“1. support, “mishegos” etc. have a minimal if any impact on TOTAL number of shidduchim/participants who land chairs, simply who gets the chairs, same for a apushatayid’s comment.”
Really? Tell it to all those who have been relegated to the sidelines as spectators because their fathers couldnt pony up the cash or didnt go along with the latest “mishegos”. Pull these specatators off the sidelines and add them to the pool of available players and lets see what happens to our “crisis”. I am willing to bet that a good majority of those single girls in the recently published data are girls who were denied player status due to money or some other “mishegos”.
“2. However, this isn’t the thread where i’ll debate those points. If you have ideas for easing the numbers which you readily admit is a chunk of the problem we are all ears.”
All ears? Increase the number of players by easing or forgoing the entrance fee (demanding support and adherence to the latest mishegos) and you are well on your way.
“3. I don’t think any poster mentioned anywhere that it is “forbidden” to suggest a shidduch that isn’t close in age. The discussion is simply how to facilitate that far far more such shidduchim take place. Either by increasing chairs or decreasing participants”
Nobody has forbidden a shidduch except for you. You are advocating NOT redding shidduchim where boy is year or two older than girls! everyone else is advocating redding shidduchim that make sense, no matter what the age.
“4. and of course if you think/believe/have evidence of other contributing factors to the problem. BY ALL MEANS get to work and alleviate them. For whatever it counts I’ll be your biggest fan.”
The biggest problem is that people have invented a problem! Until people get over this infatuation with “age gap” we will always have a problem.