Sunday Surkhi- Is 'marriage' just a piece of paper?

Once we are born, the only dead certain thing for each of us, is death.
 It used to be that everybody would think of getting married and having children as a great wish, part of life. But then some may remain unmarried or even if married may remain without children. I remember the old joke of a simple man who was instructed about how to be 'social' in a gathering, like asking somebody are you married or how many children you have, etc. So he asks a lady are you married and she says no and then he asks how many children you have?
   She was furious but nowadays that may not necessarily be considered rude or impertinent. Recent statistics from NY show that over half the children are born out of wedlock. They subdivide it  saying 73% of African American,  53% of Latinos and 29% of white women have children out of wedlock and so on and so forth. Then the Pundits say there is a change in tradition during the last couple of decades and all is becoming accepted. They bring into the etiological factors things such as college education and also that women seem to be earning more than men at this time. (So, they are not attractive any more for the women?) Men are making less money and are more likely to be out of job but the factor of socioeconomic background is not as important any more.
 What will happen to such children born out of wedlock? Considering that two third of unmarried couples having a living together arrangement split by the time their child is ten years old, they will be the ones to suffer and such is definitely the case as the statistics pile up how these children are functioning,socially and academically. there is so much talk about children born with handicap which is physical but the social and psychological handicap is totally ignored. Are these children accepted in the society in the same way as the others or for that matter the 'single parent' family situations? And of course, you are familiar how the media talk about gay parents having a child of their own or adopting or getting a child by donated ovum or rented uterus or donated sperm of choice. I am still waiting for the media to talk about what happens to such children conceived.
 So the unmarried couples, statistics show, have a higher rate of separating than those who do have 'a piece of paper', and yet some continue to hold such ideas that marriage is just a piece of paper.
What is the responsibility of Journalists or media? Just reporting anything aimlessly?

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