No, Matt Drudge, you can't buy me a drink

Helen Thomas says something crazy (crazy anti-Semitic that is), and Drudge puts this picture up. It's not exactly a news item that Drudge is bending over backwards to drag Obama into this as if somehow he should not have appeared with an institution (for better or worse) of the White House press corp on their birthday just in case they say something nuts one day. Drudge is in a bit of downward spiral towards the lowest common denominator these days, no news there. But what makes this interesting is how willingly people accept this type of overt attempt at manipulation.

The bar pickup is a cliché at this point. Guy walks up to girl and tries through an awkward combo of humor, wit, and association with success indicators to essentially convince the girl that she should get with him. As any pickup artist will tell you, the key is to evoke an emotional response in the girl. And in most cases it's so transparent that it really doesn't do anything more than tell the girl, that yes, this dude is available. Women, the type that find themselves in this situation often, have a pretty good bullshit detection system. And culturally we hold women who haven't in somewhat lower regard. In films and television this scene centers on the question of "will she be dumb enough to follow for this self-interested overt grab?" We assume that only a sucker would fall for this and buy something they didn't already want. (Obviously if they like the guy before he opens his mouth this question is "will this idiot drop the ball?")

And yet, this is the same game that Drudge and others run all the time, and no one seems to be much put off by it. How is this type of overt attempt to evoke an emotional response or force an association any different than the unwanted advances of a pick up artist? No matter whether I agree or disagree with the sentiment being conveyed this way, I am automatically put off. And you should be too. Anyone trying to sell you something unsolicited should be distrusted until proven otherwise. Used car dealers, door to door salesmen, pick ups artists, Drudge and anyone else dragging unnecessary emotive elements into the conversation.