Jaclyn Geller remarks in her dialog with Bella DePaulo: Historians argue fiercely about when the transition from pragmatic to “affective” — personal – marriage, took place in Europe. It’s been placed anywhere from the fourteenth to the eighteenth century. I am not a historian but based on what I have read (for example in Stephanie Coontz’ work), I would argue that romantic marriage didn’t take off until the eighteenth century. It might’ve been around before then but it didn’t turn into the motivating factor for marriage until fairly recently. The industrial “revolution” happened somewhere between 1760 and 1830 depending on … Continue reading »
Mar 272009
I am reading the first part of an interview Bella DePaulo did with Jaclyn Geller, the author of “Here Comes the Bride.” I am enjoying reading it, so I thought I’d share a few quotes and my reactions. Of course, I highly recommend reading the whole post. Geller argues that using the term ‘single’ to describe ourselves implies always a dichotomy with married. Single is never complete. Thus she is looking for a better term. I think there are many terms that would better serve us [than using the term 'single']. In her excellent book, Beyond Straight and Gay Marriage, … Continue reading »
Mar 252009
Dave Letterman is getting married! Better late than never! And this proves that men are not commitment phobes! Or so at least, the headlines scream. The message is clear: Marriage is the ultimate goal. No matter what else you accomplish in life, you are not a real success until you marry. And all single men are commitment phobes. Argh!
Mar 152009
Another puzzle piece fell in place for me today. I was listening to an Aurora Forum conversation between Juliet Schor and David Loy. I’ve known about Juliet Schor’s work on conspicuous consumption and overwork, so I was interested in hearing her ideas for a new system. But it was a comment by David Loy that struck me. Loy argues that consumer capitalism is a religion, in fact the first true global religion. As all religions, consumerism then attempts to fill a fundamental human need: Giving us a sense of meaning, a sense of self. However, consumerism, by definition, cannot give … Continue reading »
Mar 122009
Our current capitalist system, especially the unregulated variety in the US, is built around ideas that are fundamentally not life affirming. The system is built on the idea of growth, which ultimately is unsustainable. The idea of growth drives critical aspects of the system: Growing companies, growing profits, growing monetary wealth, growing markets (including by increasing the population), growing consumption, growing GDP. Without growth, capitalism would collapse. The current financial crisis has made a farce out of growing monetary wealth. The recent stock market increases – possibly most of the growth since the 1980s – has been driven by bubbles, … Continue reading »
Mar 092009
From the American Humanist Association: Now that President Obama has taken the first step to rescind a dangerous Health and Human Services (HHS) rule, you need to take the second step, today. The current HHS rule is bad for women’s health and bad for patients’ rights. It allows healthcare workers to refuse to provide virtually any family planning service that conflicts with their personal religious beliefs. This rule, which was issued by the Bush administration as one of its final policy initiatives, puts women’s health in jeopardy by denying their right to vital health services and information. It also makes … Continue reading »
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