I can remember having an almost identical discussion with guys I knew when I was younger. “Which do you want/prefer? Beauty? Or Hotness? Ah those were the days. The days of asking questions that were fun, and it seemed like they were important back then. The debates over what defined “beauty” vs “hotness,” and why which one was better than the other.

I see that Thomas Crown is on a trophy hunt, at least on the internet.

Here’s my understanding of “Hotness:” She’s sexy, healthy, has a great body, and you would definitely bang. But…

You may or may not want to take her home to meet your parents, or your boss, co-workers, friends, or anyone else in your social circle. I have seen plenty of women who are in the “adult entertainment industry,” and make no mistake, they are “hot.” Maybe it’s the lights, filters, makeup, or the boob job, but they are “hot” nonetheless. I would definitely bang.

Now “beauty” is a little less specific. I do believe that all beautiful woman are hot, but not all hot women are beautiful. But in my particular case, it all comes down to “would.”

I “would bang” a hot woman. I “would bang” a beautiful woman. So the point here is kind of moot. We are talking about splitting hairs and counting the number of angels that could dance on the head of a pin.

I don’t think that my experiences with women have “jaded” me, and I don’t believe it’s my notch count. So maybe it’s my age. Somewhere after the age of 30 or so, I stopped thinking about “beauty vs hotness” and started thinking in terms of “would or would not.” Since both beautiful women and hot women fall under the category of “would,” who cares if they are beautiful or hot? I’m not here to collect trophies to show off to the world anymore. I’m here for the experiences and for my own personal amusement, entertainment, and pleasure.

If I “would,” then she is enough. I guess she is “hot and/or beautiful” to me. And that’s good enough for me. She might have qualities beyond her looks that warrant a visit to my friends and father to introduce her to them. She’s now a part of my life to one degree or another, might as well do the rounds and let her meet those closest to me. Then again, maybe all she has is her looks. Yes I “would,” but maybe I “wouldn’t” introduce her to the people that are closest to me.

Midlife summed it up beautifully.

I have less time ahead of me than I have behind me. My days of questioning and quibbling over the nuances of beauty and hotness are all but behind me. I personally think the question is just mental masturbation, and a way of signaling that you or whoever is asking the question is “trophy hunting.” And there’s nothing wrong with that.

If you want to find a woman that looks good on your arm (and who doesn’t?) to show off to your friends and family, then good for you. Just realize that is what you are trying to achieve. Let me ask you this though:

Why do you care what other people think about the woman or women that are with you? If you like her and are aroused by her, isn’t that what ultimately matters?

Like BullRush said a while back: “If she gets my dick hard, she’s a 10.”

While we can claim that beauty can be “objective,” I tend to think that it’s primarily subjective. Sure, we can all agree that one woman is better looking than another woman, and that she is someone that we all “would.” But from there, some guys are going to see her as something potentially “serious,” while another man is going to see her as “a night of fun, and nothing more.”

Instead of focusing on arbitrary and subjective standards such as the “HB Scale,” or “Beauty vs Hotness,” how about you decide is she someone you “would,” or is she someone you “would not?” And then act accordingly.

Maybe I’m just getting old. Or maybe it’s because I would rather have experiences and enjoy the company of women. I tend to focus on what brings me pleasure instead of worrying about the details of things that ultimately don’t matter.

So yes, my “scale” is ultimately two tier:

Would

Or

Would Not.

That’s it, that’s the scale.

I’ll leave the details to be fretted about, hashed over, and jerked off about to the guys who have the time and the concern for trivialities.