On the central point regarding chilren raised in a one or two-parent home, my views on this are a bit mixed. I was raised in a very “nuclear” family. My parents have been married for 49-years and are technically still married even though my mom is in a nursing home now. It seems to me that duration of marriage isn’t a true indicator of success of marriage. Many of the older generations stayed together long beyond their point of diminishing returns. However, where children are involved, parents should always go to the mat to make it work.

As a father myself, I am forced to think like one and say that a child does indeed need a father. Pragmatically, in the modern economy, I think it’s too hard for a single parent to work and raise a child solo. People do it, though and I have enourmous respect for those who accomplish that. I can’t judge anyone, therefore, who chooses to have a baby by themselves. Children are lifes greatest reward and no one should ever be deprived of the opportunity. There are exceptional cases where restraint is in order, such as the Iowa mother, who through IVF, had octuplets. Although as someone with some knowledge in this area, I blame her doctor more than her for putting back so many embryos during the transfer. But these types of exceptions aside, I think these decisions are between individuals, their spouses (if applicable), and their god.