OkCupid has a VIP service where members can pay for the privilege of blocking out ugly and fat people. Seriously folks, why does OkCupid think it’s okay to get members to pay for a filter like this? Users can rate other members with one to five stars, and if you pay the fee, you get to search for the five star hotties. It is hard not to see that as a shortcut to shallowness. And once dating becomes a shopping trip, everyone starts looking like inventory.

I’m not the only one who’s slightly horrified by this. Online dating is hard enough, and many people are too self-conscious to be honest in their pictures and descriptions anyway. This will result in even more people lying about who they are, because they don’t want to be filtered out of a search. If we relied on the “hot or not” game, we’d all be screwed. People already feel pressure to look perfect online. A service like this only turns that pressure into a business model.

Isn’t attraction subjective? People like diversity, including large asses and bald heads. Luckily, we’re not all Stepford wives. It makes for a better, more attractive planet. I’m wondering what will come of all of this. They have had a good response so far, but keeping certain people out of the playing field is not improving the online dating experience. A real connection has never come from one narrow idea of beauty. That is exactly why this whole thing feels so backward.

They are turning it into the junior high lunch room, nothing but judgment. Isn’t there already a site specifically for beautiful people? If looks are what you care about, why not just go there? So far though, people are excited by the idea, which is both expected and disturbing. OkCupid is monetizing a service unlikely to bring users closer to better dates, relationships, or sex. It sounds clever on paper, but in practice it only makes the experience colder.