Tracy Quan on the rescued Chilean miners:
Much was made over the miner whose mistress greeted him as he emerged from the ground. But if nothing else, it put normal, middle-class adultery in the spotlight in a most refreshing way. ...
While it's tempting to believe that people in other countries are more open-minded about infidelity, it's never simple. ... In cultures where things seem more relaxed, battle lines still form around legal status. ... At Camp Esperanza last month, a Red Cross worker spoke to the Telegraph about girlfriends who are surprised to discover their men are also married. A few miners have parallel families who didn't know about each other until they arrived at the site.
Do these liberal attitudes apply to women who commit adultery? Quan doesn't tell us. In her column, it's natural for men to want more than one partner and liberal women will understand that. But marriage is about more than love and sex -- there are financial and legal ramifications. Chile didn't
legalize divorce until 2004, and the process seems complex and costly.