First things first!
Happy Father's Day to all the Father's who follow the blog:
Steve Clark
Lester Wurful
Ellsworth Whiteman
Phil Gocke
Howard Alpert
James Roberts (my Son)
Me
Congratulations guys your contributions to the next generations have been immeasurable, sometimes in the face of a society that sees our roles as less and less "necessary". I suspect that this will not be the last we hear on the importance of Fatherhood today. Unfortunately, I do think much of our new way of looking at Gender Roles, and relationships between men and women has certainly impacted the percentage of Men and Women who actually find Fatherhood "important". Think Wayward Sons from a post in the past.
Personally I believe the effect this has had on society has not been pleasant and I do not see a quick turnaround in the "near" future. Long term I see glimmers of hope (even in my ugly chart below) that we as a society will ultimately realize that the culture of "self gratification" and "follow your heart" over self sacrifice and nurturing our progeny will prevail. In my opinion this must be coupled with a re-dedication to the fundamental reason for a marriage which is not just "love of the moment" but as the building block of a family. It may be a long haul.
Anyway I did a little exercise (with my favorite pastime-statistics) to help ponder our country's recent "progress" on the importance of such concepts. It is not a pretty picture.
The following data and graphics are from US Census Data
All this is from US Census Data
The percentage of "married men" , aged 30-50 in 1925 (my Dad's birth) =79.45%
The percentage of "married men" aged 30-50 in 1952 (my birth) =86.63%
The percentage of "married men" aged 30-50 in 1980 (my son) =80.96%
Now as of 2016 =60.08%
Yikes some evidence on where "marriage" has been going
Next the percentage of Kids in Fatherless homes (includes "unmarried men living with kids as well as Married men living with kids)
Kids not living with "fathers" in 1925 =7.75%
Kids not living with "fathers" in 1952 =11.9%
Kids not living with "fathers" in 1980 =18.69%
Now as of 2016 =24.93%
Finally a "sobering" Graphic of the impact on "kids" :
Uptick in 1868 Civil War
Yes today for 1 in 4 kids the idea of Father's Day likely rings hollow.
To my readers: Be proud of your accomplishments and Pray society comes to its' senses sooner rather than later!
Until Next Time
Adieu
Wow. I wonder what the statistics say about the correlation of poverty to fatherless households?
ReplyDeleteAnswer: One of the most striking changes in family structure over the last twenty years has been the increase in single-parent families. In 1970, the number of single-parent families with children under the age of 18 was 3.8 million. By 1990, the number had more than doubled to 9.7 million. For the first time in history, children are more likely to reside in a single-parent family for reasons other than the death of a parent. One in four children are born to an unmarried mother, many of whom are teenagers. Another 40 percent of children under 18 will experience parental breakup.
Ninety percent of single-parent families are headed by females. Not surprisingly, single mothers with dependent children have the highest rate of poverty across all demographic groups (Olson & Banyard, 1993). Approximately 60 percent of U.S. children living in mother-only families are impoverished, compared with only 11 percent of two-parent families. The rate of poverty is even higher in African-American single-parent families, in which two out of every three children are poor.
I am thinking Phil, that this means the women are failing more then men. They want someone to 'love' them so badly they are willing to 'enjoy pleasures of the flesh' with men who don’t want or need to take responsibility for anything. You know I’m usually contrary and try and make this a human issue rather than men vs. women. We all need balance.
DeleteDouble Wow Phil
ReplyDeleteStats do not lie. They may be open to various interpretations but the cause and effect you cite is really compelling .Thanks as always for your thoughtful comments. Have a great day with your family!
Jim, interesting analysis. Any thoughts on the steep escalation during the “baby boomer” years and/or the 60’s? Regards, Ells
ReplyDeleteAlways reminds me of a quote that someone who used to work for me said ALL the time. "Men lie, women lie, numbers dont". We have already discussed some of my thoughts on 'wayward sons' so i will provide a somewhat dessenting point of view here in regards the poverty point of view.
ReplyDeleteEveryone often comments that one of the hardest parts of a marriage is figuring out the financial situation. I would bet that most who read this blog have had a 'tough time' or two. Since 1965 when adjusted for inflation the average hourly wage has only risen about 75 cents. When we look at one of the common denominators in more unwed couples...earnimg power has to be considered in creating a stable environment. Boomers working later in life, stagnant economical growth, and the lack of a college degree equating to earning power has left many young couples scraping together to stay together. For some of us that may create more strength in a family. For others...not so much.
Thanks James, Barbara (AKA Faithful and Obedient Companion) for weighing! Your perspectives are appreciated and thought provoking.
ReplyDeleteA special thanks to Whitey whose request for some thoughts on cause will likely result in my next post. On that post I may even end up indirectly commenting on the perspectives given by Phil, James and of course my Companion! Great comments guys.