A Better Protection for the "Sanctity" of Marriage

Trey Smith

You've probably heard that this past week North Carolinians stood up for the "sanctity" of heterosexual marriage by passing a state constitutional amendment that bans gay marriage and civil unions (homosexual AND heterosexual ones). Having beaten back the "gay menace," I think it's time that North Carolina or some other righteous state takes on the real threat to marriage: divorce.

This is an idea I've been thinking about for some time and it's nice to see that I'm not alone. Missy Beattie mentioned the same idea in a brief article on CounterPunch.

Though there are some indications that the divorce rate has fallen a tad in the last few years -- I'm thinking that economic uncertainty for the 99 percent might explain this -- the divorce rate still hovers around the 50% mark. Think about that figure for a moment. One-half of all marriages eventually end in failure!

So, it would seem to me that divorce is a far greater threat to heterosexual marriage than anything else.

If religious kooks are serious about the inviolability of those cherished wedding vows, then they should next work to make divorce illegal! Even if they can't muster the support to go that far -- it would be a tough road because of the 50% figure -- the very least they could do is to get no-fault divorce laws rescinded.

No-fault divorce laws make divorce way too easy. All a couple needs to do is to say they have those nebulous "irreconcilable differences" and they are home free. If couples want to divorce, they should be forced to do it the old fashioned way: one or both parties must prove that the other is at fault.

If divorces were more difficult to obtain, then I'm guessing that a lot of couples would think twice about pursuing them. Instead of splitting up, many couples would decide to remain in loveless and/or abusive relationships, thereby protecting the hallowed "sanctity" of marriage.