Aunt Jane: "There once was a man named Trent"

There once was a man named Trent

Who hated to part with a cent

Until he met a spender of the opposite gender

Now he's not saving, he's spent

~ Aunt Jane, cousin of Ernest Duffy (my grandfather), at the age of 98, December 13, 2010

Anonymous woman on dating prospects

Finding a good man is like finding a parking place; the only available ones are handicapped.

~ Anonymous woman

Kevin Duffy on the credit bubble's distortion of the meet market

Bubbles/manias cause misallocations of capital and economic distortions, but also social distortions. Expectations detach from reality - all part of the same disease.

I think most single women (and men) have a completely distorted sense of reality. Women expect to marry a guy who will keep them in the lifestyle to which they'd like to become accustomed. So they tend to be attracted to men who are "fooled by randomness" or fooled by being temporary beneficiaries of the mania or the overall decline of society.

Here are some examples. Today's bubble beneficiaries include a bunch of milquetoast investment types, any lame-brain who sells real estate, homebuilders, etc. Declining-society beneficiaries include a host of parasites: personal injury lawyers, politicians, lobbyists, etc. (Let's not forget the honest beneficiaries: rappers, tattoo artists, strippers, hookers, etc.) Of course, these people have inflated opinions of themselves, exude confidence, and attract plenty of hollow gold-diggers (whose rapid growth has been a bi-product of the mania). They're all set up for a rude awakening which - hopefully - will bring some semblance of reality back to the dating process. It will also bring a lot more divorcees onto the meet market.

~ Kevin Duffy, Bearing Asset Management, May 3, 2005