Today there are many threats to marriage and the family; and everyone seems to have an opinion on how to create it; fix it; repair or dissolve it. We no longer view marriage with dreamy visions of a spouse and the infinite generosity of life and family available to us. “We” seem to want to enjoy many of the benefits that marriage brings without making any commitments. In the 1700s, marriage was a family commitment taken seriously. There were marriage bonds with monies paid, then the court order for the marriage; and in other colonies this time-revered process might have 17 distinct stages. http://www.austincc.edu/jdikes/Marriage%20Ways%20ALL.pdf Since Dan Quayle used the television character "Murphy Brown" in his June 1992 speech to "encourage family disintegration," the government has continued to ensuring that “marriage status and family structure… major themes of political rhetoric and government policy” (page 518). Quayle also noted that “marriage is probably the best anti-poverty program of all” (American Vision and Values, page 179). Here was a politician who believed the country needed better role models and a return to the values ​​our country was founded on. Dafoe Whitehead suggests that these topics are seen as an attack on single mothers; and are met with “anger and denial” (American Vision and Values, page 182). Rather than attacking a single family structure – single mothers – consider the results produced by non-traditional structures. Kay Hymowitz believes that “we are becoming a nation of separated and unequal families that threatens to persist for the foreseeable future” (page 560). This will impact every aspect of our society. Marriage, before children, was the status quo during the pro-family era of the 1950s. At that time, the divorce and illegitimacy rate was half the current rate, marriage was universally praised, and the family was praised as the most fundamental institution. The 1960s brought disruptive social and cultural forces. The divorce rate has soared and illegitimacy has increased by 22%. In the 1970s we see where women could now afford to start a family without a partner. It seems that the choice to work equally with men has devalued the housewife role of previous decades (Graglia, Carolyn Domestic Tranquility, page 540). These choices focused on career goals and achieving motherhood; without really meeting the needs of the family and children. And yet, many single mothers hover around the poverty line — which isn't as glamorous as "Murphy Brown" makes it out to be..