[UGAalum94]

I should amend my statement:

When both parties are clearly adults and at the same basic stage of life, the same number of years might not be a big age difference. A 30 year old dating a 45 year old, a sixty year old dating a 75 year old, whatev.

When we're talking about relationships that started back in the past when people often quit school to go to work before they'd be out of high school today, I don't think someone dating a 16 year old girls was quite as weird (also because everyone in town was likely to know the guy and know if he was a creep). People took on full adult responsibility earlier; sociological studies I think bear our the idea that people are taking longer to be independent today than we used to, which implies that younger people were actually more mature in the past.

That said, dating a teenager today when you are in your thirties or older is almost always weird and creepy. Something is likely wrong with you developmentally if you continue to date people who are teenagers long after you're not a teenagers yourself. You should be more mature and the fact that a teen would be so easily manipulated by you or is still interested in high school stuff should turn you off if you're normal.

For every case today where it might be true love under unusual circumstances, I'll show you 20 where there's something wrong with the older party (and maybe the younger as well).