World Wide Web Of Lies

Why do men OFFER (as in, announce unasked) that they aren't dating anyone when that's a lie? I'm a busy 30-something woman, meeting men almost exclusively online. A guy will often tell me right away (on the first date) that he isn't seeing anyone. I stumble on the truth by accident on Facebook and what-have-you, lose trust for him, and stop seeing him.

--Baffled

The male brain is quick to note that eHarmony could be the ticket to eHarem. Even if a man's looking for "that special somebody," he may be dreaming of a stable of somebodies and feeling a little guilty about it. Or, maybe he's dating a few somebodies but "there's nobody" means "nobody of consequence." Women evolved to seek commitment from men, and men co-evolved to understand that. Sometimes even an okay guy will engage in some duplicity to make the initial sale -- waiting to see whether he's into you before he ditches Helga, Svetlana, and Amber. You likewise might consider going on a few more dates to see more of a man's character (or lack thereof) before making your final decision. Then again, maybe the best reason to ditch one of these liars is stupidity: a guy telling you he's all lonesome, he hasn't seen a women in years -- just hours after his last date was streamed live on the Internet from some bar.