F**k Yes or No

Read a great article by Mark Manson called “Fuck Yes or No.” He contends that relationships, dating, and mating dances need not be as complicated as they are. Basically you just eliminate all the grey areas and being in relationships where one partner is less enthused than the other. You say goodbye to all the intrigue and drama of trying to persuade someone to date you, sleep with you, marry you, buy your book about growing up in the ‘60s.

I’m distilling the article down to just a couple of paragraphs. But the gist is that if someone is not into you they never will be so move on. And if you’re not really into someone move on as well. So when you’re deciding about somebody your choices are “Fuck yes!” or “No.” Blow off all the game playing, arbitrary rules, etc.

The article, especially the way Mr. Manson details it, makes great sense. His arguments are logical, reasonable, and sound.  I wish I had read it while I was in college.  God, the years of therapy it would have saved me.

The only problem with "Fuck Yes or No" is for writers. On CHEERS we’d have no Sam & Diane if they followed this advice. If we couldn’t have mind fucking, power struggles, game playing, shifting attractions, illogical decisions, indecisions, hurt feelings, anger, embarrassment, misunderstandings, and aftershave jokes we’d have no show.

Same goes for all romantic comedies. Imagine Aaron Sorkin characters not over-thinking every molecule of their relationships. Or just watching Pam and Jim for a half hour each week answering phones and trying to drum up new business. If “Fuck Yes or No” was practiced on THE MINDY PROJECT there would just be thirty minutes of Mindy mugging (not to mention the problem this would cause ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY radio on Sirius/XM if they couldn’t speculate on her love life for six hours a day).

For us writers, messiness, conflict, damaged egos, lying, false expectations, and lovers making asses of themselves is the oxygen we breathe. In our world bad sex is good sex. For artistic purposes life is still High School. For Mr. Manson’s REAL world life is Costco.

What do you guys think?