Is it incurable insanity or just irreconcilable differences?
Incurable Insanity? Seriously. In California, there are only two grounds someone can site in seeking a divorce, and they’re (1) irreconcilable differences and (2) incurable insanity.
That’s been the law in California since 1970 when we became a no-fault divorce state. In other words, you can get a divorce simply because you and your spouse no longer get along or because he or she is insane.
As to the insane, it’s tempting, I know. But trust me, it’s a technical term and probably doesn’t apply to your spouse despite everything he/she does or says.
So why do I get an I-Pad “alert” eagerly telling me that when Maria Shriver filed for divorce from Arnold Schwarzenneger she cited “Irreconcilable Differences” as the grounds? Habit is my best guess. When we were a fault state, the cited grounds in celebrity divorce was a juicy tidbit of information. Why are they divorcing? Was it Cruelty? Abandonment? Adultery? Something else? You can see the gossip value in knowing why.
Now, even though the grounds is basically meaningless, the press insists on repeating the breaking news that “irreconcilable differences” was cited. Clearly, this is an example of institutional habit….unless they’re making the point that Maria doesn’t believe Arnold’s incurably insane? (Sorry. The incurable insanity comments bubble to the surface real easily.)
The next time you hear “irreconcilable differences” cited by the press, you can be the smart-aleck among your friends, exclaiming with sincere disgust, “Well, of course!! What else was going to be cited? Incurable insanity?” Most people (including the press, apparently) aren’t aware of this interesting piece of information. Share it and you’ll look sound really smart. And it might come in handy at your local pub quiz. You can thank me later.
