Older dudes should stay the hell away from young women under the age of 20. Once she hits 20 (i.e., the age of a typical college junior), all bets are off. But when it comes to men who are more than ten years older than the woman in question, the age of consent shouldn’t really apply. If they’re under 20, keep your damn distance.

It is therefore fair and appropriate to condemn Matt Gaetz for having had sex with a 17 year-old on two different occasions at a party.

The $400 Gaetz gave her is, I believe, neither here nor there.

Step back for a second and ask if a man giving money to a woman he’s sexually interested in….well, isn’t that the way it usually works? An expensive dinner date, help on the rent, a weekend at a pricey resort, a trip to Europe for a week or two, diamond necklaces and bracelettes…sex without love or charm or serious passion can be a barren thing, but guys have always paid for primal pleasures. Way of the world.

Keep in mind also that there are seven states in which the legal age of consent is 17: Colorado, Illinois, Louisiana, Missouri, New York, Texas, Wyoming.

There are quite a few more states in which the legal age of consent is, believe it or not, 16: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, etc.

In short, there are roughly 35 states (more?) in which an adult male having sex with a 16- or 17-year-old, however distasteful or odious this might be if the male is significantly (more than ten years) older, is not illegal.
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