IN DEFENSE OF COMMON SENSE
By Hetty Gray
# 172
December 11, 2013
“Sir-ender”
I am weary of seeing advertisements featuring women and children and no man. Oh, I know there is more and more of that. Some single mothers actually choose to be and adopt children sans husband. Divorced women aside, there has to be some way to extol the traditional family.
It’s as if there is a concerted effort of advertising firms to degrade a man’s position in a family. This is not to say that I do not respect women who excel at their jobs and dismiss their efforts in a cavalier fashion. Far from it….
I just want to know why there is a pervasive campaign to extol single parent homes. Not only do some ads put forth a slanted view of family, but ads that feature men are often demeaning and embarrassing. There is a difference between humor and good taste, but evidently PR firms have no handle on that aspect of their work.
There seems to be no respect for marriage. Living together is a choice, but when small children are involved, the persons involved should consider what kind of an example they set. The bar is lower than it has ever been. Oh, I know that many will cite the fact that they are “fine with it,” but the element of commitment cannot be ignored.
What value do you place on someone if you are not willing to legalize your relationship? Of course, many will disagree with me. I accepted that part of op-ed writing decades ago. However, my premise dates back centuries and transcends civilizations. Marriage is both a spiritual and legal pact. I think many have forgotten that, and the two are linked to the Old Testament that anchors both Jewish and Christian tradition.
We cannot systematically remove one part of the family structure without doing incalculable damage. Do not allow our culture to surrender to a “Sir-Ender” attitude.
This column may be brief and to the point, but it poses a single question. Is there no better way to destroy a civilization than to remove its most critical underpinning, the strong triangle of a mother, father and children?
Think about it.