"MARRIAGE" In The News
(April 2007)

The news articles and features presented below are simply an indication of how topical, controversial, and all-encompassing the issues surrounding marriage are throughout our society--and the world-- today. Some of the views and opinions expressed, and their respective web sites, do NOT reflect the views or opinions of The Real Proposal™ magazine. Many are highlighted largely to reiterate that the alarming statistical trends on the chaotic state of "Marriage" and "Family"--outlined in "A Mere Glimpse"--will continue unabated without a fundamental grasp and purposeful dissemination of TRUTH on the issues.

• Parenting Issues:  Young, Gifted, and Not Getting Into Harvard  New York Times, By Michael Winerip, April 29, 2007
  . . . . Over the last decade, I’ve done perhaps 40 of these interviews, which are conducted by alumni across the country. They’re my only remaining link to my alma mater; I’ve never been back to a reunion or a football game, and my total donations since graduating in the 1970s do not add up to four figures. No matter how glowing my recommendations, in all this time only one kid, a girl, got in, many years back. I do not tell this to the eager, well-groomed seniors who settle onto the couch in our den. They’re under too much pressure already. Better than anyone, they know the odds, particularly for a kid from a New York suburb. . . . Actually, meeting the soon-to-be rejected makes me hopeful about young people. They are far more accomplished than I was at their age and without a doubt will do superbly wherever they go. Knowing me and seeing them is like witnessing some major evolutionary change take place in just 35 years, from the Neanderthal Harvard applicant of 1970 to today’s fully evolved Homo sapiens applicant. . . .

• Desperado Housewife   New York Times, By Lisa Carver, April 29, 2007
  For me, getting married has always been like throwing up. I’ve done it as alone as possible, feeling sick, drastic and doomed. My first one was before a justice of the peace in Philadelphia. I was 19 years old, marrying a 35-year-old Frenchman. I wore my work apron from Kelly & Cohen’s diner. We did it between shifts. We did it for our twin, tremulous hearts that somehow reached through age, country and political differences to touch each other. . . . . Both my marriages were open. When I fooled around on No. 2 with someone else, I didn’t take off my wedding ring. I was vaguely dissatisfied with the arrangement, but I expected to be. Then one night, six years into our marriage, we were sitting on the couch and I told him how lonely I was. . . . Before all that happened, while I was still married, I was talking on the computer with a fellow across the country in even worse straits than I was about to fall into. (Yes, I know, I’m totally sleazy.) He was already divorced, he once spent five days in jail, his guitar was in hock and some guy wanted to kill him. . . .

• N.Y. Governor Unveils Gay Marriage Bill  Washington Post, By MARC HUMBERT- AP, April 27, 2007
  -- Following through on a campaign pledge, Democratic Gov. Eliot Spitzer unveiled a bill Friday that would legalize gay marriage in New York _ a bill he has conceded has almost no chance of passing. Opposition from the Republican leader of the state Senate effectively blocks the legislation, which would make New York only the second state, after Massachusetts, to permit same-sex marriage. . . . Spitzer said Monday the time was right to press ahead with the gay-marriage bill, despite its slim chances in the Legislature.  "I do not think there is a realistic shot that it gets passed, but I will submit it because it's a statement of principle that I believe in and I want to begin that dynamic," he said. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE:  N.H. Senate Approves Civil Unions: Governor Vows To Sign Bill Into Law  WNBC.com- NY, April 26, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  N.J. Approves Civil Unions For Gay Couples  WNBC.com- NY, December 21, 2006

• Senior Official Linked to Escort Service Resigns  ABCNews.com- The Blotter, Brian Ross and Justin Rood Report, April 27, 2007 8:58 PM
  Deputy Secretary of State Randall L. Tobias submitted his resignation Friday, one day after confirming to ABC News that he had been a customer of a Washington, D.C. escort service whose owner has been charged by federal prosecutors with running a prostitution operation.  Tobias, 65, director of U.S. Foreign Assistance and administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), had previously served as the ambassador for the President's Emergency Fund for AIDS Relief. . . . On Thursday, Tobias told ABC News he had several times called the "Pamela Martin and Associates" escort service "to have gals come over to the condo to give me a massage."   Tobias, who is married, said there had been "no sex," and that recently he had been using another service "with Central Americans" to provide massages. . . . Palfrey maintains she ran a sexual fantasy business that was legal and that if any of the women who were working for her had sex, they did so in violation of her rules and without her knowledge. . . .
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  Randall Tobias: Another GOP Hypocrite Bites the Dust   Huffington Post, By Roy Sekoff, April 28, 2007

