An elderly Dutchman who wanted to date more young women on Tinder lost a court battle to lower his age so he could have more hook-ups.
The odd case of Emile Ratelband, 69, is one for the books. Ratelband filed a case before a Dutch court in the city of Arnhem in the hope of legally lowering his age from 69 to 49. His announced aim: attract more young women - and therefore increase his chances of flings -- on dating app Tinder.
The motivational speaker filed his court case in November. In it, he argued that he did not feel 69. He pointed out his request was consistent with other forms of "personal transformation" such as the ability to change one's name or gender, which are gaining acceptance in The Netherlands and around the world.
Ratelband tried to convince the court he suffers from "age discrimination."
"I feel much younger than my age. I am a young god," boasted Ratelband.
"I can have all the girls I want but not after I tell them that I am 69. I feel young. I am in great shape and I want this to be legally recognized because I feel abused, aggrieved and discriminated against because of my age."
He said we live in a time when you can change your name and change your gender. "Why can't I decide my own age?"
The court, however, begged to disagree with Ratelband's impassioned if somewhat quirky arguments and junked his plea.
The court said in its written decision that Dutch law assigns rights and obligations based on age. Among these obligations are the right to vote and the duty to attend school. It said that if Ratelband's request was allowed, those age requirements "would become meaningless."
The court said Ratelband is at liberty to feel 20 years younger than his real age and to act accordingly. Amending Ratelband's date of birth would cause 20 years of records to vanish from the register of births, deaths, marriages and registered partnerships.
"This would have a variety of undesirable legal and societal implications," wrote the court in its decision.
The court said there are other alternatives available for challenging age discrimination, rather than amending a person's date of birth.
Some women are turned on by honesty. Perhaps Ratelband should try that for a change.
