I have never wanted the government to tell me that I could smoke or not. Or read porn or not. Or be gay or not. Or anything that involved my private life. What I do in my private life is absolutely none of their business. If I am hurting NO one but myself…then leave me the hell alone!
But now the government has gone a bit far…even for those a/holes!
The federal government is funding a $5 million national media campaign that launches this month, extolling the virtues of marriage for those ages 18 to 30.
Research suggests a bevy of benefits for those who marry, including better health, greater wealth and more happiness for the couple, and improved well-being for children.
Some say the government has no business using tax dollars to promote marriage. But others say the campaign is just like those conducted by other federal agencies to encourage the use of seat belts and discourage drug use, smoking and drunken driving.
With ads on social networking sites Facebook and MySpace, videos on YouTube, spots on radio talk shows, ads in magazines and public transportation and a new website (TwoOfUs.org), creators say the aim is to start a national conversation about marriage.
Resource center project director Mary Myrick of Oklahoma City says the media campaign has a budget of $1.25 million a year for four years; the campaign is part of the federal Healthy Marriage Initiative, a Bush administration effort under the Administration for Children & Families.
In 2005, Congress allocated $750 million over five years to the marriage initiative, with $100 million a year for marriage-related programs and $50 million a year supporting fatherhood programs. Of those dollars, the resource center is receiving $2 million each year over five years. The media campaign money is an additional annual allocation, according to HHS.
Now, the government will be spending my tax money to tell people the benefits of getting married, is that about it? They are going to be persuading people that marriage is the only way to live life? They are going to tell people that marriage the only acceptable way to fit into society, right?
Am I the only one that thinks that this is just so much crap?
In Saner Thought 
Nope. This program is not about “convincing” anyone to do anything, or how marriage is more acceptable to society. It’s an empowering program for anyone that wants a healthy relationship. I think that it is so important to have healthy, strong, trusting relationships in these hard, stressful economic times. After 20 years of research on marriage, my husband is devoted to getting the knowledge out there for anyone to look at and make their own decisions, and that includes choosing a single lifestyle over being married. The government isn’t running those agencies, the researchers are. Just as a footnote, my husband was interviewed for 12 minutes, and gave the goals of these programs, which is to empower everyone with the knowledge of all of the research that he has done in his adult life so that people make their own, informed, empowered decisions. Most people take more time to plan their wedding ceremony than plan a marriage! My husband, by the way, is the sociologist that was horribly misconstrued by CNN this morning, Paul Amato. I don’t have much faith in the news anymore.
Hi Lu and welcome…….I agree that is healthy to have a relationship but it should be up to me and my partner to decide what is healthy and normal…I do not want to hear from anyone else. I also agree that there is not much faith in the news any more and I appreciate your input …thanks again.