• Are Internet marriages more likely to end up in the delete bin?  ABC 12.com, By Lauren Moraski, April 26, 2007
  - An estimated 3 million U.S. Internet users have clicked their way to love, so says the Pew Internet and American Life Project. Some entered long-term relationships after linking up in cyberspace, and some even made their way down the aisle. But more than 10 years after the Internet transformed dating, one question remains: Are these couples living happily ever after, or are they more likely to meet with divorce lawyers? . . . . EHarmony.com now has a "relationship lab" that monitors certain couples for at least five years to see how the marriages are going. There's also an advisory board of sociologists, neurologists and human relationship experts who offer advice on all aspects of relationships. In 2006, it launched eHarmony Marriage, a separate Web site it calls an "online alternative to marriage counseling." Newlyweds can take part in a 12-session marriage program created by a team of in-house psychologists. . . . .
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:   The Disastrous Effects of Match.com and What Women Can Do About It  WASHINGTON POST, January 28, 2007
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  The REAL SECRET To Online Dating  AmericanChronicle.com- By Stacée L. Hardiman, May 8, 2006
  

• 'Family values' won't get help from immigration
  Study: Out-of-wedlock births among Hispanics rise from 19% to 42%   WorldNetDaily, By Jerome R. Corsi, April 24, 2007 
  The high rate of illegitimate births to immigrants is a warning to American leaders not to expect help building family values from such newcomers, according to a new study released today by the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, D.C. Hispanic immigrants have seen the largest increase in out-of-wedlock births, from 19 percent in 1980 to 42 percent in 2003, according to the study entitled "Illegitimate Nation," authored by Dr. Steven A. Camarota, Director of Research at CIS.  Camarota notes that illegitimate births in the native population have increased as well, from 19 percent in 1980 to 35 percent in 2003. For immigrants overall, both legal and illegal, out-of-wedlock birth rates have been comparable to illegitimate birth rates among the native population, increasing from 13 percent in 1980 for immigrants (both legal and illegal) to 32 percent in 2003. The higher rate of illegitimate births among Hispanic immigrants is important, Camarota notes, because births to Hispanic mothers now account for 59 percent of all births to foreign-born mothers. . . . Keying from this claim, a major goal of Camarota's study was to answer the following question: "Is one of the benefits of immigration that it will infuse the country with traditional family values?" After reviewing the high rate of illegitimate births, especially among Hispanic immigrants, his answer was a resounding, "No." His conclusion was that illegitimate births to immigrants will add to a growing societal problem. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE & REPORT: Illegitimate Nation: An Examination of Out-of-Wedlock Births Among Immigrants and Natives  Center for Immigration Studies, By Steven A. Camarota, May 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  ACLU sues official over license denial
Register of wills won’t give license for illegal immigrant to marry area woman.  TimesLeader.com, By TERRIE MORGAN-BESECKER, April 19, 2007 

• Our Marital Future: One Democrat gets it.  NATIONAL REVIEW ONLINE, By Robert P. George & Ryan T. Anderson, April 23, 2007
  David Blankenhorn's new book, The Future of Marriage, explodes the widely promoted myth that redefining marriage to include same-sex partnerships would be a harmless innovation.  Blankenhorn, the Harvard-educated author of Fatherless America and founder of The Institute for American Values, unabashedly describes himself as a "marriage nut." Long before the issue of same-sex "marriage" rose to national prominence, he was a founder of the "Marriage Movement" - a campaign to lower divorce rates, decrease out-of-wedlock child-bearing, and provide as many children as possible with the care and protection of their mother and father. As Blankenhorn knows, these problems preceded the push for legal recognition of same-sex unions. His concern is - and always has been - to strengthen marriage. Homosexuality and "gay" relationships were not among Blankenhorn's concerns - which is why he recoils from charges of "prejudice" or even "conservatism." Having grown up in Mississippi during Martin Luther King's leadership of the civil rights movement, Blankenhorn is "a lifelong Democrat," thinks of himself "essentially as a liberal," and cannot stand "to be viewed as a bigot." He affirms that "the principle of equal human dignity must apply to gay and lesbian persons," but insists that the institution of marriage is not the vehicle for advancing gay-rights, for marriage is not "fundamentally about the rights of adults." "Marriage is fundamentally about the needs of children.". . . . . Drawing from the resources of evolutionary biology, psychology, history, anthropology, and sociology, Blankenhorn defends the thesis that marriage is a natural institution present in all (or nearly all) human societies. He shows that marriage is not just a private emotional bond between lovers, or a mere religious affair, but rather a natural and profoundly public institution. . . . .

