Based on what I’ve read, the uneasy relations between young Japanese men and women that has led to widespread postponement of marriage has many roots — including boorish, workaholic men who drink too much with their workmates. I’m not going to claim I understand the entire picture. But I don’t think the New York Times magazine ran this article  just to offer up an example of news of the weird. These are the kinds of things that emerge when gender gaps of any kind emerge, which means there’s a connection between this and the rising number of white, middle class women in this country electing to have children via sperm banks rather than husbands.

That’s what New York Times Judith Wariner posts. She may be right. Times columnist Frank Rich is certainly right about what the Sarah Palin phenomenon represents, a backlash from nonurban whites (primarily male) who feel alienated from recent economic, social and political developments.

The unequal education outcomes along gender lines is destined to trigger personal and social turmoils … at this point it’s only a matter of watching it play out. Check out the “changing economics” and “social consequences” links to the right.

This is an interesting one to watch. My assumption is the recession will hasten the demise of manufacturing jobs that traditionally draw more men than women. The unemployment numbers just released appear to confirm that, with men losing more jobs than women.

Now, fold other trends on top of that, such as women becoming better educated and increasingly dominating certain professions, and you get a volatile mix among couples — both those already married and those contemplating marriage.

Here’s Peg Tyre’s article (author of The Trouble with Boys) in todays’ NYTimes, “Daddy’s home, and a bit Lost.” (Photo courtesy of the Times)

If you’re new to this issue, sift through the “social consequences” links on the library to your right. My favorite graph from Peg’s article:

One mother in TriBeCa, who is married, at least for now, to a Wall Street executive, put it rather bluntly: “My job was to run the household and the children’s lives,” she said. “His job is to provide us with a nice lifestyle.” But his bonus has disappeared, and his annual pay has dropped to $150,000 from $800,000 a year. “Let me just say this,” she said, “I’m still doing my job.”