The Year of the Rat Reading 16: "Millions of Women are waiting to meet you"

This books title alone will make you pick it up. This book bills itself as a memoir about internet dating. And it is that. But it is also an examination of the wacky world of sex. This book is full of sex. It is also funny. It is not as funny as "Portnoy's Complaint," but it does make one chuckle. It also makes one shake their head. Why? While reading this I sometimes wondered if I was reading the confessions of a dog in heat. The author was looking for a wife but he was also letting his little head run his life. He didn't seem to have an ounce of self-control. This, of course, makes me wonder: Why do I have so much self-control? Is there something wrong with me?
So I wonder: does this book reflect the realities of dating and sex? I don't know. I know it doesn't reflect my reality. In the book, the author talks about three pregnancies that he might be responsible for. The first one was aborted, the second miscarried and the third wasn't here. He talks about them briefly but really there could have been a whole book on the moral dilemma that is in this moments. He talks about how these unfortunate events led him to his current happiness. So in other words he is saying how his current success was helped along by walking over others. There is no time for any moral considerations in his lifestyle. He is only pure animal in his behavior.
This book did make me think a bit about my own failings in dating. I really am not too good at it. Maybe I am too selfish. Maybe I like my freedom. This summer I have had news from a few old girlfriends. One is happily married and has a child. I am happy for her. I know her husband and he is a good, solid guy. He offers her so much more than I could ever do. Another is getting divorced. I feel for her. She broke my heart in my 20's but I have since recovered and now I am worried about her transition. I also felt a connection with her when I saw her but time changes everything and one can't live on nostalgia. Finally another old girlfriend has recently gotten married and I feel relieved. I have managed to avoid it with her. So in this instance I am happier for myself than I am for her. (Summer is long for a teacher and you have lots of time to reminisce.)
So this book is one to get you thinking, but it is also a book that shows how messed up the world of dating and morality really are. I don't know if it has always been this way, but I wonder if we are approaching a new dark ages where morality is completely thrown out the window.
The other day I was listening to Larry King. Obama had just picked Biden to be his vice-president nominee. A caller called Larry King. He said he had always voted for Democrats but he couldn't vote for Obama because he had chose a plagiarist as his vice-presidential candidate. I though to myself: so you will vote for Clinton and his adultery but you won't vote for Biden because he stole from some other guy's speech. Stranger moral code. This book fits into this category.