Back in the 1990s, Marilyn Manson was sort of a big deal in the music scene. In his 1998 album, "Mechanical Animals," most of his venom is directed toward the fake and disposable celebrity culture of which he was a part. I can certainly understand that sentiment. Back in my undergraduate days I was one of the more prominent and well-known members of the Greek community. Not on the order of Interfraternity Council board member, Greek man of the year, or student body president, but enough of the right people knew me for me to get inducted into the Order of Omega, the Greek leadership honor society. In spite of all that and the fact that I loved my own fraternity brothers dearly, I largely despised a lot of the Greeks outside of my fraternity. I despised people just like them when I was largely overlooked and ignored in high school and I despised them just as much when they accepted me as one of their own. I simply could not find anything to like about them.
But anyway, one of the songs from "Mechanical Animals," called "User-friendly," says "I'm not in love, but I'm going to **** you, until somebody better comes along." Just like most of the rest of the album, there is some very inappropriate lyrical content so don't bother looking it up, just take my word for it. This song specifically addresses the use-and-throw-away mentality of the celebrity culture, which is quite similar to the hook-up culture amongst more ordinary people. A similar mentality unfortunately takes place outside of the hook-up culture as well. In these cases, people mess with other people's minds instead of messing with their bodies.
A guy could be a charmingly aggressive corporate type, just the kind of guy that shallow girls tend to like the most, and he could whisper sweet nothings in her ear. Or he could just say whatever it is he says that gets her to want to hang around with him all the time even if they've only just met and hardly know each other. Or he could casually yet aggressively invite her to a group social activity, but with an ulterior motive. But he could also break away from her at the first opportunity, like if she has to move to a different town, or even a different country, for some time. For him, this game is easy come - easy go so if he meets someone "better," it would be as if the first girl never mattered. His lips may promise but his heart is a whore.
A girl could look at a guy very intently or act in a flirtatious manner toward him, sometimes on multiple occasions with the same guy, but then she will meet someone "better." Within a day, or a few hours, her behavior around the first guy would completely change. It would be as if he never mattered. Somehow he went from being very appealing to very expendable over the course of a day, or a few hours. He was thrown away by a girl who was a fake.
Flirtation is not meant to last, it is for right now. A relationship is about keeping it real. It's about being true and sincere. It is built on honesty, not on lies. While a flirtation is always over as soon as things get difficult, a relationship sometimes involves making a loving sacrifice for the good of the other person. Before getting too emotionally involved with someone, think about the level of commitment that person is likely to be capable of. Do they have it in them to keep it real or are they just your fair-weather fans?
John 10: 11-18
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