RELATED INTERVIEW: D. Blankenhorn: For the sake of the children. A family scholar explains why he - reluctantly - had to write about what is wrong with same sex marriage.   MercatorNet, April 25, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  A new anti-gay marriage mantra: The latest attempt at demonizing our unions is superficial and misleading.  WASHINGTON BLADE, By Dale Carpenter, April 27, 2007

• McGreevey Dirty Laundry Hung Out to Dry  Towleroad.com, April 23, 2007
  The New York papers have begun having their field day with the McGreevey divorce and the forthcoming release of Dina Matos-McGreevey's tell-all Silent Partner: A Memoir of My Marriage.  When last we heard from either camp in the McGreevey divorce, Jim McGreevey had laid down new demands in the bitter divorce and custody battle between Matos-McGreevey and the former New Jersey governor over their daughter Jacqueline. One of the new revelations that came to light at the begining of April was Matos-McGreevey's demand that a nude photograph hanging in the home of McGreevey and his partner Mark O'Donnell be taken down. . . .  . . Matos-McGreevey also speaks of that day when her husband stood before news reporters and shocked them with the statement "I am a gay American. McGreevey reportedly told her before the news conference: "You have to pull yourself together. You have to be Jackie Kennedy today...You have to smile. And if reporters ask you why you're here, you should tell them, 'I'm here because he's my husband and I love him.' And if the reporters ask you what you think of gay marriage, you should say, 'I'm sensitive to the issue.' Make sure you smile a little more when I ask for forgiveness and thank you for bringing joy to my life.". . . .

RELATED ARTICLE:  McGreevey is no role model:  The former N.J. governor is damaging the cause of advancing gay rights.  Washington Blade, By James Kirchick, May 18, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  McG'S GAY POSTER BOY  NY Post.com, By Elizabeth Wolff, April 22, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: My 'marriage' to Gov. McSleazy! He was great in sack & a great liar, McGreevey's ex writes  NY Daily News.com, By TRACY CONNOR, April 22, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  COMING OUT - IS IT GETTING EASIER?   NY Post.com, By GINA ZUCKER, January 17, 2007

• Washington governor signs domestic partnership bill into law  JURIST- Paper Chase, By Melissa C. Bancroft, April 22, 2007
  Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire signed legislation Saturday recognizing domestic partnership status for same-sex couples. The law [PDF text] guarantees gay and lesbian couples some of the legal rights that previously were afforded only to husband and wife. To be considered a legally recognizable domestic partnership, couples must be over the age of 18, live together and not be in a domestic relationship with anyone else. The legislation also introduces a state wide domestic partnership registry and affords same-sex couples hospital visitation rights, inheritance rights, and the ability to authorize medical decisions for their partner. The registry will also include heterosexual couples with one partner over the age of 62. Many of these couples have been hesitant to marry because of the repercussions for their pension or social security benefits. . . . The bill is the latest step in Washington's pioneering stance on gay civil rights which includes a revision of the state's Civil Rights Act to include the phrase "sexual orientation" among the classes of people protected from discrimination in housing, lending, and employment. . . . .
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  Washington gay civil rights law takes effect   JURIST- Paper Chase, By Joshua Pantesco, June 7, 2006
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  Gay "Marriage"  Townhall.com, By Thomas Sowell, August 15, 2006
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  Same-Sex marriage: Hijacking the Civil Rights Legacy
  The indiscriminate promotion of various social groups' desires and preferences as "rights" has drained the moral authority from the civil rights industry.  The Weekly Standard- By Eugene F. Rivers & Kenneth D. Johnson, June 1, 2006

• Marriage Proposals: Creative Ways to Pop the Question  American Chronicle, By Gerry Restrivera, April 23, 2007
  Is it the right time to ask your special someone The Question? Whether standing on two feet or on bended knees, making your marriage proposal can be a very scary and exciting event. And you'd want to get it right, too. About 60% of engaged people say their proposal could have been better. If the hopeless romantic in you wants the perfect pitch, here are some creative ways to pop the question:  . . . . . Whatever creative ways to pop the question you decide to use, remember that a lot of things rely on planning and timing. Focus the entire proposal event on your story and include things, places and events that are unique to your relationship. Be creative, have fun and if everything goes right, there's a huge chance you'll get a 'yes'.  Marriage proposals don't have to cost a fortune. In fact, the best ones usually don't. If you are thinking of getting engaged, you probably want to do it right. You want it to be amazingly special. Something she or he will want to share with everyone. Do you really want to know how to create a marriage proposal that will blow her (or him) away? Find out more . . . . . .
  
  RELATED SITE:  Marriage Proposal Stories & Ideas: How to create a marriage proposal that will blow her (or him) away

RELATED ARTICLE: Goodbye bended knee: The modern marriage proposal must be a public spectacle  MercuryNews.com, By Nara Schoenberg-Chicago Tribune, February 1, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Marriage proposal could be dying out  Yorkshire Post Today, UK -By Grace Hammond, July 24, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE:  A proposal to remember  Rome News- GA, By Diane Wagner, July 22, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE:  Real Proposal, But Bent Knee Was Virtual  New York Times, By Michael Cooper, April 16, 1998

