The International Cyclist

I will be leaving Seattle quite soon, so I will post this now…In the United Kingdom, the Office for National Statistics, or the ONS, is an institution that is responsible for the collection, compilation, and analysis of economic, social and demographic statistics that serve the public good. The ONS recently posted a new report that finds the number of older people in the UK that are filing for divorce is on the rise. Data indicates that couples over 60 are actually the exception to a greater trend of falling separation rates across all age groups. I guess it is much the same situation over here in Seattle, which explains why it is better to be a Seattle divorce lawyer or for example a Bellevue family law attorney than a criminal defense or DUI lawyer in many cases.
The new report notes that more than 11,000 British senior citizens now file for divorce each year. The problem seems to be that many couples believe they have no motivation to remain together once their children have grown up and left home.
Figures show that four per cent more separations among the 60s-plus group culminated divorce  in 2009 when compared to 2007, despite the fact that the general divorce rate fell by 11 per cent.
Ros Altmann is an investment and pensions expert, investment banker and economist, and is also an adviser to the pensions industry. She is also the director-general of Saga. Altmann has been quoted as saying, “This is more proof that life is really changing for the over-60s and for many it’s the start of the next phase of their lives, not the end.”
Maybe it’s the diminution of the stigma of divorce, or maybe it’s the growing independence of women in society. I’d love to know what the institution of marriage will look like in another 20 or 30 or 50 years from now here in Seattle and also worldwide.