redblueamerica.com

A fascinating article in Sunday's New York Times about how many angry young Egyptians are turning to conservative Islam (and becoming easier recruits for extremists) as a solace for their frustrated ambitions.

And why are they frustrated? Because they can't afford to get married -- largely because there are too few jobs for too many uneducated Egyptians. But also because weddings are becoming way too expensive:

Diane Singerman, a professor at American University, said that a 1999 survey found that marriage in Egypt cost about $6,000, 11 times annual household expenditures per capita. Five years later, a study found the price had jumped 25 percent more. In other words, a groom and his father in the poorest segment of society had to save their total income for eight years to afford a wedding, she reported.

The result is delayed marriages across the region. A generation ago, 63 percent of Middle Eastern men in their mid- to late 20s were married, according to recent study by the Wolfensohn Center for Development at the Brookings Institution and the Dubai School of Government. That figure has dropped to nearly 50 percent across the region, among the lowest rates of marriage in the developing world, the report said.

The article doesn't say why weddings are getting so expensive in the Middle East, but I can proffer a guess. America is a bad example:

A new survey entitled "American Wedding Study 2006," conducted by The Conde Nast Bridal Group, reveals that the average amount spent on weddings has increased to $27,852, up nearly 100% since 1990 when the average cost was $15,208.

Inflation, I imagine, accounts for some of that increase, but not all. Americans are very often ending up in hock because their weddings exceed their abilities to pay for them, and it's silly. I just can't see what's romantic about going heavily into debt. If we're setting an unsustainable example for the rest of the world, the results could be, literally, dangerous.