Hey MM. Are you just going out for a movie and pizza or something like that?? I don't see a problem at all with dating as long as you are not taking her for "drinks"

I see no problem with me last year dating a 21 year old.
She better be hawt though.

In the UK the age of consent is 16, anyone over the age of 16 can date and sleep with anyone else over 16. I met claire when she was 20 and I was 31, 3 years and 1 baby later we are stronger than ever.

Heh heh, you said peener *snickers*

On subject, any holes a goal eh?! Am I right?! No? k

*slinks off in disgrace*

I think everyone has valid points. Although, when I was 17, I was in college, so I wasn't a "high schooler" anymore.

Good idea, bad idea, only you know that because you know her. And I think it depends what kind of relationship you are looking for. Having been divorced and thrust back into the dating world in my 30's, you find at any age that everyone can have different expectations when it comes to dating.

Any relationship has the potential to be a not so good idea.

i think it really depends if your a female high school teacher or not. it really seems to be the new fad for female HS teachers to "date" their students.( I dont mean all, so any female HS teachers here please dont be offended). heres my $.02: if she's hawt/ or you dig her, retain friendship. wait till she is of "legal tender". then pounce like an ally cat on a defenseless little mouse! just dont get suckered into that whole "your like a brother to me" paradox!

Stories!

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I had a friend in junior high who dated a 23-year-old when she was 13. Yes, they had sex. He was also her dealer. We stopped being friends shortly after they broke up and she got one of the other girls in our group to be her girlfriend.

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Zach was 18 when we met; I was 15. He wanted me (bad) (I don't mean sexually, btw) but he waited because he knew I was too young at the time.

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The best man at Zach's brother's wedding met this girl when he was 18 and he fell for her hard. She invited him to her birthday party and when he got there, he found out that she was turning 13. He was crushed, but he told her he'd wait for her. Her dad wanted her to have a normal teenage life and she did. He waited until she was 19 and they got (and are still) married.

If age doesn't matter...i.e. 17 to 21 than it shouldn't matter if a 14 year old dates a 10 year old. Not the same? It is. My grandparents were 9 years apart. Imagine their scandal! I am of the opinion that until both parties reach 21, age does matter. As Lark said, there is no way I would have been allowed to date him when he was 21 and I was 17.

21/2 = 10.5 + 7 = 17.5

She's barely your 1/2 + 7.


From the standpoint of someone who had been a 17a girl, I'd say it's probably not a good idea. 17 year old girls usually aren't ready for the same sort of relationship a 21 year old male would want.

IMO go for the older(not old) ladies. they can really teach you something! something around the vintage of 35 to 40 yrs old. thats if you dont want someting too serious. being at the age of 21 maybe a short term thing may be cool. but if your looking for love and not lovin, stick with the +3/-3 ratio. that way you have stuff in common plus a +3/-3 ratio you dont have to consern yourself with any numerical age issues. But at 21, my advice is explore, get a mature woman w/know-how! sugarmommas are the new hip thing.

Thankfully people are not the same and so sweeping generalisations like "no 21 year old shall date a 17 year old" are nonsensical.

Depends entirely on the two people involved.

Interesting though that everyone bar Suebe assumed that dating automatically meant sex.

The question paraphrased was "Is it OK for a 21 year old to spend time with a 17 year old?", not "Is it OK for a 21 year old to rut like a moose with a 17 year old?"

great point!
to be honest thats what i thought too. maybe thats a society issue? (a whole other thread in itself)

I love older women.

+++ Would Date Again.

Red head, under 30, older then me. My perfect woman.

Maybe it's just me but maybe not. In adults dating is a prelude to sex.

I didn't presume sexual relations. The simple fact for me was that there was a huge difference between what I expected in a relationship at 17 and what I expected in one when I was 21, and I think it's a safe guess that the same hold true for men. Sex was part of that for me, but that wasn't implicitly assumed for all relationships.

So if sex isn't presumed, they can't do things together??

When I was 17 I hung out with a guy that was 3-4 years older than me. There was nothing sexual about it. We would go to the movies, out to eat etc. He came to visit me at college. You could say that we were dating. Most of my friends were older because I was always the youngest in my class in high school, college, etc. so I tended to have female and male friends that were older.

He may have wanted it to be sexual, but it wasn't.

In the same way that going to an interview is a prelude to a job.

It's quite an assumption that a date will automatically lead to sex.

And the question was about dating, not even having a relationship.

like nooey (btw, yeah that's my new nickname for you imnotyoo), i dated a 21 year old when i was 17. it was a really bad experience (the worst one of my life to date, actually), but i attribute that more to that particular person rather than the difference in age.

i think it's alright. i'm still iffy on it, but only because young people tend to still be developing who they are and all that jazz. however, i kind of lump early 20-22 year olds in the same category as "teenagers." you don't magically become an adult when you hit 21. i really do believe these things should be judged on a case-to-case basis. not all 17 year olds can date 21 year olds. but hell, i know 27 year olds who shouldn't be dating ANYONE, period.

i figure a lot of it on this, too: is it okay for a 27 year old to date a 31 year old? sure it is. what's the difference? i just feel that if a 17 year old can't handle a relationship with a 21 year old because they're not an "adult" then i don't think they're ready to handle being in ANY relationship, including dating someone their own age or younger.

A. bad idea, plain and simple

B. PA? Are you serious? You're going to use the state of pennsylvania justification!AAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Ummm... Yes?

Because I live there.

Wouldnt make much sense adopting the ideas and policies of Iowa. hehehe