superficiality is a necessary evil in a capitalist society... People who feel "worth"less (due to things like intellectual ineptitudes or dissatisfaction with their lives) try to compensate by putting value in meaningless things, such as looks and money...
it's sad to see but it's all around us... almost any show on television is a prime example of what a superficial society we are and how we don't value anything of substance... of course that's a subjective view because some people really do think that outer beauty is something to judge a person's entire existence upon...
one thing i do notice though is that men are very superficial in their attitudes towards women... but so are other women... i've heard women talk about other womens' bodies, clothes, taste, etc as much as i have men talking about them... i think this is also related to the low self esteem they have and their need to place value in meaningless things that they may happen to have...
i decided a long time ago that the last thing i would evaluate my girlfriends upon is the superficial stuff because that's the last thing i would want them to consider about me when they evaluate my potential as the man in their life... following this philosophy i'm now engaged and my g/f and i are the happiest couple we know...
it makes me wonder how many relationships would end today if people truthfully answered "would we still be together if I were... (ugly/broke/bald/short/pale/dark/whatever)" it's obvious to most of us how little those things matter, but i think they play a bigger part in many peoples' relationships than personality, compatability and (dare i say it) love...
no wonder the divorce rate is where it is and people always complain about not being able to find the right person... you get what you ask for... if you look for something without depth, that's just what you'll get...