I'm confused

[widdershins]

I just did a little thinking and a few calculations and I'm a bit baffled.  There were 37 million Ashley Madison accounts exposed.  By 2014 records there were only 60 million married couples in America.  That means that if someone asked you to guess whether one or both people in any given marriage was cheating you could get way better than 50% by just answering "Yes" every time, based JUST on how many users there were.  That's not even counting the people doing it the old fashioned way and just screwing the neighbor's wife.  On top of that, 40-50% of marriages in America end in divorce.

So, here's the point of my confusion...where the hell are all those "traditional marriage" assholes from a few months ago?  Half of married people are going to get divorced at some point.  Better than half are having affairs.  Even assuming only a conservative 30 million marriages are not "traditional", it's still 30 million verses less than 100,000 or so predicted gay marriages.  Now, I don't have a math degree or anything, but 30,000,000 seems like more to me.  So where the hell are all those assholes fighting for "traditional marriage" now?  Wait a minute...I'm starting to suspect their fight may have had nothing whatsoever to do with traditional marriage...

[Termin]

 The problem with trying to defend "traditional marriage" is they never define what tradition they are talking about it.  At various times in history having multiple wives, concubines, lovers outside of marriage were all normal.

[GSOgymrat]

Many people using Ashley Madison are not married.

[TomFoolery]

By 2014 records there were only 60 million married couples in America.  That means that if someone asked you to guess whether one or both people in any given marriage was cheating you could get way better than 50% by just answering "Yes" every time, based JUST on how many users there were.  That's not even counting the people doing it the old fashioned way and just screwing the neighbor's wife.  On top of that, 40-50% of marriages in America end in divorce.

Many of the Ashley Madison accounts weren't American. Moreover, it seems like even Josh Duggar had two accounts.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

The graph leaves out the 75% of catfishermen..

[Mike Cl]

The graph leaves out the 75% of catfishermen..

No, that was in 'others'.

[TomFoolery]

No, that was in 'others'.

It was probably a large enough subset to deserve its own piece of the pie.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

No, that was in 'others'.

I doubt 3% is an accurate picture and it left out those poor defenseless super models stranded in African customs offices needing money to bring back their grandfathers priceless art collections..

[TomFoolery]

I doubt 3% is an accurate picture and it left out those poor defenseless super models stranded in African customs offices needing money to bring back their grandfathers priceless art collections..

Not to mention I wonder how many of these accounts were started by suspicious spouses trying to find proof their significant other was cheating...

The story of how I met my husband is sort of like that. :)

[AllPurposeAtheist]

Not to mention I wonder how many of these accounts were started by suspicious spouses trying to find proof their significant other was cheating...

The story of how I met my husband is sort of like that. :)

You were a super model stranded in African customs with your grandfathers priceless art collection?  What are the odds?

[Solitary]

I really don't care! I'm moving to California, get a motorcycle, and get high. 

[widdershins]

Many people using Ashley Madison are not married.

You're breaking my balls here.

[Johan]

I also suspect many people using Ashley Madison were not people, i.e. a shit ton of accounts were fake.

[TomFoolery]

You were a super model stranded in African customs with your grandfathers priceless art collection?  What are the odds?

He was a super model stranded at customs in Bangkok with his mother's priceless art collection.

Ok, not really. We met online after I created an account on a dating website in order to help a friend catch her husband cheating on her.

[widdershins]

I also suspect many people using Ashley Madison were not people, i.e. a shit ton of accounts were fake.

Okay, but the number 30,000,000 non-traditional marriages, in the sense that some will end in divorce or some are not faithful, is still a conservative number.  40-50% will end in divorce.  That number is established.  So, at best, you have to account for only 10% of marriages where a spouse is cheating and it will not end in divorce.  One such instance is the Duggar case, where the wife blamed herself and won't be leaving him.  Devout Catholics will often stay married even if they split up, one or both potentially seeing other people in a sexual capacity.

So, no, maybe it's not as bad as the Ashley Maddison raw numbers make it look, but it's till around half of all marriages being "non-traditional" without a peep from supporters of traditional marriage.