A disturbing trend. . .

According to research, in 1960, the height of the post-World War II baby boom, there was one dominant family form. At that time 73% of all children were living in a family with two married parents in their first marriage. By 1980, 61% of children were living in this type of family, and today less than half (46%) are.  Within the next generation it may drop again until it is but a third or so.  That is certainly not without the realm of possibility.

Clearly the toll upon the nuclear family has been steep -- beginning with the divorce of sex from procreation and the normalcy of birth control (as well as disease control).  It took a great stride forward when no-fault divorce became the norm in the land.  It is heightened by the situation in the urban areas where the absent father is the norm and only a small percentage of children have any kind of father (biological, step, married, or cohabiting with mom) in the home.  It is also poised to take another great step forward as the stats begin to adjust for the redefinition of marriage that has led the courts to change marriage laws and redefine the family once again.

There is also a hidden statistic in all of this.  For there is no way to account for what the picture of things might be if we had some or more of the 58-60 million abortions that have become legal, safe, but hardly rare since the courts intervened again to dictate to the nation (January 1973).  A culture of life has been under threat from nearly every corner of culture and education and this remains one of the most entrenched divisions and hot button issues within the greater society of America.

What is also significant is the static percentage of remarried and blended families means that this is not merely a reshuffling of the home but the virtual absence of a  male role model in the life of nearly 1/4 of our children is now a fact for too many families and a not so subtle encouragement for pregnant unmarried women to abort rather than carry the child in their wombs.

Just a little bit more of not so good news as we observe the solemn anniversary of Roe v Wade.