Adventures in Family Relations

Dating is now an ancient art. Asking a member of the opposite gender out on a formal date is a millennial dilemma, as it is much easier to simply invite someone to hang out. Why is hanging out so much better then dating? Well, for one thing, it can be much less stressful. There are no pressures of commitments to dress or act a certain way, and the participators can leave at any time they please. It also might help you get to know your significant other on a different level then dating, as you see them in a more casual light, among their family and friends and doing ordinary tasks. But with all the benefits ‘hanging out’ provide, along with how easy it is to instigate, it can have some pretty serious effects on romantic relationships. Let’s take the first aspect of hanging out- the casualness of both the invitation and the actual act itself. Asking someone to hangout is an extremely vague invitation, both in the relationship and the activity. Excessive amounts of hanging out, especi...

How much of what society teaches about gender is accurate and healthy? Many people are very sensitive to discussing the more intricate details behind same gender attraction. Most argue that it's a healthy and normal lifestyle to have, and once that is made clear, no further discussion on the topic is necessary. The harsh reality is that LGB youth are almost 5 times as likely to have attempted suicide compared to heterosexual youth. Is this the cause of low societal acceptance rates? Research shows these two factors have almost no correlation, as US support for gay marriage has reached an all-time high and is continuing to rise, meanwhile, statistics analyzing  as these have not changed. A compassionate stance to take on this issue is by analyzing the many complexities of same gender attraction and eliminating some of these factors that cause the high suicide rates, which, in doing so coincidentally, may in fact eliminate the attraction itself.  What makes some individuals...

As is often said, the family is the fundamental building block of society. Obviously, a whole is always made up of smaller parts, so the family dynamics of small communities create the culture of the society. Are all societies and cultures equally valid, and who is to determine this? The mindset the world has on this issue comes usually from a point of moral relativism. Interpreting society from this point of view eliminates the existence of an absolute truth, or moral standard of comparison. This means that no society can decide which other societies are either right nor wrong because morality is subjective to each individual and their personal experiences. Although this philosophy seems the most inclusive and supportive of societal diversity, it has a few major flaws. Changing what is right and wrong with each new whim of information that arrives would create a stressful and confusing standard of ethics. This is why there is such a wide variety of ideals in different societies in ou...

Conflict theory asserts that conflict in the family is a very normal and even healthy (when correctly handled) occurrence. In any union, conflict is almost inevitable. No one is 100% the same in their preferences (thank heavens) so acknowledging the fact that disagreements are a natural part of all relationships is imperative. Once this is recognized, how to properly handle these disagreements can be addressed. This is important to our society’s martial success ratings, as research shows that 99.9% of relationships end because of disagreement! Astonishing, right?! Because disagreement is inevitable, obviously there are some forms that are harmless (to scientifically explain those frustratingly perfect couples who have no problems), and when they are identified and treated as such, provide little friction to the relationship. For example, not every conflict has a right and a wrong side. Some conflicts are merely between ideas or partialities that are mutually exclusive, or concep...