[anon291]

For many people, it's a choice to work. We're part of a very close knit church in which there is a wide range of incomes and everyone makes it work. That's because the moms (it's usually the moms who are not working although there are a few dads) make it a point to actually organize the community. That means lots of shared activities; lots of shared child care; shared meals; etc. Unfortunately, when you stop doing the work of community, everything becomes more expensive. That's the ultimate reason why day care et al is so expensive. It's not just that you have to pay others to watch your children; it's that you have to pay one set of people to watch your children, then another set to cook your food, then another set to be part of a community, etc.

As a case in point, my daughters attend a free mom's preschool (a few times a week) instead of us paying thousands of dollars. We haven't bought much clothes or furniture for them because there are endless amounts of hand-me-downs.

Unfortunately, as a whole, American civil institutions (and really worldwide) have declined. It's not just churches or marriage that has seen record reductions in membership. It's actually not even a crisis in religion that we're witnessing although many want to castigate it as that.

Rather, all social groups are in decline, whether that be the small social group of marriage, or the large social group of the extended family, or the even wider social group of a community club. Bowling clubs, fraternal organizations, athletic clubs, etc are all in decline.