Xcentrix Magazine  

She was s’pose to buy ya shorty TYCO with ya money
She went to the doctor got lypo with ya money
She walkin’ around lookin’ like Micheal with ya money
Should of got that insured got GEICO for ya moneeey
When Kanye West
wrote those words, he probably never considered that the
“she” in his hit song “Gold Digger” could as easily be a
“he.” But that is exactly what is happening at a growing
rate according to some experts. The increased education
and employment rates of women, coupled with their
rising earning power, have given rise to a new breed of
nuptial narcissist–the male gold digger.
According to a January 2005 Wall Street Journal
article, written by Sue Shellenbarger, more men may
be choosing mates because of money. The article cites
research by Megan Sweeney, an assistant professor of
sociology at the University of California, Los Angeles,
which shows marriage rates increasing more rapidly
among high-earning women. In other words, men are
finding wealthy women more attractive, at least when it
comes to marriage.
Patrick*, 38, is a proud gold-digger and successful
attorney. He says women consider themselves to be smart
investors.
“Women look at me as an investment in their future,
a future that will never be. Clearly, I am in no rush to get
married. However, if and when I do, she will definitely
have to be financially
strapped to support me
in the event I choose not
to work. I don’t mind
staying at home with the kids, but she can’t come to dinner
without bringing something to the table.”
Similarly brazen attitudes may not be as rare as most
would think. Sean*, 24, says he only dates overweight
women who have great jobs with good benefits. He is
completing his MBA and claims to be dating two women
who pay all of his expenses including food, rent, clothes
and books.
“If a woman wants to take care of me, who am I to stop
her?” he said. “I don’t consider myself a gold digger since
I am very open about my intentions and expectations.
I can’t say the same for my friends. For most guys, the
deception is half the fun.”
This is also the case with Californian Michael Perry.
“I count on a woman ignoring her intuition,” says the 33-
year-old self-proclaimed gold digger. In fact, to hear him
tell it, Michael may be something more akin to a gigolo
than a gold digger.
“Most of the women I date pursue me because of my
looks. When I tell them I’m not working and I get by,
it doesn’t seem to bother them. Some of them think it’s
cute and even bring me lunch at home during their lunch
break. They know I come with a price. A price they are
more than willing to pay in exchange for receiving what
they want.”
Michael says he was 25 years old before he paid for
dinner on a date. He says he learned how to get “anything
out of women” from his uncle during his teenage years.
Such is also the case with Tonya* and her ex-boyfriend.
The 27-year-old real-estate broker, Tonya says deception
makes gold digging immoral.
“They [men] have serious emotional and mommydetachment
issues. They are chicken-head men who have
not left the nest. Basically, they are bitches who prey on
women, but I blame myself for falling for the game and
being so naive”.
She believes the male gold digger’s “sense of
entitlement” coupled with a woman’s giving nature is
what perpetuates a growing problem for women.
And apparently she’s right about it growing. Herb
Vest, CEO of True.com, a matchmaking Website with
2.7 million users, told the Wall Street Journal that more
than one
third of the
site’s male
users were
seeking women with higher incomes than their own.
Only 20 percent of the men on True.com seek women
with lower incomes.
For some, the trend is a natural result of women’s
increased earnings. All of the admitted gold diggers
interviewed for this article said that there are more than
enough women with resources to support their man and
a willingness to do so.
Marc H. Rudov is the self-proclaimed guru of gold
digger danger. His website, www.TheNoNonsenseMan.
com, features dozens of articles and interviews about
gender imbalance including one article titled “How to
Lure a Gold Digger,” written November 2006, that lists
warning signs that men should look out for. Rudov says