Why Powerful Women Might Stay After His Affair

I was not surprised that Hillary Clinton stayed with Bill Clinton after his affair with Monica Lewinsky was exposed (nor the affairs before that).  I read her, then and now, as an equal player in a power couple.  I am sure she was mad as hell, and with ample justification.  I don't know how, exactly, they reconciled, though I believe their reconciliation is real.

Josie Pickens makes a similar argument in The Daily Beast about why Beyoncé would stay with her husband after he cheated on her - as she seems to be saying in the album/film Lemonade. She is an equal player in a power couple. They still have things to do together.

Pickens writes:

A woman can now choose to stay in a marriage after partner's affair because it's good for business and her whole life trajectory.

The Rich Live Longer and Marry Better Because They Act on Knowledge

The rich live longer than the poor.  But they didn't always. It seems to be that knowledge of how to live in a healthier way - and, especially, to not take up self-destructive habits - is the key.  The rich got that knowledge sooner, and acted on it more effectively.

Knowledge-as-power is a two way street.  People who act on knowledge that helps you live longer are also likely to get richer and gain higher status, regardless of where they started.  And their kids start out with the advantage of parents who set a good example.

I think the same is true of marriage.  The rich are more likely to be married, to marry before they have kids, and to stay married, than are the poor.  I believe this is because they are more likely to have better knowledge of how to be married and how advantageous marriage is to the couple and their kids.  Most importantly, the rich are more likely to act on the knowledge they have.

And the same two-way street analogy applies.  The knowledgeable live longer and marry better.

The Non-Marital Birth Rate is Falling in Eastern Europe

The different regions of Europe have long had different marriage and marital birth rates.  The Scandinavians had more non-marital births before the welfare state and secularization.  The Eastern Europeans had fewer even before communism.

In general, the non-marital birth rate has been rising in Europe.  The Nordic countries may have peaked, with just over half of children now born out of wedlock.

The really interesting development, though, is that the non-marital birth rate is falling in Eastern Europe.  As the weight of communist anti-religion is lifting and new generations rebuild old traditions of the region, Eastern Europe bucks the trend of the rest of Europe.