What undermimes marriage more?

[Virginian87]

Option 1, obviously.

Look, I don't believe in gay marriage, but I do believe in civil unions.  It's the culture of sexual promiscuity that has arisen over the last forty years (thanks to birth control, abortion, and the morning-after pill) that has done the most to erode traditional marriage in the U.S.  These days men will have sex with several women before they marry (if they marry) and if they impregnate a woman out of wedlock, they'll just walk away. 

Nowhere is this more apparent than in the African-American community.  I remember reading somewhere that nearly a third (or some large figure) of black children are born out of wedlock and grow up without a father.  That has a horrible psychological effect on a child.  Of course the hip-hop culture, which glorifies sexual promiscuity to children and teaches them that being a pimp or a drug dealer is cool, doesn't help at all.

The other problem is the abundance of places where one can get married without filling out much of the paperwork.  Such "quickie weddings", popular in Las Vegas, allow people who are either drunk or have just had a one night stand to get married, and then they can divorce a day or two later.  Marriage is a sacred bond between a man and a woman, and it is not a decision that should be made on the spur of the moment.

I think these issues stated above have had a much worse effect on marriage in the traditional sense than homosexuals.  Gay marriage, remember, is only a relatively recent phenomenon.

[Virginian87]

Did anybody actually read my post on page five, before the four hours of argument that led to another ten pages?  One might find it useful.

[Virginian87]

Did anybody actually read my post on page five, before the four hours of argument that led to another ten pages?  One might find it useful.

I agree with a lot of what you said there, but why do you still feel that marriage between two people of the same gender is threatening to this "sacred bond" notion?

I believe that marriage is a religious institution and should be treated as such.  Thus the government has no right to define what marriage is; it should be up to the churches.  If a church allows gays to marry, that's their business and I don't disagree with their decision.  I will also reiterate that I have no problem with legalized civil unions.  But I personally view the institution of marriage from the prevailing Christian standpoint as between a man and a woman.