Value is subjective. Your perception of "drops into the dumps" isn't realistic given real-world evidence. In most cases, a single mother will find a second man and draw resources from both.
Discussion
Real-world evidence is that young, childless, never-married women are the most attractive marital prospects, by far.
Men aren't lining up to wife up divorced moms, although they're probably more attractive than never-married moms.
You are comparing smart and high-value men with average and normal men; and the highest value woman with the average woman. The truth is, if a woman isn't batshit crazy, infertile and obese, most men are blind to the implications of being a stepfather and would gladly marry a single mother.
In a fiat world, they usually draw resources from the government, methinks...
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Yup, and that is just "other mens' money".
An advanced society cannot stand to have women and children abandoned and begging. It also can't afford to fill the courts with divorce suits and child support fights.
If he doesn't pay, other people will pay, so he's just socializing his losses while privatizing his gains, if he doesn't adequately account for his own potential failure.
And "adequately" means "in line with his station", otherwise you risk a fued.
If you're a millionaire and you try to just dump her off on the side of the road with €1000 and say, thanks for the kids, but my new secretary is hotter 🤙, that's not gonna fly, cuz other men don't want that precedent set because it could negatively effect their own female friends and relatives.
No man is an island. No contract is created in isolation.
Advanced societies may adopt traditional values, with women thoroughly vetting suitors before committing. No sex before marriage!
Also, could women (and their parents) expect from suitors that they commit a certain amount of money as collateral, in case they renege on the contract? For example, sats in a multisig wallet as discussed here:
Yes, mentioned that in the previous thread.
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Bitcoin is particularly useful for this because of its deflationary nature. If you define relatively low amounts (with the biggest chunks at the beginning and after childbearing, as that is when her economic risk jumps), and she stays married for a long time, she'd still end up relatively wealthy.
Then, if he runs off with the secretary or becomes so abusive that she has to escape, she can cry into her champagne glass.
It also makes leaving him less economically attractive (as she forfeits future payments), without trapping her economically.
Find out the hard way