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| Also listed in: Campus Progress Blog |
An article on Cosmopolitan’s webpage gives readers some suggestions on where to meet guys. Among the list are the Apple store (because “most guys are natural gadget lovers”); a Fortune 500 or tech company (“Hint: Once you’re in, join the office Super Bowl pool”); and a grad school coffee shop (because some grad programs have larger male programs, “the dearth of chicks, combined with the little free time these studious dudes have to play the field, means they’re thrilled when you seek them out. So stop by a café near campus during exam time.”) Desperate? (Although did I expect good advice?)
But the one place I really want to mention: a political rally or campaign (“The hottest political organization these days is the Save Darfur Coalition.”) And for a political campaign, Cosmo says:
“The best part: Many senatorial and gubernatorial campaign teams are male-dominated. The atmosphere is intense (you’re all working hard toward a goal: the candidate winning), and there’s a set end point (the election), which lends itself to a love-for-the-moment attitude that’s conducive to love connections.”
Reducing serious issues into a dating game - I think this should slightly offend any activist who takes their cause seriously.
In the end though, I admit that I still read Cosmopolitan. I think most woman are intelligent enough to tell what advice to follow and what should be read for purely entertainment’s sake. At least I hope so.
To me, the problematic thing isn't that Cosmo assumes those places are male-dominated--it's that they ARE male-dominated. To some extent, political campaigns and many grad programs are run by men, if not largely populated by men.
On a more philosophical-dating-game level (is there such a thing?), Cosmo's a bad place to look for real relationship tips, but a great place to look for stuff like the article Erika quotes--tips on how to change your personality, habits and interests in order to meet a man.