The Daily Californian - Sharing the Wealth

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I'm told that if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. That's likely why I've never given polyamory a second thought. Openly dating two (or more) people without drama or moral conundrums sounds great, but there's got to be a catch, right?

Further research, however, indicates that there isn't, really. I mean, yeah, it's certainly not for everyone, but you can't really accuse polyamory of not laying it all out. It's right there in the name! Your boyfriend has another girlfriend or boyfriend-or you do. Everyone knows. Everyone is satisfied. And rather than unleashing that green-eyed monster, this arrangement actually brings you all closer together.

Of course, this is an ideal scenario. There are bound to be dysfunctional poly relationships, if only because people are inherently dysfunctional. I'm not advocating polyamory for all, because that would mean polyamory for me, and there is no way in hell. I'm just saying, I admire the openness, the communication, the everyone getting exactly what they want. We could stand to learn something from the polyamorous, even if we see our relationships as a strictly one-on-one deal.

But let me back up a minute. Just because this is Berkeley doesn't mean I should count on all my readers being familiar with the concept. Polyamory is not the same as an open relationship, which is basically a fancy way of saying you get to fool around on the side. Hey, I'm not condemning it-just drawing a distinction. Poly people have more than one relationship, not more than one fuck buddy.

I'm told that if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. That's likely why I've never given polyamory a second thought. Openly dating two (or more) people without drama or moral conundrums sounds great, but there's got to be a catch, right?

Further research, however, indicates that there isn't, really. I mean, yeah, it's certainly not for everyone, but you can't really accuse polyamory of not laying it all out. It's right there in the name! Your boyfriend has another girlfriend or boyfriend-or you do. Everyone knows. Everyone is satisfied. And rather than unleashing that green-eyed monster, this arrangement actually brings you all closer together.

Of course, this is an ideal scenario. There are bound to be dysfunctional poly relationships, if only because people are inherently dysfunctional. I'm not advocating polyamory for all, because that would mean polyamory for me, and there is no way in hell. I'm just saying, I admire the openness, the communication, the everyone getting exactly what they want. We could stand to learn something from the polyamorous, even if we see our relationships as a strictly one-on-one deal.

But let me back up a minute. Just because this is Berkeley doesn't mean I should count on all my readers being familiar with the concept. Polyamory is not the same as an open relationship, which is basically a fancy way of saying you get to fool around on the side. Hey, I'm not condemning it-just drawing a distinction. Poly people have more than one relationship, not more than one fuck buddy.

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http://www.dailycal.org/article/102248/sharing_the_wealth

http://www.dailycal.org/article/102248/sharing_the_wealth