The Valentine’s Effect Causes an Abnormal Rise in Divorce Cases
From LegalMatch.com:
LegalMatch.com, the nation’s premier online legal matching company, reports that The Valentine’s Effect, an abnormal rise in the number of divorce cases, is again expected in the days surrounding Valentine’s Day. LegalMatch, which matches tens of thousands of clients to lawyers per month across the US, says the number of people seeking divorce attorneys, as well as attorneys to help with annulments and prenuptial agreements, increases significantly around Valentine’s Day. According to Ken LaMance, associate general counsel for LegalMatch, "Over the last four years we have seen an average increase of 31% (compared to all other weeks) in divorce, annulments and prenuptial cases in the week prior to and directly after Valentine’s Day."
Across the US, population density seems to play a role in the Valentine’s Effect. Philadelphia divorce attorneys saw the biggest rise in 2006 with a nearly 50% increase in new cases in the weeks around Valentine’s Day. Texas, Dallas and Fort Worth saw a rise of 44% and 32%, respectively. The San Francisco Bay Area also saw a 27% increase in divorce, annulment and prenuptial cases and Atlanta saw the smallest spike of all metro areas, at 20%. Interesting, however, is LegalMatch data that suggests that it’s the small towns across America that seem immune to the Valentine’s Effect.
LegalMatch first noticed this phenomenon in 2006, at which time they researched their cases to see if it was just a one-year anomaly. To their surprise, company records indicated that this spike in cases was indeed visible in each of the three years prior. This is not that surprising to attorney Ken LaMance. LaMance says, "The added stress of a holiday where you are all but required to express your love with chocolates, flowers and even jewels, especially so soon after the holidays, can make people anxious and questioning." "It may have something to do with the idealized images of love they see all over the media," continues, LaMance. "As more and more people turn to the Internet when looking for a lawyer, we expect to sift through our close to a million legal cases to uncover more of these statistical trends,"
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There is no religion which encourages its followers to love and care for one another more than Islam does. This applies at all times and in all circumstances, not just on one particular day. Indeed, Islam encourages us to express our emotions and love at all times, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “If a man loves his brother, let him tell him that he loves him.” (narrated by Abu Dawood, 5124; al-Tirmidhi, 2329; it is saheeh)…
Love in Islam is more general and more comprehensive; it is not restricted only to one kind of love, that between a man and a woman. There are many more kinds of love. There is the love of Allaah, love of His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and his companions (may Allaah be pleased with them), love for good and righteous people, love and support for the religion, love of martyrdom for the sake of Allaah. There are many kinds of love. It is a dangerous mistake to restrict this broad meaning to this one kind of love…
What these people think, that love before marriage is a good thing, is wrong, as has been proven in studies and by real-life experience. In a study conducted by the University of Cairo, on what they called “love marriage” and “traditional marriage”, the following was stated:
In marriages which came after a love story, 88% of cases ended in failure, i.e., the success rate was not more than 12%. But in cases of what the study calls traditional [arranged] marriage, 70% were successful. In other words, the success rate in marriages described as traditional was six times more than those described as “love marriages”. (Risaalah ila Mu’minah, p. 255)
Now let us look at the state of affairs in western societies where Valentine’s Day is celebrated, and ask, what is the state of marriage relationships in those societies, and do these celebrations have any positive effect on interactions between husbands and wives?
Their own studies and statistics show the following:
1 – In an American study done in 1407 AH/1987 CE, it states that 79% of men beat their womenfolk, especially if they are married…! (al-Qabas newspaper, 15/2/1988).
2 – A study carried out by the National American Office for Mental Health states the following:
– 17% of women who go to emergency rooms are victims of beatings by their husbands or boyfriends.
– 83% of those who have previously been admitted to hospital at least once for treatment of injuries, were admitted as a result of beating.
The study added that there are more women who do not go to hospital for treatment, but deal with their injuries at home.
3 – In a report of the Central American Agency for Examination [FPT] it states that every 18 seconds there is a woman who is beaten by her husband somewhere in America.
4 – American Time magazine stated that around 4,000 wives out of approximately 6 million who are beaten die as a result of that beating.
5 – In a German study it said that no less that 100,000 women annually are exposed to acts of physical or psychological abuse on the part of their husbands or the men they live with. The real figure may exceed one million.
6 – In France, approximately 2 million women face beatings.
7 – In Britain, in an opinion poll in which 7,000 women took part, 28% of them said that they had been subjected to attacks by their husbands and boyfriends.
So how can we believe that Valentine’s Day is of any benefit to married couples? The truth is that it is a call for more permissiveness and immorality, and the forming of forbidden relationships…