By R. Brownell
According to the Independent Institute, when Match.com launched on April 21, 1995, only 14 percent of U.S. adults used the internet for dating purposes. Just about twenty years after Match’s launch, which has since been followed by literally thousands of other dating sites and forums, about “60 percent of people think that online dating is a good way to meet people… One-in-five adults ages 25-34 have used online dating.” This isn’t just something for the millennial generation either, since older adults are also getting into the online dating scene. The Beacon recently discussed the growing variety of dating sites matching the ever growing diversity of the world around us:
Chances are you’ve heard of the largest dating sites. Sites like Match.com, eHarmony, Zoosk, and okcupid all advertise on daytime and evening television. But the internet has opened up a world where people with all kinds of preferences can find love and companionship online. ChristianMingle provides a platform for Christians. Jewish? Check out JDate. For those with a penchant for pot, 420Singles could help you find the Cheech to your Chong. Look like you should be ringing bells in Notre Dame? Ugly Schmucks might just be for you! Want a partner who loves horses as much as you do? Saddle up and head over to Equestrian Singles. Gluten free? Yes, there is actually a dating site for that. Gluten Free Singles may help you find the man or woman of your dreams.
A diverse society demands diverse markets to match the needs of consumers, but one area has been seen as a giant taboo for this once ridiculed dating method: people with sexually transmitted diseases. Websites include “Positive Singles, Herpes People Meet, H-Date, and Herpes Passions” which offer a platform for people with STDs to meet others with STDs. These sites have caused some concern. The question hitting most people is whether or not a dating site for people carrying STDs creates the incentive to engage in self destructive behavior.
Maybe these sites are a bad idea, but consider the benefits of having these sites out in the open. Economic reasoning “may point us to the exact opposite conclusion, i.e. instead of more disease, such sites may actually decrease disease transmission,” because people know upfront what they’re getting involved with. Consider the additional emotional need of this for individuals ostracized because of their STDs. In a interview between psychologist Carl Hindy and USA today, this point was considered a major factor:
A lot of my clients are looking for relationships and they are on dating websites like eHarmony and Match, but then the question is, ‘When do I tell him or her that I have herpes? If I tell them right away, that person is going to go away. But if I let the relationship develop and wait to tell the person, is that betrayal?’” It makes dating really hard.
The existence of platforms such as these are proof of markets matching the demand of individuals where otherwise they were left to hang, and by pointing out problems such as STDs in turn people are helping downsize the spread, as a result creating a better and healthier society.
