Andy - I know you haven't exactly outlined the situation I'm about to mention, you simply mentioned a particular group of people - but I wanted to reply in respect of what I feel to still be a somewhat dubious perception about women.
I definitely believe in the family unit - for the most part it is invaluable. However, much of the work I've done over the last decade is within the community and I know of two-parent families where the kids are witnessing domestic violence before they've even left home in the morning for school. In a past 'nuisance youth' situation, only one child in the thirty-strong group came from a single-parent home.Many of the kids who get into trouble locally come from two-parent families. It just isn't possible to generalise and say that two parents = social balance, one parent = social destruction.
I was a single-parent who worked my socks off to get a mortgage, educate my son and keep him in activities and off the streets. Still, I was tarred with the 'single mother' brush. It never ceased to amaze me why, in what often seemed a witch hunt of single mothers, the man who had chosen to walk away was never mentioned. The focus is almost always on the woman. Who, incidentally, chose not to terminate, adopt or walk away. Odd.
There are single parents at every level - the Royal family, for example, is or has been mostly single mothers (i.e. Diana, Sarah, Anne, and minors). The same is true of celebrities. Very few cast aspersions on these single parents because they are financially able - the perceptions are different. This leads me to believe that money, not marriage, is the variable.
I'll climb off my portable soapbox soon
Having also worked closely with local bobbies and the like, the truth of the matter is that the police have very few powers. They want to curb the nuisance youth issues but have few laws to use. The edict from on high is that we shouldn't criminalise children, thus, when they get into trouble, the options available to the police and JP's are limited.
Parents no longer support teachers. Police cannot act. Children are fully aware of their 'human rights' . Coupled with the daft health and safety measures and the overly-cautious child protection issues and you have absolutely no way to give a kid the boundaries they need. People are increasingly backing away from working with kids because it's just too darned risky. Perhaps you saw a recent documentary on TV where a couple of child actors posed as lost children in a shopping mall - literally hundreds walked by them, too nervous to approach and offer help. Similarly, youth clubs, sports schemes and so on fail because either a) people are too wary to work with kids or b) the community is too apathetic to support the schemes and work together. It's always someone else's responsibility.
Back in the 80's and 90's the competitive element was removed from schools. The rationale was that children shouldn't feel failures at a young age. I can remember my son growing up in that era and playing football - to my horror he got a medal simply for turning up at 5-a-side competitions. Winning had no place. The knock-on effects of that are kids who do expect something for nothing. Programs like the X-factor, Big Brother or highly paid sportsmen have made celebrity desirable. Kids want to be famous and look up to dubious role models.
I've mentioned parents, but I'll mention them again - many do not support their children. Some don't question where their kids are going, who they are with or what they're planning to do. I don't say this as a generalisation, but as a result of working experience. The more parents opt out, the more the government is invited in.
People do have a voice but they are often too apathetic to use it. Certainly, the last decade or so of spin has left many cynical. Still, I notice how easily people are deceived by the celebrity culture themselves - voting for the politician who has the most charisma or voting for a specific party because they always have - as did their father before them. If they really want something done they need to find their own voice and get involved with their community rather than wanting the government to do it all - and then freaking out because the State is beginning to control.
Now, where's my spanner - I really need to dismantle this soap box