• After 40 years, still an engaged couple  The Charleston Gazette, By Rosalie Earle, April 22, 2007
  For a man whose mind is filled with all sorts of baseball trivia, perhaps it’s not surprising he vividly remembers his first date with his wife of 40 years. And maybe that’s why their marriage has lasted 40 years. “It was instant,” U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller said of his falling for Sharon Percy. . . . About 1,200 guests attended their 1967 wedding in the Rockefeller Memorial Chapel on the University of Chicago campus, and a crowd of about 2,000 watched from the lawn. In a Life magazine story on the affair, Sharon is described as “cute as a pearl button” and Jay as having “a Jimmy Stewart grin and hunched up amble.” That’s a bit better than a Good Housekeeping article 18 months later. The writer refers to Jay’s “rumpled as an old bathrobe appearance” and “his sheep-dog congeniality.”. . . . But Jay cited the importance of couples having their professional lives when asked what makes a successful marriage. “You have to love the person you’re married to and you have to respect them. It really works out well if each has a professional life that you love ... We love each other deeply and both of us are doing something we really enjoy.”. . . He described his wife as highly disciplined and extremely focused. For that reason, he knew that they would celebrate their 40th anniversary despite her diagnosis of cancer two years ago. . . . .
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  Sense of purpose made marriage stronger   The Charleston Gazette, By Rosalie Earle, April 22, 2007

• Value intimacy in a marriage  Press Enterprise.com, By Mitchell Rosen, April 21, 2007
  I remember when my daughter was close to 15; my wife and I had a discussion about whether or not to let her subscribe to CosmoGirl. I was OK with Seventeen magazine but had major reservations about the appropriateness (a therapist's word, no doubt) of a younger version of Cosmopolitan for my teenage daughter. I looked through a few copies of CosmoGirl and saw that it was fairly tame, at least compared with its mother ship. We went ahead and made the decision to let her have a subscription. Now my daughter is an adult and I still have mixed feelings about whether or not I want her reading Cosmopolitan. This month's lead article is entitled, "10 things guys crave in bed.". . . .
  
  
• How to Find a Marriage Counselor Hitchedmag.com, BY FRANCINE KIZNER
  Don’t just drop in on the first shrink in the Yellow Pages. Follow these six tips for finding someone right for the two of you. . . . Marriage counseling… ugh. It’s the last thing you want to go through. But sometimes it’s just what your relationship needs, and it’s important you find the right one. We’ve done the grunt work by consulting some experts who’ve given us six tips to help you find your marriage-counselor match.

1. Use your intuition. " . . . . 4. Don’t go to a divorce therapist. . . . .

RELATED RESOURCES: Marriage Friendly Therapists
                                  Smart Marriages
                                  Psychology Today
                                  American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists

• India celebrates Bollywood wedding of the century   International Herald Tribune- AP, France, April 20, 2007
  Astrologers were consulted, the gods gave their blessings, the white stallion was ready and delirious fans milled around the marigold-bedecked home. The stage was set for Bollywood's "wedding of the century." Film-crazy India held its breath Friday as two of its biggest stars, the emerald-eyed former Miss World Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan, a romantic hero and son of an Indian cinema legend, celebrated their wedding. The affair, hyped by Indian media as "the wedding of the century," was filled with the melodrama so beloved in Bollywood, India's flamboyant Hindi film industry: secrecy, dance routines and even a suicidal fan who claimed to be the groom's jilted lover. . . .
  
  RELATED PICTURES: The Wedding in Pictures: India's Big Wedding  BBC News- UK, April 20, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Bollywood celebrates star wedding  BBC News- UK, April 20, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Marriage - a bad Bollywood career move?  BBC News- Mumbai, By Monica Chadha, April 20, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Abhiash worth Rs 700 crores!  SantaBanta.com, April 23,2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Drama ahead of wedding- Young actor attempts suicide    The Hindu- India, April 21, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Model claims she is Abhishek's wife, attempts suicide  Rediff- India, By Syed Firdaus Ashraf, April 20, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE: Jhanvi's mother says she knew of Abhishek Rediff- India, By Mukhtar Ahmad, April 20, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Couples ready to share AbAsh luck - Most auspicious dates in the year, Akshya Tritiya ushers in wedding rush  The Telegraph- India, April 20, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  7/7/7 IS THE DATE TO WED THIS YEAR  UK Express- UK, By Emma Bamford, April 7, 2007

• Testimony of preacher's wife helped her, lawyers say  CNN.com- AP, April 20, 2007
  -- During the 10 years she was married to a handsome young preacher, Mary Winkler said she never told anyone about the bruises and the sexual humiliation she endured. But the preacher's wife accused of killing her husband took the witness stand this week and dredged up every embarrassing detail, talking about the abuse in front of TV cameras and family members. That risky decision to testify, her lawyers said, had a powerful effect on the jury and probably explains why Winkler will not spend the rest of her life in prison. . .  Matthew Winkler, a 31-year-old preacher at the Fourth Street Church of Christ, was found in the church parsonage fatally shot in his back in March 2006. One day later, his wife was arrested on the Alabama coast, driving the family minivan with their three young daughters. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE:  Preacher's wife: 'My ugly came out'   CNN.com, April 19, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Agent: Preacher's wife apologized to dying husband  CNN.com, By Ann O'Neill, October 3, 2006

