word of the week

State of Revenge: Imagine that you are married and one day you find out your spouse is cheating on you with someone else and, instead of going after your spouse for revenge, you go after the person your spouse is cheating with. Sound great? Sound fulfilling? Well it can happen if you live in one of these states: Hawaii, Illinois, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Dakota, or Utah. It's called alienation of affection and it's based on the (out of date) belief that a woman is the property of the man. According to alienation of affection it is possible for someone to steal the affections and feelings of your spouse. And if that's not gobbledygook then I don't know what is. In recent times more and more states have moved away from the fault divorce but some states cling to the arcane law. The bar association of North Carolina wants the law removed but that would, in essence, be advocating a bill that promotes adultery. And that's some screwed up logic. The law is not invoked very often but there have been more than 200 suits using the law in recent years. Here's a thought: Instead of going after the person your spouse is cheating with, why not just get on with your life and move on? Oh, wait, that's too haaaaaaarrrrrrrrrddd.

peace,

paul