Dennis Daily: Boo Hoo, Marriage Rates Are Down

 

 

The "Male-Female Hour" (Hour 2) of the Dennis Prager Show on Wednesday, August 2, 2023 was dedicated to trying to fool people into marrying.

Unless he's off traveling or for a religious holiday, Dennis Prager is on the air each weekday lamenting that fewer people are marrying. Sure, there's also political talk, current events, and more on the show, but it seems like every day Dennis must lament that the marriage strike is growing.

So, this dedicated hour he attempted to make the case for marrying. He still hasn't had an articulate marriage striker on his show to counter our points.

Here's my report from that hour.

He kicks it off by saying marriage makes the best men and the best men get married. What this means is that married men are more likely to behave in ways Dennis likes, and women are more likely to prefer men who are better off to be their walking wallets.

He says most people aren't going to have the best careers. Right, Dennis, and one reason people don't is that they married and marriage is a dream killer.

He asserted that the worst argument against marriage is that so many people divorce, and he again said that's like refusing to drive because people get into accidents. He didn't address any other arguments against marriage the whole hour.

Dennis tried to say marriage has benefits for men, citing the usual stuff, and he said the benefits are just as profound for women, that women need men, and that single women are the least happy group in America and that they do a lot of damage. Even if true, isn't it likely that they are unmarried because they are sad and problematic people?

Then he says yes, it might go wrong. You might get divorced. So what? Again, I'm glad Dennis' divorces apparently weren't so bad or that his masochism was fed by them. Good for him.

My guess is that calls opposed to marriage or warning people about the facts weren't allowed through.

First call was a married guy. He said people say marriage is hard, but when there's illness and loss of a loved one it is helpful to have a spouse. Uhm, people can have companionship without a terrible state contract or a ridiculous pledge. The caller hasn't even been married ten years. I sure hope he isn't about to find out.

Second caller was a woman who has a daughter she says is having trouble finding someone. The daughter doesn't want someone who took the C v-cines. Yeah. She mentioned dating apps and how her daughter must be getting overlooked.

Dennis says there is always a better one [better potential date]. EXACTLY! There's always a better person to be with, so why marry???

Dennis says people need to speak well of marriage, even if divorced. Why? He hasn't explained well why. That he grew up in a congregation in which married men got to wear a shawl isn't a compelling reason.

Third caller was a guy, said he asks younger people if they're married or dating, tells them to marry as soon as they can, they will mature faster and will experience happiness on a deeper level. That's horrible advice. They are more likely to divorce. He claimed people who get married in their 30s are so set in their ways that it creates chaos. He claims you experience life's joys together and asks why would you want to travel or build a house alone? Uh, because you don't have someone stifling you and wanting things their way??? You can experience life's joys with someone without marrying. You can travel a lot more if you're not having to pay some woman's way.

Dennis claims people don't want to be mature. But his definition of mature is likely "married" and thus circular.

He goes on to say many people who aren't married say they're not lonely. "I would ask them the same question later in life. Marriage is an investment for later in life." So again, we have the argument that you should give up decades of freedom on the chance someone will be your nurse. Dennis went on to say he's always thought about that. He never doubted, even in high school, that he'd marry. Demanding people marry is a healthy thing. "The number of unhappy women should make the case. The number of men sitting and home playing video games should, too." See, to Dennis, standing around smoking a cigar is great, playing games is somehow magically bad. He wants men to stop doing what they want to do and try to make miserable woman happy, so they can both be miserable.

"I'm stunned when these women are working on career. You should work on getting married, then work on career," So he wants women to marry, pop out kids, then dump them in daycare and work in a career? And what happens when her path to career advancement is in a different city from her husband's?

Fourth caller was a guy who agreed it's an investment in the future. He has guilt and regret because he gave up on a marriage 40 years ago. "I could have made a difference. I didn't stay. I was single for eight years, and then I remarried. I've been married over 30 years. I do love my current wife but every day I think about the prior marriage." Geez, imagine being his current wife.

Dennis said "Life is not a dress rehearsal." OK, well, that's all the more reason to NOT marry.

Fifth caller was a man in the Bronx who said "I haven't married because I asked her if she would immediately file for divorce if I had a one night stand. A one night stand doesn't constitute a betrayal of the entire marriage."

Dennis responded by restating something he's said multiple times before, that adultery shouldn't automatically end the marriage. He says it's not autobiographical as he's been faithful. He points out that some marriages that survive adultery are stronger. "Good people commit adultery. Not everyone who commits adultery is a bad person."

He lauded the hypothetical person who wouldn't automatically divorce over a one night stand.

Sixth caller was a woman. "I encouraged my kids to marry because life is like a tango, it takes two to tango.There is nothing better in life than to be married." I can just as easily assert that life is like a solo dance recital.

Dennis capped off the hour by saying to women they should find a good man, the sooner the better, and men become men when they marry.

And there you have it. Did that hour convince one person with a functioning brain?

 

I'll just stick to addressing men. Everythingy most men want out of life they can have without ever marrying.

With hours like this one, we can expect the marriage rates will continue to decline. Women don't need marriage anymore to fully participate in society and life or just to survive, and men aren't being given compelling reasons to marry but have many significant reasons to stay free. That Dennis is fixated on wanting everyone to marry isn't a compelling reason for anyone else to marry.