The End of Marriage in Scandinavia – second bite sized chunk.

Yesterday, I blogged about the article by Stanley Kurtz and examined why this article is so important in understanding the undermining of the institution of marriage by legalized same sex unions. Mr. Kurtz discussed how contraception was one of the factors that started the downhill slide of marriage and I offered Pople Paul VI and Humanae Vitae as support for that perspective.

Interestingly, another factor in the decline in marriage in Scandinavia has been their huge socialist system. The welfare state has displaced the family as the provider.

By guaranteeing jobs and income to every citizen (even children), the welfare state renders each individual independent. It’s easier to divorce your spouse when the state will support you instead.

We something like this in the War on Poverty that started under the Johnson Administration. The number of fatherless homes, particularly in welfare families soared.

Of course when you have a huge welfare state it is supported in higher taxes.

The taxes necessary to support the welfare state have had an enormous impact on the family. WIth taxes so high women must work. This reduces the time available for child rearing, thus encouraging the expansion of a day-care systm that takes a large part in raising nearly all Swedish children over age on. Here is at least a partial realization of Simone de Beavoir’s dream of an enforced androgyy that pushes women from the home by turning children over to the state.

I believe that this is a similar view held by the Democratic party as I blogged last Wednesday in my Wictory Wednesday post. It is a view I do not share and another reason why I will not be supporting the Democrats in November.

So while the rise in cohabitation and out-of-wedlock births, divorce etc. or the contributing factors are unique to Scandinavia, the Scandinavian welfare state aggravates these problems.

Mr Kurt notes however that while this pattern is spreading in the world it is spreading unevenly.

A 2002 study by the Max Planch Institute for example, concluded that countries with the lowest rate of family dissolution and out of wedlock births are “strongly dominated by the Catholic confession.

I love it. The Catholic church still the pillar of truth.

Tomorrow will look at the how gay marriage fits into the picture.

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