Candy Day and the Census

Even the US Census Bureau is getting in on the Vday action.

For work I am gathering data on the status of women's health in AZ. As the census provides a variety of data, I was going to do a cursory overview of what might be useful and discovered a special US Census publication with facts and figures about valentine's day. And, if you look at the very bottom of the page, the Census provides data on a variety of special US holiday/observances.

Some data of note about Vday:
25.3 and 27.1
The estimated U.S. median ages at first marriage for women and men, respectively, in 2005. The age for women rose 4.2 years in the last three decades. The age for men at first marriage is up 3.6 years.

4.9 million
Number of opposite-sex cohabitating couples who maintained households in 2005. These couples comprised 4.3 percent of all households.

119
Number of single men (i.e., never married, widowed or divorced) who are in their 20s for every 100 single women of the same ages.

904
The number of dating service establishments nationwide as of 2002. These establishments, which include Internet dating services, employed nearly 4,300 people and pulled in $489 million in revenues.


My conclusion?
[Optimistic] The Federal Government has a softer side and a sense of humor.
[Critical] The Federal Government: Finding more ways to monitor YOU.


Also news to me- The tagline/slogan of the US Census Bureau: "Helping you make informed decisions." --Um, who exactly is that directed to? Apparently the Census does and provides more than I ever thought.