

Re: The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

#25
post #23
post #16

A question I have is...why marriage at all? Is there a reason I need the government to recognize the union between my and my SO?

Raising kids is hard enough with two dedicated parents. Marriage at least comes with the promise of staying together in the long term. Makes it a little harder for one partner to just leave. I have two kids. The idea of raising them by myself seems nearly impossible. Maybe it's doable if you're already independently wealthy or can heavily rely on nearby family or both. Still doesn't sound as healthy as having two ded…

> Marriage at least comes with the promise of staying together in the long term.

I'm not sure the divorce rate agrees that this constitutes a promise.

Re: The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

#26
post #16

A question I have is...why marriage at all? Is there a reason I need the government to recognize the union between my and my SO?

Yeah, I think there are benefits to your community/society to have the union formally recognized. People then know who is off limits, couples more likely to work out issues rather than simply breaking up, kids have a better chance at a stable home life, etc.

Re: The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

#27
Marriage is a wonderful institution and the children that come from it are the greatest gift you can be given.

Our culture tells us the opposite. But our culture is insane and wants you to be an isolated, rootless, consumer wage slave.

Re: The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

#28
Marriage is expensive and divorce is even more expensive, especially for men. The antidote is to marry only in your money league, or higher.

Women used to do that, for their own protection - now men must do the same, and obviously the mating pool shrinks.

Re: The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

#29
post #2

Could part of the reason be that online dating pairs people who are more suitable for each other? There are less people just settling, to start a family. Some of those who, in the past, found someone who had just settled for them. May find it more difficult to find someone, willing to do that.

>Could part of the reason be that online dating pairs people who are more suitable for each other? I’d want a source on this because an algorithm matching people does not seem to be the most effective. yes there are special occasions where lifetime partners have met online but I don’t think online dating is the sole purpose behind the decline of marriage. Currently waiting for class to start so I can’t search for a l…

The algorithm used doesn't need to be any good at matching people for online dating to increase your chance of finding a suitable partner.

A system which showed people to each other in a totally randomized way would still drastically increases the number of people you can superficially evaluate, and even a tinder style photos + blurb profile is rich in personality/cultural clues to base evaluation on.

Re: The divorce rate has fallen because the demographics of marriage have changed

#30
post #7

What's "Not-So-Great" about that?

I guess the author prefers people to marry young? It seems to me that the "problem" is that people aren't feeling forced into marriage and are instead deciding to wait until they ready before getting married. Maybe our shifting societal attitudes towards sex before marriage have something to do with it? The author seems entirely hung up on the socioeconomic side of the picture, but I'm not sure that's the entire situation.
Post reply on HN