Arguments for both sides feel strongly on whether young marriage works best.
It wasn't so long ago (1980, to be exact) that the average age of American women marrying for the first time was 22. Less than 30 years later, the average age for a first marriage has jumped to 26 for women and 28 for men. In a recent column for the Washington Post, Mark Regnerus argues that this trend is dangerous because women are putting off marriage during their most "marketable" years, before they have to "beg, pray, borrow and pay to reclaim" their fertility. He writes: "Marriages that begin at age 20, 21 or 22 are not nearly so likely to end in divorce as many presume," but he certainly fails to convince me, a 32-year-old woman not quite married for the first time yet.
The Washington Post publishes a Texas statistician's pleas for women to stop marrying after age 23.
Just when we thought it was fine for a woman to marry at any age she damn-well pleased, some guy in Texas has come along to correct us.
And sadly, the guy is not just any guy, but a sociologist who teaches at a legitimate university (University of Texas-Austin) and publishes books that are considered academic (the latest is titled Forbidden Fruit: Sex and Religion in the Lives of American Teenagers).
His name is Mark Regnerus. And in a new piece for the Washington Post, he says that — while he sees no issue with the fact that men are marrying later these days (28 years old for the first marriage now, as opposed to 23 years old in 1970) — he is disheartened to learn that women are now also choosing to marry later as well — around the spinsterly age 26.
Kerri Kenney-Silver's love advice, sitcom porn and Chester French.
Getting married in college, love advice from Reno 911's Kerri Kenney-Silver, why chicks dig dorks, pot and sex, second date tips, Altoids and oral, sitcom porns, the art of sternomancy, the awesomeness of Chester French and Marie Claire's Rich Santos.
Cuddling works, no sex for the Japanese & Australia's Sex Party.
The Tories try to strengthen marriage, Australia's Sex Party launches, Aussie resort has a month long sex party, cuddling cuts stress, the Japanese aren't doing it, iVillage's green sex toys, seal implores you to renew your vows, Bryan Adams has the greatest love song, men think they're grand in bed, women don't see it that way, how young is too young to marry, giving back an adopted kid and getting dumped with class.
Could Todd Palin's sex appeal win his woman a seat in the White House?
Regardless of your political stance, Sarah and Todd are paving the way for a new breed of couple. In a country rampant with divorce, it's usually the successful female/supportive male combo that's first to hit the rocks. But Sarah and Todd, high school sweethearts who quickly filled their home with a brood, seem to defy the odds. How do they do it? Todd Palin's equal parts masculinity and sensitivity might have something to do with it.
Teen marriages don't last--will Bristol Palin divorce while her mom is VP?
According to today's feature, The Pros and Cons of Marrying Young, pregnancy isn't a good reason to get hitched. "To marry simply because of a child seems to be a recipe for disaster. In fact, according to a 2007 study, only 17 percent of pregnant teenagers wed."
Even so, young Hollywood starlets have been popping out offspring at an alarming rate, leading us to wonder, are babies the new boyfriends?
Perhaps not, but boyfriends certainly lead to babies; in July, 2007 we reported that a Chinese doctor blamed the rising number of Shanghai teen pregnancies on youngsters meeting boys through the internet.
Nikki Bryant, 18, and Josh Turner, 19, of Georgia met at their Baptist church when they were 14. This weekend the pair are saying their "I do's" live from New York. Couples marry live on TV all the time (anyone else used to love staying home from school sick and watching Live With Regis and Kathie Lee?) but usually they're not... teenagers.
He thought marrying your college sweetheart was for suckers. But then he did it.
While he and his wife are a perfect match, Jay Rosenshields knows there's no such thing as a perfect marriage. The best you can hope for is that your complement each other's strengths and supplement each other's deficiencies. Oh, and following up any major fight with a little timely sex is probably not a bad idea either. Find out why marrying young and to his college sweetheart can be the smartest thing he's ever done, despite preconceived ideas.