• Alec Baldwin's Threatening Message to Daughter  TMZ.com, Posted April 20th 2007
  An enraged Alec Baldwin unleashed a volcanic tirade of threats and insults on his 11-year-old daughter, Ireland, calling her a "thoughtless little pig," and bashing her mother Kim Basinger -- and TMZ has obtained the whole thing unfiltered and raw. And we've learned, a family law judge was so alarmed after hearing the tape, she has temporarily barred Baldwin from having any contact with his child. . . . UPDATE: Alec Baldwin's spokesperson released the following statement to the TV show "EXTRA": "In the best interest of the child, Alec will do what the mother is pathologically incapable of doing ... keeping his mouth shut and obeying the court order. The mother and her lawyer leaked this sealed material in violation of a court order. Although Alec acknowledges that he should have used different language in parenting his child, everyone who knows him privately knows what he has been put through for the past six years.". . . .

RELATED VIDEO:  A Father's Fury  MSN-TODAY, April 20, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Voicemail Rant Reheats Alec-Kim Feud  ABC News-AP, April 19, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  After Leak of Voicemail Rant, Alec Baldwin Explains Himself on His Web Site  ABC News, By Sandy Cohen, April 21, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Basinger and Baldwin in New Legal Battle  SoFeminine.co.uk, June 2, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE:  Basinger- Baldwin Battle Continues  People magazine- By Ken Lee, Oct 31, 2005 

• High court backs ban on disputed abortion method  The Los Angeles Times, By David G. Savage, April 19, 2007
   The ruling marks first time justices uphold such a limit and opens door for more. Majority finds government has substantial interest in "preserving and promoting fetal life.". . . . The Supreme Court changed course on abortion Wednesday, upholding a national ban on a midterm method of ending pregnancies. The decision clears the way for states to pass new laws designed to discourage women from having abortions. In a 5-4 ruling applauded by antiabortion forces, the court said the "government has a legitimate and substantial interest in preserving and promoting fetal life." In 2000, the court, also by a 5-4 margin, struck down a nearly identical state law on the grounds that it could force some women to undergo riskier surgery during the fourth or fifth month of pregnancy. But the retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in 2005 and President Bush's appointment of Samuel A. Alito Jr. to succeed her tipped the balance the other way. It was the first time the court upheld a ban on an abortion procedure. . . .

• ACLU sues official over license denial
  Register of wills won’t give license for illegal immigrant to marry area woman.  TimesLeader.com, By TERRIE MORGAN-BESECKER, April 19, 2007 
  – The American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday filed a federal lawsuit against Luzerne County Register of Wills Dorothy Stankovic for refusing to accept a marriage application of an illegal immigrant who wishes to marry a legal resident of the United States. The suit, filed on behalf of Heather Buck and Jose Guadelupe Arias-Maravilla of West Hazleton, says Stankovic’s policy requires applicants to prove they are legal residents before she will issue a marriage license. The ACLU maintains that policy is not based on any state statute and violates the U.S. and Pennsylvania constitutions. The suit could potentially have statewide impact as other counties are believed to have similar policies, said lawyer Mary Catherine Roper of the ACLU in Philadelphia, the lead attorney in the case. . . . According to the suit filed in federal court in Scranton, Arias-Maravilla, a citizen of Mexico, has admitted he is in the United States illegally and has agreed to be deported by May 12. He and Buck, who is a legal resident, have been living together since October 2005. They have a son, who was born in December. The couple were making arrangements for their marriage when Arias-Maravilla was taken into custody in January. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE:  Illegal alien denied marriage license (no duh)…SURPRISE!…ACLU sues  Stop the ACLU, PA, By Glib Fortuna, April 18, 2007

• Marriage commitment produces fruit after suffering  Catholic Explorer, By ANN PIASECKI, April 19, 2007
  —Beyond the bridal gown and tuxedos, the church and reception, the flowers and honeymoon remains the reality of a marriage commitment. The blessing at the altar is an outward sign of hope that stress diminishes unless the doors of communication remain open. The truth is if insensitivity, disrespect, selfishness, addictions or infidelity are allowed to spread, the roots of commitment choke and eventually dwindle away.  In today’s society, the preponderance of overworked, overscheduled, overstressed family situations takes a toll on a marriage. In an effort to battle against that statistic, marriage promoters around the globe have adopted a program that has proven successful in the majority of cases. Since 1977, a program named Retrouvaille, which means “rediscovery,” made its debut in Quebec, Canada. A variety of elements integral to the program, including an initial three-day weekend commitment to marriage along with six to 12 post-weekend sessions, are coordinated within a faith-based environment to first identify and then target the problems that plague individual families. The program challenges the trend toward divorce, which has become a sad alternative among couples in countries around the globe. . . . .
  
