It's time to evolve. Time waits for no man. For the people who are ready put down the PUA books, and look inside.
I will quote from a movie that I will keep nameless: "People are afraid of what's inside".
There might be something in what lightsleeper has said.
I would say the PUA stuff is good for guys who have taken the time to really look at social interaction, even if they didn't understand it.
Fortunately or unfortunately, I am no self proclaimed guru (like the Kidd). Everything I learned, I learned from the PUA community in addition to my own experiences, so this topic is a bit personal. What I am saying here is that there is no way I could know what I know now without having been involved in it.
There is also a deep sense of irony involved in guys who come to forums like these and bash the community. If the community doesn't help you at all, YOU WOULD NOT BE HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE. You would have gone somewhere else. You would have gone home. Please note that coming on a forum which discusses women and the community means that you are still part of that community. If you give your attention to something, then you are part of that something. Kidd, you may have bypassed your learning in the community, but you did not bypass the community. I first met you in the Zan Perrion forum. The same goes for one other guy, who now is a very good friend of mine. If I am not mistaken, the same goes for many other members here who were previously part of that particular forum.
You talk about evolution there TheDude, it is happening. It cannot NOT happen. It is the nature of life itself. it has happened/ is happening within the community, if you actually took the time to care to look, you would see that we started from Speed Seduction to Mystery Method to Double Your Dating to the Blueprint - which is so advanced in itself that it would probably take some product to top it. Each one an improvement on the other. This evolution occurred on the basis for the desire for increased knowledge and more importantly, consistency in becoming successful with women.
Whether it's personal awkwardness in social interactions, understanding female manipulation, attaining sex, attaining a long term relationship, marriage or simply peace of mind - every single desire is right and valid. If a guy wants to learn how to behave around women, where is he going to get this advice? From his dad? From his friends? From women? From Men's Health magazine?
Where is this advice going to come from in a society like this? Are any of those sources good sources to learn from? Would you not agree that the PUA community is a massive step up from all of the above?
Tell me something PUA basher, how do you think that a multi million dollar business industry is able to support itself with literally no mainstream advertising, no mainstream marketing, no mainstream promotion, no mainstream sales? You can't walk in to Argos or Target and buy a David Deangelo product. Tyler's name is not draped across a billboard, there is no Zan Perrion commercial on MTV either.
The entire industry is self sustaining. What's more is that the entire customer base is made up of men. This is astonishing in itself since women are the biggest buying demographic of anything that is sold today. From music to food to make up, it is women who are spending money. That is why so many products go out of their way to appeal to women (such as the Nintendo Wii) as there is money to be had in the female market. The community however, relies solely on two things; new business and repeat business - all male. There is no other place for revenue to be generated. There has been a best selling book and even an American television program called: The Pick Up Artist starring Mystery himself. The ratings for this show was very high but was still cancelled.
Why?
Not enough female interest.
In spite of all of this, almost no one in the mainstream has heard of the community or is even aware of the complexities of it's existence. Anyone who has heard of it, has dismissed it as child's play. It took me a good three months to find it. The industry is self sustaining because the desire for knowledge is so strong, you cannot stop guys from trying to get answers, particularly after going through some very nasty experiences with women. Women on the other hand have maintained their own PUA community for a long time. It is very, very advanced. You ever tried picking up a woman's magazine? It is
substantially well written in comparison to men's magazines and discusses issues with men at a PUA level. It teaches women how to manipulate men better and how to 'keep control of the relationship' with hundreds of women writing in every month with their tips, tactics and experiences. This is never criticised, unlike the PUA community and products which is shot down by anyone who comes into passing knowledge about it as simply 'guys trying to get laid'.
Even after purchasing my first product, I had no idea it was this massive group of guys who were asking such powerful (and very similar) questions. No one can force another person to buy a product. One can be persuaded, but never forced. If you are on the market shopping for a product it's up to you to decide if the product will do the job it says on the tin. It's up to you to research the product as far as possible before making the commitment to buying it. You cannot start buying products, then accuse the community for making you buy the products. You are supposed to be educated enough to make your own judgement. You can read, you can think for yourself. Read and think before you buy. Also, when you buy the product, take the time to actually read and listen to what's being stated in the product, this will give you a better chance of actually being able to understand the product you have purchased.
One of the biggest mistakes made by PUA bashers is their assumption that since the community couldn't help their own situation, then there is no way that other people could gain anything from it. I find that there is only one group of people who bash the community and that is men who are and continue to be sexually frustrated.
As frustrated as you might be, if you want to bash the community, do it somewhere else.