In my opinion, the guy pays on the first date. No exceptions. That's what differentiates it from two platonic friends hanging out. That's what makes it a date.
I don't think the guy has to pay for every dinner date, but he should pay for the first one. I always offer to pay for my meal on the first date and it's not a half-hearted offer. I mean it. What's unsaid, though, is that if he accepts then there will be no second date.
And you know what, that's almost never an issue. I've probably only gone out with 1-2 men in my lengthy dating life who allowed me to pay for my own meal on a first date. Even when it was pretty clear that we might not see each other again, most guys I've gone out with insist on paying.
I have noticed that this whole splitting-the-bill thing is often a function of the generational divide. In my experience, guys over, say, 45 usually insist on paying. It's only when I'm out with much younger men that they seem to be confused about their responsibility in this situation (confused is my word, probably not theirs). I blame feminism because younger guys grew up in a time when "equality for women" was supposedly accepted, and they're taking it a little too literally and apparently think it applies to dating. And I very much consider myself a feminist...I'm just not paying for my dinner.
What do y'all think? Who pays for the first date? Please take the poll to the right, and also add a comment telling me why you voted the way you did.
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