Google's War on Cougars
God damn it, Google somehow made us sympathetic towards a really dumb dating website. Amazing! CougarLife "is the premier online dating service that pairs women in their prime with younger men." Google refuses to run their ads, because of sexism.
Google has classified the site as an "adult" service, which means its ad is banned from appearing on the over 6,700 websites Google serves. But here's the thing: They allow equally-if-not-more-stupid dating websites, but only if it's older dudes looking for younger women! So, Seekingarrangement.com is allowed to advertise for sugar daddies and their respective babies, but cougar ladies and their "cubs" are deemed unsafe for the tender eyes of children. Which, of course, is sexism because it is traditionally OK for older men to be sexually assertive until their penis wrinkles into a lump but women are supposed to turn into neutered spinsters as soon as they hit 43.
So now, any ad with the word "Cougar" in it will be automatically placed in the adult category, according to the Times. Which should make promoting the next Washington State University basketball game sort of tough. CougarLife's cougar CEO, Claudia Opdenkelder, is speaking out in the Times about the double-standard Google applies to dumb niche dating websites:
It's age and gender discrimination. It's just about older, successful, independent, strong women who enjoy someone that's younger. Some of the men sites, they are borderline prostitution, and Google has no problem having them advertise."
Here is how you avoid the double-standard: Ban all the ads for all these dating websites, from Cougarlife to cheating matchmaker Ashley Madison, to Arrangementseekers.com. Not based on any impropriety, but because they are just really terrible ideas which only add sadness to the world.