Idk like personal accountability and the many contracts you make, in writing or in speech, with your partner, and stuff. Something like that. It's not all guaranteed to fail just because of a few external perverse legal systems and shit.
Discussion
I don’t have any interest in making any sort of contract with the state. A marriage contract requires the state to be the enforcer. Unless you’re talking about an unwritten contract between a man and his partner. That’s fine but not marriage in the traditional sense.
You’re right that it is not guaranteed to fail but the odds are a coin toss that your marriage will fail. And that doesn’t account for the number of marriages that are miserable but stay together for the kids or because divorce is expensive. I know a decent amount of people that have been separated for many years but still legally married. Even more that are trapped in a loveless marriage where cheating is likely happening or inevitably going to happen.
I guess I'm living in anarchy in my head. I'm talking about a voluntary contract of marriage with reasonable terms. That's a good point that usually people mean a state instrument. Gross. Yeah I don't know about that one. I rely on private contracts as much as I can for everything. But that's an issue with statism and everything that accompanies statism, much moreso than an issue with the concept of a legally binding marriage.