Marriage/Family
With legalized same-sex marriage and historically low marriage and fertility rates, the United States has accelerated its own descent into this state of affairs. For the first time in our nation’s history, older people are projected to outnumber children by the year 2030. In the face of decline, however, we are witnessing a “marriage movement” and pockets of reasoned resistance. The great task for America in our generation is to energize a return to and renewal of traditional marriage. We need to transmit a stronger, healthier, and more supportive marriage culture to the next generation, so that each year more children are raised by their own mother and father united by a loving marriage, so that they can grow up to have thriving marriages themselves.
Our task is a daunting one. Creating such a marriage culture is not a job for the government. Families, religious communities, and civic institutions must point the way. Read more
Ultimately, 1,195 people took this survey, a pretty good sample size. Of that total, 1,168 reported their children had encountered sexually explicit materials in school. That’s 98 percent of respondents reporting their kids encountered sexually explicit materials at school.
Of course, survey participants were self-selecting, so that likely affected the results. Still, 1,168 is a lot of sexually explicit encounters in schools — and these are the encounters parents know about. It’s certain there are many more that parents don’t know about. Read more
UNFPA often equates “unmet need” to lack of access to contraceptives. This is misleading, as only about 5% of women with a so-called “need” say they lack access. “Unmet need” also does not reflect actual demand. Indeed, one of its leading concerns among women who reject UN-style family planning are the health risks and side effects of such contraceptive methods. Other women cite religious opposition.
In its new analysis, UNFPA looks at family planning and maternal health together, arguing that their effects are “synergistic.” They claim that investing $79 billion in both will result in a benefit of $660 billion.
However, most maternal and child deaths occur in the developing world, and greater investments are needed to make birth safer. Redirecting funds toward contraceptives would not accomplish this. Read more