1) Age of Marriage - There's lots of debate about what the best age for men and women to marry. What ages at marriage increase and decrease marital happiness and stability? Good research offers some consistent answers and we provide a quick, smart overview summary here.
2) Divorce Rates in the Church – Is the divorce rate as high in the church as in the general population? Many Christian leaders cite that stat widely, but it’s not quite true. Here we look at strong data from leading sociologists of family and religion that provide an informed view. Yes, serious practice of faith does make a difference in marital stability! See the summary here.
Now seemed like the right time to pull up this video from our Indianapolis stop on the 2010 Marriage Tour, to thank everyone who came to our rallies and supported us, and to be thankful that our efforts to defend marriage are now bearing fruit in the Hoosier State:
HJR 6, the Marriage Protection Amendment, just passed the Indiana House with 70 votes... 70-26.
The bill had nearly 40 co-authors, including the Speaker of the House, Brian Bosma.
Congrats to Micah Clark of AFA-IN, Focus on the Family, the Indiana Family Institute, and to all the other pro-family groups that worked so hard on this.
In what is shaping up as a pivotal moment for the future of "gay marriage" in America, a dozen or so state legislatures are expected to debate the issue this year, with two or three potentially legalizing it and at least seven states moving in the opposite direction by possibly protecting the traditional definition in their constitutions.
Highlights
Children in nuclear families [one or more children living with two parents who are married to one another and are each biological or adoptive parents to all children in the family] were generally less likely than children in nonnuclear families
• to be in good, fair, or poor health [Note: these three categories are considered “less than optimal”];
• to have a basic action disability;
• to have learning disabilities or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder;
• to lack health insurance coverage;
• to have had two or more emergency room visits in the past 12 months;
• to have receipt of needed prescription medication delayed during the past 12 months due to lack of affordability;
• to have gone without needed dental care due to cost in the past 12 months;
• to be poorly behaved;
• and to have definite or severe emotional or behavioral difficulties during the past 6 months.
CPAC, the Conservative Political Action Conference, has been an annual gig for me for years. But this year I concluded it was not my place and I declined to participate in the various venues at the event for which I was invited.
Yes, the reason I declined was the inclusion of GOProud, a group identifying itself as representing "gay conservatives and their allies," as a sponsor of the event.
This Thursday at 10am, the House Judiciary Committee will be hearing two bills (HB 437, HB 443) to repeal same-sex marriage in New Hampshire. While strong majorities in both houses favor the repeal of same-sex marriage, prominent House Republicans have publicly argued that the bills should be retained in committee until 2012.
Here’s what I need you to do:
1) Email the members of the House Judiciary Committee urging them to approve the same-sex marriage repeal bills quickly, sending them to the full House for a vote. Gay marriage advocates pushed same-sex marriage through in 2009 during the worst of the economic crisis, with heavy-handed pressure, backroom deals, and multiple votes. It’s time to undo the damage. The time for action is now – not next year! Voters expected better.
Your email will go to each of the members of the House Judiciary Committee, with copies also going to your own state representative, House Speaker Bill O’Brien, and House Majority Leader DJ Bettencourt. Click here to send your email now!
2) Attend Thursday’s hearing. Gay marriage supporters will be out in force, and we need to make a strong showing. NOM Chairman Maggie Gallagher will be among those testifying at the hearing. There has been a lot of misleading information reported in the press lately – come show up in person and let your representatives see the face of New Hampshire families who care about marriage, and expect them to keep their word.
The hearing will begin at 10am this Thursday morning (2/17) in Representatives Hall at the Statehouse in Concord. (Click here for directions.) Please come early to make sure you get a seat, as it’s expected to be a full house.
Asked about his positions on social issues by Greta Van Susteren, Trump said he doesn't support abortion rights or gay marriage, insisting he's in favor of "almost all conservative principles."
Trump entered into the gay marriage fray in 2009, when he defended Carrie Prejean's stated opposition to gay marriage. Trump, who owns the Miss USA pageant, defended Prejean for speaking out, comparing her views on gay marriage to President Barack Obama's.
"Marriage rates tend to follow a blue state/red state pattern, with higher marriage rates in politically conservative states, and vice versa – even down to county levels, says Mr. Wilcox of the National Marriage Project."
During the past seven days, I have been subjected to an extraordinarily vicious outpouring of hate and incitement to violence, via email, the internet and in the mainstream media, and much worse besides.
In my article, I expressed concern that attempting to bar a Christian GP from the government’s advisory council on drugs because of his views on homosexuality, bombarding the school curriculum with irrelevant gay references, and prosecuting Christian hoteliers for refusing to accommodate gay men in the same bedroom were examples of a frightening intolerance.
The response to this warning against an attempt by the gay lobby to silence dissent? An eruption of tweets on Twitter suggesting that I should be killed. Yes, really.
