Yes, this exactly. Deception about important things from the get-go doesn't bode well for this situation panning out nicely.

I'd still be a bit shifty even without the deception, though. I think the age thing matters much less when both partners are adults. 16 is still really young, and for the most part teens and 20-somethings just aren't on the same page. There are exceptions, of course, but I am always very skeptical. Once both partners are over at least 20 I'm instantly more accepting of such a scenario.

I agree! Couldn't have said it better myself!

Darling, the gender wasn't the issue....
The issue was the age difference and the fact that the female is sixteen. It wouldbe just as bad in my eyes if it was a teenage boy and an older woman....

I agree with the thought of this relationship being based off a lie. I do not think it will work out. This girl is 16, I know when I was that age I wouldn't have been able to handle the type of relationship I have now that I am an adult. It's just not a good senario.

As to "if the parents are okay with it," the parents have yet to discover that this guy is 23. His thoughts on the matter are "well I have dated someone 6-7 years older than me, what's the difference?"
My opinon: BIG DIFFERENCE!

Exactly.

Technically, it's ephebophilia (attraction to teens between the ages of 15 and 19). Pedophilia is the attraction to prepubescent children, once the child hits puberty the predator is no longer interested and usually moves onto a new victim.

Yeah, this reminds me of two friends I used to work with.

The girl lied about her age on the job to everyone. When the guy asked her out, he thought she was 17 (legal age of consent in my state), but lo and behold, when he decided to break up with her because he thought she was crazy, she told him that she was only 16 and her daddy was a cop.

They had previously had sex and he was flipping the fuck out. I don't blame him. She started stalking him afterwards.

I've also known plenty of younger women who go out looking for older guys and do that bullshit. In fact, I have been friends with several of them. Why do they do it? To extort them out of money and to receive gifts. I think they're crazy bitches. It finally caught up with one of them when she got knocked up.

Amen

Also "everybody lies" and "it's not Lupus."

But mostly "everybody lies."

I agree 100%.

This! It's not the space between the years that matters. I mean, we don't think it's too weird when they're 28 and 35, right? Both adults that have been matured and grown up for a while. But 16 and 23 spans a LOT of maturing and changing time, no matter how "fully matured" we all thought we were as teenagers.

And it still bothers me that she got on a dating website for adults, bypassing all those "you must be 18 to register/enter" disclaimers and warnings (so obviously she cares little for the law and honesty) and any sexual relationship she gets someone to have with her is a felony.

I have a friend from high school that got tricked into a relationship exactly that way. He met her online and he was about 21 or 22 at the time. She lied about her age (she was 16), found ways to pull it off for weeks while they dated, then after she had sex with him she revealed to her parents what happened and now he's in jail serving a minimum of 5 years, has to register wherever he goes as a sex offender, and will NEVER be rid of that label for the rest of his LIFE.

So I don't care about what she or other teenagers think about their maturity level or how desperate they feel for a relationship with an adult, it's pretty horrible of them to lie about their age to basically entrap someone into feelings for them (or more) when it's a legal risk! If it's that important to you, wait till you're 18. If it's special, it can wait.

/end rant