Robert Peele: Marriage, families key to thriving nation

The opinion offered by Michael Strain in the Dec. 28 column “The working class has duties too” was stating the obvious. Of course the working class has duties.

The problem he danced around is family dysfunction and really, family breakdown. It used to be people got married, had their children and maybe got divorced on down the road a ways. Or maybe they stayed together. That model (or is it models?) is going the way of the dodo bird. Sad, but true.

Too often these days young people have kids but don’t marry. Which means they don’t ever form a family. Dad is living his “single life and lovin’ it,” and mom is doing her best raising the children. This trend is behind working families’ woes.

Strain laid the problem at the economy’s feet, or the workers’ feet. Wrong!

Young adults see Hollywood elites foregoing marriage and think it’s cool. Nobody owns anybody here, right? If both parents were contributing everything toward the family’s future, the society, our society, would be infinitely better off. Marriage is essential to a nation’s fortunes.

This story was originally published January 5, 2017 at 8:12 PM with the headline "Robert Peele: Marriage, families key to thriving nation."