  RELATED ARTICLE: How to save a marriage: Read an excerpt from talk show host and marriage counselor Dr. Laura Schlessinger's new book, “The Proper Care and Feeding of Marriage”   Today Show- MSNBC.com, January 3, 2007
  
  

• Live in sin and pay the price  Brisbane Times- Austrailia, By Miranda Devine, April 19, 2007
  Poor Kate Middleton, dumped by the second in line to the British throne then displayed humiliatingly to the world as Prince William's "practice chick", the mere recipient of some of his wild oats. But judging by the astonishing Pommy snobbery unleashed in the week since the break-up of her almost five-year relationship, Middleton, 25, is well off out of it. . . .  Of course, there is goodwill and sympathy for William in Australia, mainly because of the tragic end of his mother, Princess Diana. And it is silly for the British press to chastise him for doing what practically every other man his age does - extending his promiscuous bachelor days as long as possible.  Still, as the British TV agony aunt Denise Robertson wrote this week of the break-up: "There are undertones of 'droit du seigneur' - a maiden dishonoured and then discarded." It is an old-fashioned concept, but Middleton's fate is a salutary lesson for young women contemplating shacking up with the love of their lives rather than holding out for a firm commitment. . . . But the idea of "try before you buy" gives all the advantages to men, who get the benefits of marriage with none of the responsibilities. They get sex on tap, domesticity, companionship, and probably nutritional and hygiene improvements. They can test-drive the merchandise for as long as they like. But for women, the immovable biological fact of declining fertility means the deal is inevitably unfair. . . .

RELATED ARTICLE:  The art of etiquette   Belfast Telegraph, By Andy McSmith, April 17, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Wills and Kate Split  The Sun, By DUNCAN LARCOMBE- Royal Correspondent, April 14, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Perils of 'living in sin'   Edmonton Sun, By Jennifer Parks, Aug 5, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE:  Calling off the Wedding - How to Survive a Broken Engagement   American Chronicle, By Cori Russell, December 1, 2006

RELATED ARTICLE:  The Marrying Kind: Which Men Marry and Why The National Marriage Project- The State of Our Unions 2004,  By Barbara Dafoe Whitehead and David Popenoe

RELATED ARTICLE:  Ten Important Research Findings on Marriage and Choosing A Marriage Partner: Helpful Facts for Young Adults  The National Marriage Project- Rutgers University, By David Popenoe and Barbara Dafoe Whitehead, November 2004

• A happy marriage  Agoura Hills Acorn- CA, By Michael Picarella, April 19, 2007
  You don't have to stop dating just because you're married with a family. I don't mean to say that I'm dating outside my marriage. I mean to say that I continue to date my wife in order to maintain a happy marriage.
  Please allow me to present this column as an unofficial Guide to Enjoying a Happy Marriage. I feel I'm qualified to write on the subject since I'm happily married. And so, the first bit of advice I offer to young family men out there is to pretend you and your wife are still dating. Give her flowers. Write her love letters. Surprise her every once in a while. Take her on a picnic. And most of all, allow for alone time between the two of you. You must allow for alone time. Let's break down the above categories, shall we? . . . . .
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  Little Tricks to Make Your Marriage Much, Much Happier  WNBC.com, December 4, 2006
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  What Makes Wives Happy?  WebMD - By Salynn Boyles, Mar 1, 2006
  
  RELATED ARTICLE: University of Virginia Study Finds Commitment to Marriage, Emotional Engagement Key to Wives' Happiness   University of Virginia News, Mar 1, 2006
  
  RELATED RESOURCE:  Secrets of Happily Married Men: The Husband's Resource to a Happy Marriage
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:   The Secret to Our Happy Marriage Is...   FOXNews.com, By Steve Doocy, September 25, 2006
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  The Daily Doocy Archives   FOX NEWS,  Fox & Friends, By Steve Doocy
  
  RELATED BOOK:  The Mr. & Mrs. Happy Handbook
  
  

• Why men and women have nothing in common (except sex)  The Daily Mail, By NIRPAL DHALIWAL, April 18, 2007
  . . . . . Her companion gazed empathetically into her face from across the table, listening intently as he stroked her hand to comfort her. He was paying her the sort of devoted, patient attention that only a man in desperate want of sex can manage. Any other guy would surely have found her blathering unbearable. From the tension in his jaw and the way his eyes narrowed as his hand slid ever upwards along her bare arm, it was obvious there was only one thing on his mind. And he was prepared to listen to two hours of her garbage in the hope that he would get it. In their idiotic way the couple exemplified a fundamental truth about men and women. We exist in two different time zones. Men want to be happy right now, today, preferably in the company of a beautiful woman. Tomorrow can wait. Women, on the other hand, are constantly concerned with the future, and with their prospects financially, emotionally and sexually. . . . . I remember when I proposed to my wife. We were lying in our hotel bed, on holiday in Thailand. We'd been living together for six months and my wife was now pestering me to find out where our relationship was 'going'. I had no idea where we were 'going', and it was late and I was tired. I told her that if we were still together in a year's time I'd marry her. Then I went to sleep. Romantic, huh? . . . . .

