Why Dating?

I do not agree with the anti-daters position that dating is just practice for divorce. While not all relationships are destined for marriage, I think that dating in necessary to be able to survive in a long time relationship. If a person has never dated anyone before, there is no way they will know how to act or behave when married. Dating is meant to be a learning experience if done right. I understand where the anti-daters are developing their ideas from but I think that they are going a little overboard. While the culture in the world right now may not promote many healthy relationships, that does not mean that good relationships cannot exist. Another way that the anti-daters may have gotten their points from is the high divorce rate now. However, I do not think this is due to dating, I think this is due to a lack of dating. Because getting a divorce is so accessible to people now, I think people are more likely jump into a marriage they are not ready for instead of dating for a longer time and making sure they are right for each other.
I agree with Freitas and King about their view of the anti daters having a fear of or mistrust for others. I do not think that this is a good way to live your life. If someone is so mistrusting of others there is no way they are going to be able to have a healthy relationship with anyone in the future. I also like that they said that dating is an opportunity to care for people on a different level. I think that it really is important that people do date and work on being romantic because it teaches us good practices for the future. While most relationships do not end in marriage, they are great learning experiences and I believe are very important for people to be able to have successful marriages in the future.
I think the argument for the pro-daters is what is more compatible with myself and my peers. No one that I  know would agree with the anti-daters because dating is how we learn what a relationship is supposed to be. If we feel that something is missing from a relationship we are in currently, then we know what to look for in the future. I think that dating is so important for us now because it teaches us what to look for in a partner so that we know we will have a successful marriage.
I think the "hook-up culture" in colleges is a different story. This does not promote a healthy dating lifestyle because it makes people think that one night stands are ok. It devalues real relationships because it makes it seem that the same amount of physical intimacy can exist between two people who do not know each other very well as and two people who are in a committed relationship. The article on Busted Halo surprised me because of how people defined a hook-up. A majority of people interviewed said that a hook-up involved intercourse. This is a warped sense of how to behave in a relationship. The hook-up culture in college leads people to believe that this is normal and expected, but really it just makes it less special when people enter into and actual relationship.