How does the institution of marriage measure up in our high-tech society? Dr. Robert Epstein, the editor in chief of Psychology Today, University Research Professor at California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University, Director Emeritus of the Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies in Massachusetts, and Harvard Ph.D. has an answer:

The problem is that the marriage contract isn't worth the paper it's written on. Prenuptial agreements are now harder to break than marriage contracts. Marriage is no longer a vehicle for permanent commitment, because it's too easy to change one's mind. As singer Paul Simon might have said, there are 50 ways to leave your spouse.

So what can couples do who want to stay together forever? I say, let's create a new institution—call it moorage, maybe, after the way we secure a ship to a dock. And let's create a moorage contract, one that's really binding. All it will take to get things going are a few committed couples, acting on their own, jotting down some special words on a piece of paper, loving each other and standing by what they write.

Knowing that you've just entered into a permanent arrangement keeps you working hard to make that arrangement work. Stresses and strains are inevitable in a relationship. With a high level of commitment, people get through rough times—often with marvelous times ahead, born in part of the stresses a couple has shared and conquered.

Moorage isn't for everyone, of course. We also need to recognize the short-term commitment—yes, mereage—rather than trying to fold it into the institution of marriage. And for those who are willing to commit to raising children through the age of majority but who aren't interested in that lifetime thing, we probably need yet another type of contract—moreage, perhaps?

Source: R. Epstein, "M Words: Marriage, Mereage, Moorage, and More," Psychology Today, January/February 2002, p. 5.

1		What do you think of the premise for this whole article, "The marriage contract isn't worth the paper it's written on"? True or false?
2		Are there any problems with Epstein's idea? What are they?