Online daters in Michigan might be looking for proposals from would-be soulmates, but the state senate is considering a very different kind of proposal:

The Senate is considering legislation that would require an Internet dating company serving Michigan residents to disclose on its Web site whether it has conducted criminal background checks on users, based solely on the names provided. A provider also would have to disclose the limitations of background checks and urge members to adhere to safe dating practices.

It’s actually not a bad idea for dating sites to provide a more thorough type of verification and some sites already provide this additional verification as an added feature (and usually for an additional fee). This additional checking does help keep the crazies out, but should this ever be any kind of state law?

No.

Not only would this be virtually impossible to enforce, but crazies would still find a way to slip through the system. What a law like this might actually do — but it’s still a horrendous idea — is further help to expose the many fake (primarily elligible women) entries that exist in online dating sites. Haven’t you always wondered how some dating sites can just start out with tens of thousands of people lonely for love? Hmm …

Did this post make you go hmm?

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