There are sites dedicated to helping people find mates online

Would you resort to the Internet to find a man? I most definitely would not but apparently many women from all walks of life would, and are doing so. So much so that there are even businesses dedicated to gua-ranteeing positive matchups online. Some of these relationships have ended in marriage but, conversely, many have ended disastrously.

You see, many predators use the cover of online dating services to take advantage of vulnerable and lonely women. I am of the view that organisations that are constantly carrying out 'studies', need to do a detailed examination of the minds of women who get to the point where going online to find a man is their only chance of getting someone to love.

Liberated feeling

I recently spoke to a woman when I discovered her browsing through screens of pictures and profiles online one day. She said it felt liberating. She thought it was the ultimate in being in control of her romantic situation. She was single, had a PhD, with a great job, had one daughter for a married men, owned her own home and car and have a healthy bank balance.

I asked if she was not scared that these men could lie about their profiles to attract vulnerable women like herself. Wouldn't it be better if she had her friends select a few men from their circles for her to vet over a period of time?

With the state of violence against women and children these days, how can a decent and sensible woman put herself at risk in this way? When the 'getting-to-know-you' phase has passed and time comes for a face to face meeting, how do women plan for it? Short of packing a pistol in your bosom, what do you do in case it all goes downhill? And what if the proverbial frog waiting for you in the restaurant parking lot is not the handsome prince who stared at you for weeks on your computer screen?

I am not saying you are guaranteed to find Mr Right by dating normally, many women don't, (many are not meant to), but it smacks of desperation when you have to shop for a man like buying books on Amazon or buying shoes from DSW online!

If you or anyone you know has tried the online dating game, tell us about it at:lifestyle@gleanerjm.com