Men, Would You Ever Consider a Mail-Order Bride?

I know men -- here in the Tri-Cities -- who spend thousands of dollars every year to "date" women in Russia. Apparently there are small towns there that sponsor "group dates." All the Russian women who'd like to marry an American show up, and the American men interested in marrying a Russian woman fly in.

To be honest, I think a lot of the men are just engaging in sex tourism.

My acquaintance says no, he's really looking for that special someone. But he's been a couple times already and hasn't found her yet.

Why would you marry someone who doesn't speak English, you know nothing about, can't really trust and who shares nothing in common with you?

Because they're submissive, he said.

Maybe he doesn't mean that in a sexist way. Maybe he just wants men to be men and women to be women. Perhaps he's traditional (men should enjoy fixing cars and women should enjoy cooking).

Either way, I feel funny about men traveling to Russia to find their Stepford Wives.

But really I just want everybody to be happy. True love can flower and blossom in any respectful, supportive relationship. And mail-order brides wouldn't still be a thing after all these years if they always ended in disaster. What do you think?