Originally posted by Top Gun
I Understand the concept of Human Nature but it is still not a strong argument, there are lots of things the human race has done that definitely defy its darwinistic purpose (to make more humans). It's not in our nature to read and write books, do maths, go to the moon etc. but it's generally accepted that life is better with these things, so the analogous argument goes from here.
I wasn't saying that evolution means we
should get married. I'm saying that it is for evolutionary reasons that humans did get married. As Stryke 9 said religion took something that was already there and made it it's own. Marriage was there a long time before religion came religion came along and took it over. Humans are evolved to get married (and cheat a bit too but that's another matter).
Originally posted by Top Gun
Yes, most countries legally recognise a bond between two people after a certain perioud of time together which further emphasizes my point on the need for any ceremonial marriage
So basically you're saying there is no need to get married cause the state does it for you automatically. Hardly an arguement against marriage is it?
Even there are a large number of things you appear to have missed.
1) So where do you draw the line? At what point should a couple who live together automatically be considered a couple by the state? Remember no one gets married cause we're all aethists in this arguement so when should the state decide that my girlfriend has more right than my family to pull the plug on my life support machine? After a year? Two years? 7?
2) What happens if at the time the state decides I'm married I don't feel ready? What if I felt ready for 3 years? Should I have had to wait?
3) Common law is much weaker than Marital law. If you adjust it's power upwards then again you're just forcing marriage on every couple regardless of if they want it or not.
4) How does the state decide how long a couple has been together? What if they broke up for a week? A month? A Year? Do they have to have been living together that whole time? What about people in the armed forces or other jobs which take them away from home for long periods of time?
3) So why not get a Power of Attorney drawn up I hear you say? Well if I get one drawn up for everything that could become important in my life I might as well get married. Marriage automatically includes one. If every good aetheist couple has to at some point decide to get one you're simply swapping one marriage ritual for another. At some point a couple would have to say "I trust you enough to sign over my rights to you if I'm incapacitated. Let's get attorneyed!"
