The statistical facade

Rather than being drowned in statistics divorced from a sociological context, the yes camp must turn the tables by campaigning for individual freedom and against paternalism. This is not a battle against religious convictions but a battle for the respect for individual conscience.
 
I refuse to engage in the battle of statistics simply because I refuse the whole lousy idea that individual rights (recognized by all countries in the world but two) should be sacrificed for the "common good".
 
For me the whole issue revolves on the freedom of individuals to make their own personal choices. If divorce is introduced everyone will be free not to make use it. If they really believe in marriage they should not be so scared of divorce which is all about giving a second chance to those who want to use it. The notion that this erodes the security of others leaves me baffled.
 
That is not because I don't believe in the common good and the state should not assist families in things like childcare and an educational system geared at increasing social mobility.  For example, if the government believes in strengthening families it should not join the race to the bottom by dishing contracts to companies which barely pay the minimum wage.
 
But I do not subscribe to the notion that  marriages break down because of social factors. Surely family-friendly policies will make the life of families better but that won't stop people from falling out of love with each other. Most marriages break down because people make mistakes and it is only human to err.

Even if divorce is introduced most people will still marry with the idea of a permanent and stable relationship in mind. But with or without divorce people will continue to make wrong choices or to fall victim of circumstances beyond their control. These people are simply creating new families through cohabitation. What we have here is a forced cohabitation regime. Given a  chance some of these people would choose to re-marry. If we legislate on cohabitation without introducing divorce, we end up institutionalizing this forced cohabitation regime.

On the other hand divorce gives these people a second chance in building a stable long-lasting relationship.
 
Blaming social problems on personal life choices is an old trick of those who ultimately are only interested in retaining the status quo. It is social problems which need collective solutions to ensure a better family life for divorced and non divorced alike. Instead the anti divorce brigade seeks to impose a collective solution on individuals who would otherwise choose to divorce and remarry.
 
What I suspect is that many are hiding behind the common good argument simply to refrain from saying that they are simply against divorce for religious reasons. Ultimately as Eddie Fenech Adami himself declared in yesterday's radio discussion: 'Jesus Christ said divorce is wrong and that is the truth'. The stats are a façade for a purely religious argument.