orl shyt

[CHAVE caccepted “all my

adult: life the. face? that
“roughly as many: narriages

end in divorce as. Survive.

It has been-a featuie of North
American: lifes, Common: knowl

edge. One ofthe: in ayjor” realities
f Auber of matirkiges fell

of ourttime, A sad! Lunqugstion:
able truthy . Poca gd

Ihwassas much sa domi
characteristic of our: type Gf civi-
lization Jas: the. atomic
cancer. pollution, materialisin:
the automobile.

Moral people: pointed to ilte
divorce rate as proof of society /s
decay. Hi was! even supposed
have political “meaning:
wing people cited: the awful! ru
ures) as: evidence oof feltise

penetrations Communists: blamed!

bad Western influences... ¢./
Unlike “almost. all’ presjously-
known ages, except. perhaps the
decadent, © dying days of ithe
Roman: Empire, ours. ¥
when) half: the
doomed to break up.
 Astreniendous crack
peared in the ver foundations of.
society, the’ nuclear -famil¥ unit
itself (ee es
oD knew . what. thes odd
when [entered ny
not good,

“ty fowan ‘seme

“Union Steamship paar store
fo: hear the GVRD try to ease: ap:
“! prehension over © future ‘develop.
‘the: village,

ya lengthy: controw

“the counuinity :

: "do
“Island © vesional
Naylor,
community within’ the GVRD.

Since. the -GYRD bought 599.
“of fand-on the island in 1983:

ve

neluding all’ofthe land desig-

‘ nated for: commercial development

‘controve sy has - followed the

Halmost a. SQ-S0 chan eb

bomb.

Efot af people.

1 ume:
families. were
ra

had ape

“ins the: world,

ie peared <i
. more of. the's:

centre, the |

director. Sand) a”

Who = represents | the

NGS

tharsl
Jhon

unde

Yer saaticaly, fo stil
OPSHching wiih ins!
death did us parte oi ;

avothe rime. [peak wrjed, Mate
than a decade letery thesodads in
fact had worsened. dhe
dt divorces: had sasen while the

owil?

vAnd. theny a few years. apo,
rd, the: divorce. rate dbegan te
drapes Pee Maa soe at 8
“There, were. various theories:
tough economic times were mak-
ing divoree. loo expensive for a.
Withethe crise of
sexuatly-transmitted
fidelity was making oa:

virrious

diseases,

comeback. :
The charige in’ percentages in

Canada: matched “the change’ in

the ULS:A. exact. The ‘divarce

“rate dropped by two per cent in

both countrigs in 1984.

“But nathing ‘had ‘changed fun: ,

damennally, hey
~ We land. the Ameticans: were
still among the least stable people.
if. families Staying |
together. “is | your > measure! of
stability. : :

Among. the least stable people
in history, actual

Social: scientists: reguiarl
nthe | media. pred
same. dy thy future, ,

By) STEPHEN BARRI
‘News Reporter

Except: for :about’
commercial prope ried,”

“regional board. owns: all’: ‘the com:
- mercially’ designated land, roughly .
° an.area one

ty block square
With-the island Jointly gov red.
“by the GVRD,° the: Islands
“number of® provincial
ministries; “nothing | wa
‘ done‘on the island, said Tay
oN We are So: fractured.
“ever. ‘happens in: terms,
_ Provements).* .
AL the: top of the residéni
of complaints i is ‘benrenog tr

a perception: .that, the” i

GVRDO is doing
wrong,’'-Fitylor said,

Something

huimber: “ing AO? sete 20}

“fien?

> ton having: fess
suf Knowing the
“Parents salt:

‘ massive

Trust

flip of acon,

Now comenthe shattering news
that .those de presair Statistics
we'd ebeen | believing call. those:
years were off crack bys a country,
“hie: milei : ‘
amily) connec- dD owas stunned io read that: in-
Pervasive: falicnariow? | AN tead “of roughly: Half the. nar:
transfe? fO the statesor all tradi via ‘ending in divorce, the cor:
donal sesponsibilit rect figure is just.one in eight. -

With) cach - success q Each vear, iC Caras out. thee
nd less “chance perts chad been ‘comparing’ the

same seticof oe" number. of smartiages . tov “the
cthepr olives. surely
something in Sth order “of. ca
restructiring: of “human
MONS Wiis takine place:
it was (a saber ing “thought,

i startedto” feel.

of ns woutel belinarreiny
finite CObtea ver Thre. OF
Yaur m, tir ditstes on thes avers
may bemore, they predicted
Where was it all deading
fragmentation: with peaple

TOT

Total

actions outstripped marriage: cer-
emonies, they
simplistic conclusion that mar-
riages per se We F crumbling.

Bur it wasn’t marridges, it was
; 1 weddings that. were peing -< oul-
ntinued ‘hap- mumbered by: divorces.”
ethan “the:

[xr eeriem ae
(Un SSS Se

eine at

he owe nate dor shile,

number-of divorcees“ AS divorce ¢

jumped + to: the!

marrlages nd
there; beaiin’ one ended an i
given: your. ol any statistical coun:
parison taniiy place.
sSeven our of: eight ma els
jist keep rolling along: |
Weodon't dine inst frawmentin "
soetery at all We are solid’ Most
Stability. is
oor muddle naming. Phe pillars of,

‘the socal order remain good old

Mom. cand=” Dad, stick

rovether like elue, ”

© dofind it fasctmating that sucha

vast misconception cotld have

endured tor so long ‘in the. public

print, det alone the public. mind.
But \pewondl thatit's “the best.

who

“news [ve heard in long time.

“P puesss Must be..

‘Ee mean, whit isthe point ‘of
couples! purling, each: ther
through ‘the financial,’ emotional

sand psychological wringer?. How
“much “possible good | can sit. do

children ‘to"experience the trauma

of their parents splitting up?

cls just that, having. believed

us’ North “Americans, to) be oa

saucy, tempéstuous, tormented,
passionate —ift screwed-up and!
neurotic people, it comes asa:

wee bit of a disappointment to
-discover that: “we. are?
¢ dull, boring and safe

after all,