Comments on: Dutch Decline?

By: Jake Squid

Jake Squid — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Unsurprisingly, the declining marriage rate in the Netherlands corresponds exactly to the date that my first marriage started.

Coincidence? Maybe– but it would be an awfully big coincidence.

Unsurprisingly, the declining marriage rate in the Netherlands corresponds exactly to the date that one of my best friends died of cancer.

Coincidence? Maybe– but it would be an awfully big coincidence.

As Mr. Vonnegut says….. And on and on.

By: NancyP

NancyP — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

It is perfectly obvious that changes in the age composition of a population are going to affect incidence of an event which is limited to a specific age subset of that population. Why can’t these bozos correct for an age cohort in which 90% of first marriages occur? eg., First marriage incidence per year for cohort 18 to 35 years old. That way the denominator is “those likely to have first marriages”, not “everyone, including the 90 year olds in nursing homes who have been married already anyway”. Yes, there are relatively modest trends on a year to year basis for average age at first marriage.

By: lucia

lucia — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Hi NancyP,
Guess what? To an extent, the data are available at newcronos. I was tempted to correct…. but I think it’s best to be purely reactive. Mr. Livestro wants to say it’s the marriage rate measured this way? Well… ok. But even using HIS choice, the case is pathetic.

By: Amanda

Amanda — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

I don’t buy the whole “gays can marry so straights won’t” crap. For one thing, the fact that the gay couples we know are hanging in without marriage probably makes it easier, not harder, for my boyfriend and me not to bother getting married. But if everyone, gay and straight, around us got married, well, the heat might be higher on us.
But hell, open, liberal straight couples like us might be the minority. Maybe there are legions of straight people who won’t marry if gays can. I know anecdotal evidence doesn’t prove anything, but I think that it might support the “gays marry, so straights won’t” argument if they could cough up a couple of examples.

By: TonySprout

TonySprout — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

As a Men’s Rights Advocate, I see the decline as due to anti-father legislation. Rates are dropping all over the world. Women can get a divorce at the drop of a hat, then get the kids, house, and the money. Many men have come home from a hard days work to find out they now live on the street thanks to assistance from the police and judges. A small amount of those also find they’ve been charged with some sort of abuse. Why get married?

By: Kip W (thinking of pianos)

Kip W (thinking of pianos) — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Gays have oral sex, so straight people don’t.

And gays play the piano, so straight people won’t play the piano either. We must act harshly without reflection to put a stop to this evil insidiousness. Think of the pianos!!

By: Judith

Judith — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Being married to a Dutchman, having relatives in Holland (including nieces and cousins of marriageable age) I can tell you exactly why people (especially the younger ones) are declining to marry. It’s the tax on married couple incomes. It’s high…more than double the single rate.

While their parents were and are content to pay it, the youngers are not.

It has had the double benefit of lowering the birth rate in the country that is second only to Bangladesh in density of population.

By: bad Jim

bad Jim — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

It’s obvious from the graph that 2000 was a big year for marriages. Someone I know got married January 1; a niece got married a few months later. It was the millenium, a typical time to force decisions.

The Scandinavians actually seem slightly more inclined to marriage than they were a decade ago; the rest seem to be settling into the same equilibrium.

It’s more than a stretch to suggest that gays marriage has an affect on straights. [Shakes head, mutters to self.]

By: lucia

lucia — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Judith, I’d be interested in learnign about hte tax issues! Are married couples really taxed a lot more? That would be a serious disincentive to marry!