RELATED ARTICLE:  LOVE AND MARRIAGE: Behind bedroom doors  MSNBC.com, By Correspondent Rob Stafford


RELATED ARTICLE:  Uncover more passionate, meaningful sex- David Schnarch, Ph.D. analyzes the link between sex and intimacy in his book, 'Passionate Marriage'    MSNBC.com, July 14, 2006

• Anna Nicole's £250million baby  The Daily Mail- UK, By Barry Wigmore, April 18, 2007
  She looks just like her daddy, underlining what DNA evidence has already revealed. As the late Anna Nicole Smith's seven-month-old daughter, Dannielynn, makes her magazine debut, the likeness between her and her father, photographer Larry Birkhead, is undeniable. Now, as this picture taken in the Bahamas shows, Mr Birkhead, 34, is getting to know the daughter he fought for through three courts. . . . Now he and Mr Stern have put aside their differences. He told OK magazine: 'People blame Howard a lot, but Anna had her own mind too. I'm thankful that everyone gets along now for Dannielynn. 'It seems unlikely but he's been a great help. He's been with Dannielynn the last several months. He knows her likes and dislikes and things that could help me. 'He gives me credit when I'm doing good things and gives me tips on things I should do a little different.' . . . .

RELATED ARTICLE:  Bi-sexual Rumors For Paternity Winner Larry Birkhead? Enough Already!  GlossLip.com, April 18, 2007

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• Marriage is a train ride away  News24- South Africa, April 18, 2007
   - In a hurry to get hitched? How about boarding the "wedding train" being offered by a Saint Petersburg rail company to start your married life? The rail project was unveiled by the Oktyabrskaya railway company at a ceremony in Russia's romantic former capital Saint Petersburg on Wednesday. "Newly weds will have the chance to marry, celebrate their wedding, and go on honeymoon on their own wedding train," the company said in a press release. . . .
  

• The ultimate betrayal: I cheated on my wife as she battled cancer  The Daily Mail- UK, By NATALIE CLARKE, April 18, 2007
  He did the unthinkable — betraying his wife with a string of affairs as she lay dying of cancer. Now he's written a controversial bestseller about it. Brutal callous monster? You decide. . . . . How does a man help his young wife reclaim her dignity when she is suffering from cancer? What can he do when she loses a breast to the disease, when her once beautiful face is ravaged by the effects of chemotherapy, when her long blonde hair falls out in clumps in her hand? How can he make her feel womanly again when the disease has struck at the very core of her femininity? Ray Kluun was placed in this heartbreaking situation when his wife, Judith, developed breast cancer at the age of 34. So what did he do? His response was not what you might imagine. . . . . Could there be a more shameful betrayal? Ray attempts to give his callous actions a sheen of respectability by examining the subconscious motives - as though there was anything more than a desire for meaningless sex. He believes he was seeking to withdraw from his wife because he could not bear the thought of her dying. . . . .

RELATED ARTICLE:  Revolution in cancer treatment: Scientists discover technique for pain-free, highly effective chemotherapy - the latest milestone in a miraculous medical journey   The Telegraph, By Steve Connor, April 12, 2007

RELATED ARTICLE:  Working With Cancer  Forbes.com, By Tara Weiss, April 11, 2007

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• The 9-To-5 Marriage   Forbes.com, By Tara Weiss, April 17, 2007
  With all the heat World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz has been taking over his girlfriend's career path, he might be forgiven for thinking "why bother?". Sometimes it just makes more sense to have a purely platonic girlfriend or boyfriend at the office--a "work spouse," if you will.  With a work spouse, you know each other's favorite food; gripe about co-workers; confide about personal issues; and support each other during good and bad times. The main difference? There's no canoodling. Yet with reports turning up more and more regularly showing that work pressure is making real married couples too tired for sex anyway, maybe there isn't that much of a difference. With a 9-to-5 marriage, a "couple" gets support without the hassle of a romantic entanglement. After all, with the amount of time we spend at work it's not unusual to become close--if not intimate--with our colleagues. . . . .The term office spouse has become so prevalent it made its way into a poll last year on attitudes in the American workplace. Of 750 respondents, 17% said yes, they had a workplace spouse, according to the Harris Interactive poll. Marital status didn't seem to matter. Singles and married folks reported to having an office spouse at the same rate. Marriage--even a faux one--can be stressful, and the potential fallout from a breakup of an office marriage might be just as great as in real life. . .

