New Stats Show Traditional Families Disappearing

A U.S. Airways contest invites children to write an essay about their father or father figure. The divorced Princess Sarah Ferguson is shown in a TV commercial telling a young girl about prince charming and the ideal marriage. Of course, if it doesnt work out, she says, youll need to know all about stocks and bonds.

The census bureau has published new figures which show a 71 percent increase in the last decade of unmarried partners living together, fewer than 25 percent of Americans now live in what have been called nuclear families a man, a woman and children. Only 51 percent of households consist of married people.

The number of women with children and no husband grew from 6 million to 7.5 million. Cohabiting couples increased from 3.1 million to 5.4 million in the last decade.

There are many reasons for these figures. Loss of stigma is one. Poor family models, even by Christians, is another. But the facts are there and arguing for traditional values to a nation that ignores them isnt enough.