Anchorage Daily News

This week I heard a radio ad for an Internet dating site where, the sultry announcer said, "women outnumber men by 10 to one." The name of the site: "wealthymen.com."

Strictly out of professional curiosity, I checked it out. The home page promised women that here they would find (their grammar and punctuation) "professional men making over $100k a year. ... each profile is of real men who have excelled greatly in their life, but are still seeking a partner to share their experiences with. All women can set up a free profile, however, only a select few men can join Wealthy Men as each of our members are verified by a salary approval process. This is your chance to be a part of a larger than life experience in an online personals website who make their dreams a reality. Your prince awaits."

You have to register to get past the home page and, being a male who is eminently unqualified, salary-wise, I didn't do that. Instead I clicked on "customer service" and submitted a request for an interview with whoever runs this thing on the premise that readers might want to know what was on their minds when they thought it up. Well, we know what's on their minds -- increasing their own income by at least $100,000 a year -- but it would sound better if they said it.

I didn't get a response, but I did get an eyeful. The home page featured older men with chiseled faces posed next to young women with chiseled abdomens. The men wore pricey, formal-yet-casual fashions that brought to mind Hugh Heffner. The women were clad in underwear.

For men, the site had this message: "Tired of receiving few email/contacts due to so many guy members? At WM, you are the few and proud. Finally a personals site to celebrate your success. Enjoy. You've worked hard, now play harder."

I'm clueless about such things as true love, but do guys making $100 grand a year really have a hard time finding dates? If they're smart enough to earn that much through labor or well-managed investments, wouldn't they rather meet an accountant, MBA or tax lawyer than a lingerie model?

Maybe I shouldn't be shocked. It's just a cyber-age variation on a story as old as the Book of Judges. There are dating sites for born-again Christians, Orthodox Jews, lonely liberals and passionate conservatives seeking like-minded company. A site that connects guys who have too much money with gals who find six-figure incomes attractive in a man may be just what society needs.