Staff Reports
They say our culture has rejected marriage and anything that looks like commitment, but a TikTok woman has reminded millions that traditional boundaries still matter. Bailey McPherson, who posts as @bmcpher, published a short clip titled “Rules my husband and I have for our marriage that make people ANGRY,” and her blunt, faith-rooted list exploded across social media. Conservative Americans should be glad someone is willing to speak plainly about what keeps a home strong rather than appease the crowd.
Her rules are simple, practical, and unapologetically traditional: no friends of the opposite sex, no being alone with members of the opposite sex, and no texting others without your spouse knowing. That’s not some fringe doctrine — it’s a boundary aimed at preserving intimacy and protecting families from temptation and confusion. In an age when social media flirts and pornography are normalized, setting clear expectations around opposite-sex friendships is not control, it’s protection.
In a follow-up video she expanded the list to include no lusting after others, no following scandalous pages, and always putting each other first — even ahead of parents. Those additions expose the deeper problem most pundits refuse to name: our sexualized, attention-seeking culture has eaten into marital fidelity and respect. Banning pornography and public lusting again isn’t about mistrust, it’s about reclaiming the sacred covenant of marriage against corrosive modern trends.
Unsurprisingly, the clip went viral — racking up millions of views — and drew a nasty chorus of outrage from online critics who equate boundaries with “control.” But millions also clicked because they know something the coastal elites have forgotten: marriage is a covenant that deserves rules, not a wishlist to be negotiated in public comments. The woman even disabled comments after the pile-on got so toxic, which tells you everything about how social platforms treat anyone who defends traditional marriage.
Some outlets tried to reduce this to a debate about trust versus control, even invoking the so-called Billy Graham rule as a relic. The truth is millions of real families — especially Christian households — already practice similar boundaries because they work, not because they’re fashionable. When pornography consumption and casual hookups have become cultural defaults, reasonable safeguards like not texting strangers or following lurid accounts are common-sense steps to protect what matters most.
If conservatives want to lead, we should stop apologizing for advocating commitment, clarity, and holiness in private life. This viral moment is an opportunity to defend normalcy and to push back against the idea that any plea for modesty or fidelity is regressive. Hardworking Americans who build families deserve applause for choosing accountability over attention — and a movement that honors marriage should be proud to stand with them.
Don’t let the outrage-industrial complex gaslight you into thinking boundaries are mean or outmoded. Millennials and Gen Z are hungry for stability, and creators who model long-term loyalty provide a map through the chaos. The only thing more patriotic than standing up for our flag is standing up for the family, and that requires rules, courage, and the willingness to be called “old-fashioned” by people who’ve lost the plot.