RELATED ARTICLE: Wolfowitz defiant as world criticism grows  The Telegraph- UK, By Matthew Moore and Alex Spillius in Washington, April 17, 2007

• Love, Marriage, and the Baby Carriage: Revisiting the Channelling Function of Family Law  Social Science Research Network, By Linda C. McClain, Hofstra University School of Law, CARDOZO LAW REVIEW, Vol. 28, No. 101, 2007
  This Article revisits a significant idea at the core of contemporary debates in family law: the channelling function of family law. This idea is that a basic purpose of family law is to support fundamental social institutions, like marriage and parenthood, and to steer people into participating in them. Family law scholar Carl Schneider helpfully invited attention to this familiar idea in an essay published fifteen years ago. Challenges to the conventional sequence (expressed in the childhood rhyme) of love-marriage-baby carriage posed by changing social practices, rights claims made by various groups within society that lead to legislative change and judicial rulings, by technological developments in the area of reproduction, and by changes in family law toward a more functional definition of family changes provide a valuable opportunity to revisit Schneider's notion of the channelling function of family law and, in particular, how it relates to other important functions of family law. . . .

DOWNLOAD DOCUMENT:  Love, Marriage, and the Baby Carriage: Revisiting the Channelling Function of Family Law

• Kisses from Richard Gere plunge Shilpa Shetty into India row  The Daily Mail, April16, 2007
  India's love affair with Shilpa Shetty has gone up in flames after a public embrace with Richard Gere. Crowds burned posters of the Celebrity Big Brother winner and the American actor in protest at their behaviour. TV news bulletins repeatedly showed Gere, 57, kissing the 31-year-old actress during an Aids awareness rally. Religious fundamentalists and Hindu nationalists consider any display of public affection taboo. It is all the worse when the pair in question are unmarried. And a further aggravating factor is that Gere is a non-Hindu foreigner. The pair had appeared at a press conference in New Delhi as part of a campaign to preach safe sex to truck drivers in India, the country with the world's largest proportion of HIV sufferers. . . .
  
  
  RELATED ARTICLE:  Jail threat for Liz and hubby as in-laws rage over their religious violations  The Daily Mail- UK, By CLEMMIE MOODIE, April 10, 2007

• Is it the end of Brad and Angelina?  The Daily Mail, By J. RANDY TARABORRELLI, April 16, 2007
  She wants it all - babies, fame, and to save the world. But what she definitely doesn't want is marriage. So - could it be true? Is Angelina getting ready to dump Brad? . . . . "So, how are things going with you and Angelina, anyway?" I ask. He smiles and replies: "Oh sure, like I'm going to talk to you about that." His attitude isn't surprising in view of reports that Angelina Jolie is thinking about ending it with him after just a couple of years of unwedded bliss. According to these stories, the actress recently left Brad to take care of their three adopted children, Maddox, five, Zahara, two, and Pax, three, and their own child, Shiloh, born barely a year ago, while she went to Chicago to work on a new movie called Wanted. This was just a week after she had adopted Pax and told a newspaper in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, where he was adopted: "I will stay at home to help Pax adjust to his new life." . . . . . Only in January 2006, when Angelina was clearly pregnant, did she confirm she was carrying Pitt's child. But then came the problems. "It's been downhill from there for them," said one of the couple's intimates. "It was too much too soon, especially for Brad. They're bickering an awful lot these days. They're like an old married couple with kids - and they never even got married." According to Jim Cruse, who has known the actor for many years: "Brad always said he wanted a family. But you should be careful what you ask for. He got four kids in two years, all under the age of six. It's no picnic. . . . .

RELATED ARTICLE:  More New Moms Stay Home Even If It Causes Financial Pain   Wall Street Journal, By Sue Shellenbarger, December 1, 2006

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• Jada Pinkett-Smith would quit acting if it ever jeopardised her marriage  EOG.com, April 16, 2007
  Jada Pinkett-Smith would quit acting if it ever jeopardised her marriage.  The 'Reign Over Me' star and husband Will Smith are both successful actors, but she values her family above her career. Jada, 35, told Britain's Independent newspaper: "I'm very aware how busy careers can quickly lead to divorce, but I'm not going to let that happen to us. I will throw my career away before I let it break up our marriage. I made it clear to Will. I'd throw it away completely, which is what I'm doing to a certain extent." In her latest film, Jada plays a wife trapped in an unhappy marriage. She claims the role taught her how to make her own marriage stronger. . . . . .

• Royal split sparks fevered speculation  The Age- Austrailia, April 16, 2007
  British Prime Minister Tony Blair urged people to leave Prince William and Kate Middleton alone amid feverish speculation today as to the reasons behind their shock split. Mr Blair said most of the stories written about the demise of their four-year relationship would be "complete nonsense," as British newspapers picked over the bones of their break-up, with conflicting accounts as to why they parted. The split between the prince, second in line to the throne, and his university sweetheart, was given blanket coverage in Britain's press. "I think, in respect of Prince William, they are a young couple. We have had the announcement, fine," Mr Blair told BBC television - though Clarence House, the royal residence which handles the prince's affairs, has refused to confirm or deny the break-up. "They should be left alone now without reams of stuff being written that I can assure you, from my experience of royal stories, most of which will be complete nonsense. "I think, now it has been announced, they should be allowed to get on with their lives.". . . . .
  

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