irc333 Posted September 10, 2014 Posted September 10, 2014 ...that are single now outnumber the married people. Is Everybody Single? More Than Half the U.S. Now, Up From 37% in '76 - Bloomberg
MissBee Posted September 10, 2014 Posted September 10, 2014 Some 124.6 million Americans were single in August, 50.2 percent of those who were 16 years or older, according to data used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in its monthly job-market report. ' This article doesn't specify some key things, like what exactly does single mean? Technically all unmarried people are single. Since they got the info from the Bureau of Labor Statistics in relation to job-market report, I'm assuming that this is based on what people fill out on employment forms. However, those forms generally only take into account whether one is single, married or divorced. That means many people who are in a relationship but not married, whether they are together 2 years or 10, divorced and dating etc will end up being filed under the single category since "Living together" "Long Term Relationship" and "Dating someone" aren't options. The age bracket is also HUGE... that 50% is talking about people who are still teenagers to those who are 100. Everyone 16 and older... I mean those are lots of different life stages there. So I think this article is a bit misleading with the sensational title about if "Everyone is Single?" Yes...if you are grouping everyone 16-100 and the markers are single, divorced or married you will find that LOTS of people will be single. 6
Author irc333 Posted September 10, 2014 Author Posted September 10, 2014 Meh, whateva, it just shows there's been a significant increase in more and more people choosing to not get married. ' This article doesn't specify some key things, like what exactly does single mean? Technically all unmarried people are single. Since they got the info from the Bureau of Labor Statistics in relation to job-market report, I'm assuming that this is based on what people fill out on employment forms. However, those forms generally only take into account whether one is single, married or divorced. That means many people who are in a relationship but not married, whether they are together 2 years or 10, divorced and dating etc will end up being filed under the single category since "Living together" "Long Term Relationship" and "Dating someone" aren't options. The age bracket is also HUGE... that 50% is talking about people who are still teenagers to those who are 100. Everyone 16 and older... I mean those are lots of different life stages there. So I think this article is a bit misleading with the sensational title about if "Everyone is Single?" Yes...if you are grouping everyone 16-100 and the markers are single, divorced or married you will find that LOTS of people will be single.
No Limit Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 From what I've read here on LS it doesn't sound like a clever choose of action anyway.
Els Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 1) There's a huge spectrum between truly 'single' (as in, not even dating anyone exclusively) and married. 2) AFAIK homosexuals can't get married in some states of America, so that further skews things - some people who are in LTRs and desire marriage AND are ready to marry are still unable to. 3
Lernaean_Hydra Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 (edited) Meh, whateva, it just shows there's been a significant increase in more and more people choosing to not get married. Is that news though?. More people have been opting for long-term cohabitation as opposed to marriage for a while now. Everyone knows this. And as far as the point I assume you were trying to make in your OP.... Miss Bee's own post in regards to what is single is spot on and warrants more consideration than a simple "meh whateva" IMO. Edited September 11, 2014 by Lernaean_Hydra 5
MissBee Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 Meh, whateva, it just shows there's been a significant increase in more and more people choosing to not get married. I'm not seeing the grand revelation here....
central Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 I'm not seeing the grand revelation here.... I'm not seeing any grand revelations in ANY of the threads on this site! This does illustrate a significant social trend, however.
BlueIris Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 It makes sense to me. Our society is rethinking marriage and many of the assumptions and beliefs about marriage. I would like to be married again. However, some beliefs and assumptions about marriage are bad, some unattainable. I’ve been legally single for ten years and just might stay that way for the rest of my life. I might have a boyfriend or husband, might not. It’s pretty liberating and comfortable to no longer feel that I must be in a relationship or that marriage is always the goal. It’s kind of zen. 1
GravityMan Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 I don't think this is news to anyone who has been paying a little attention over the past 5-10 years. More people are either delaying marriage or choosing not to get married at all. More people are happy and content with just cohabitation. Going by the legal definition of single (which is "unmarried")...most single adults, especially those older than 25, are NOT available...i.e. they are in some sort of intimate relationship. And most of the remaining ones are actively dating. If an adult breaks up with someone, (assuming they don't already have someone else lined up) it's likely they're dating and in a new relationship within 1-2 years if not sooner. Not many adults, especially those in the 25-39 age range, remain completely alone for long periods of time...and unusually long periods of not seeing anyone is considered a red flag to some. This hasn't really changed much over the past 30-40 years. Most people who talk about "single" status in casual conversation are using the informal definition of single, which differs from the legal one and is a bit more fluid.
sid3 Posted September 11, 2014 Posted September 11, 2014 ...that are single now outnumber the married people. Is Everybody Single? More Than Half the U.S. Now, Up From 37% in '76 - Bloomberg Seriously? Spend half the amount of time you spend posting silly threads on LS trying to meet new members of the opposite sex and I'm sure your quality of life will improve, and meetups don't count. While this particular thread shared some slightly interesting fact, as a whole it's become apparent some change is in order. Not trying to be critical, just constructive. 1
Author irc333 Posted September 11, 2014 Author Posted September 11, 2014 , and meetups don't count. Actually, they are a great part of my social life, so I wouldn't "poo-poo" it.
Kid_Charlemange Posted September 12, 2014 Posted September 12, 2014 1) 2) AFAIK homosexuals can't get married in some states of America, so that further skews things - some people who are in LTRs and desire marriage AND are ready to marry are still unable to. Very good point. While gay couples are only about 10% of the population, that alone is enough to impact the stats. I hadn't even thought of that -- good catch. 1
sid3 Posted September 13, 2014 Posted September 13, 2014 Actually, they are a great part of my social life, so I wouldn't "poo-poo" it. And how is that working out for you? Seems not so well in terms of dating/finding intimacy thus the never ending threads with everything wrong with dating in today's world. Carry on though, things will eventually change for the better without having to work on fixing what's really wrong.
Recommended Posts