Give the gift of Divorce this Christmas season!

I was reading The Province this morning when I came across a very odd article titled "Perfect gift for unhappy couples". Apparently a british law firm has come up with the "must have" present, having sold 54 of these presents in only three weeks. What is this "perfect gift"?... Divorce gift vouchers!

Yes that's right, for $216 you can give the gift of a broken family! These vouchers offer couples half hour or one hour long advice sessions with a lawyer.

Now, I'm not against divorce by any means. If people are truely not happy with each other or the relationship is a violent and unsafe environment, then there is no reason (no, not even children) to stay together. Staying together in a marriage that is just not meant to be, can make life worse for everybody involved. However, having said that, this doesn't mean that I would encourage couples to rush right out to the lawyer's office at the first sign of tension.

As most of you know, I come from a psychology background in my schooling and thus my approach to life. As a result, I believe that some relationships can be mendable through couselling and very aggressive self introspection. The offering of divorce "gift" vouchers seems like another way for divorce lawyers to aggressively market their proffession and encourage a rushed decision into divorce.

Can we talk about the name of these things too? Divorce "gift" vouchers. Since when has a divorce ever been a "gift" for anybody involved? I don't care how violent, oppressive, or turbulent a relationship is, the process of divorce is NEVER a "gift"! While it may be neccessary and may provide the parties involved a better, safer, and more worthwhile life after the fact, it is still a very hard and extremely emotional and wearing process. While it is technically their job (and thus the nature of being a divorce lawyer), these lawyers seem to be capitalizing on the strain that the christmas season sometimes brings to couples in slightly rocky situations.

It just makes me sad that you can actually add a divorce gift voucher onto your list of things to give to that special someone.