Simpsonian

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Eric was never the marrying kind. In fact, he often wore a shirt proclaiming just that when he went out. Then, the unthinkable happened. He got married.

Yes, after a five-day courtship and an impromptu proposal, my friend Eric permanently sealed the deal when he said, "I do," last March. In doing so, he became what the New York Times recently reported is a shrinking minority in America - a member of a married household.

According to the Times, only 49.7 percent of America's 111.1 million households are bound in wedlock, and that number has continued to slip. Once viewed as a logical end to adolescence and an expected step in the walk of life, marriage now seems to be going the way of sharecropping and Oldsmobile - the way of the forgotten.

However, that may be too drastic a statement. Marriage is most certainly a long way from its final throes. On the contrary, in Utah, it has experienced some terrific growth. Yet for much of the country, mutual agreements to grow old together aren't so terrifically popular any more. But can you blame America?

In the past 10 years, we've witnessed a full-scale media culture coup d'�tat against the institution of marriage. Celebrities treat marriage as a publicity tool, divorces can be obtained from the Internet instantly, and our most influential man gets fellated at work by a woman besides his wife - and it all gets reported, published, broadcast and analyzed by respectable, married men in gray suits. Here, they say, we can see the death of morality and the sanctity of marriage in American society.

And you know what? Those men in gray suits are absolutely correct. Loose morals and a lack of respect for what marriage truly is have definitely started to sink its sanctity, but maybe it's a good thing.

For one, as marriage is treated with less respect, the number of marriages is likely to continue to decrease. Less marriage means more singles. For those of us who are singles, this means more possibilities. More is better.

For two, as the treatment of marriage as little more than a loosely-binding legal contract continues, America will make its own argument in favor of same-sex marriages. Legal contracts do not discriminate based on sexual orientation, nor should they.

And finally, in a perfect world, or a disillusioned one searching for an answer, a loss of reverence for marriage could actually be very good for marriage itself. Given a cultural backlash against the flippant abuse of marriage, people could begin to return to a view of the bond as something permanent not to be taken lightly. Don't count on it, though.

So, in light of the times, it is really little wonder marriage has experienced a decline. Most of us at Simpson College aren't married, and from the many I know, don't look to be there any time soon. Good for us - it's nice to establish identity alone sometimes.

But for men like Eric, life is different. The struggles of two people have become one. And is as much as I respect his integrity for trying the great experiment, I can't help but think of what he represents - the married man, the wedded household, my friend...the last of a dying breed.

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