I am here from a link by tablesaw. I would just like to say, that as someone who had unhappy memories of this day that date back to her childhood days, part of the social osterization that happens on Valentines day even before sex is part of the equation, thank you for posting such a comprehensive and multi-fasted essay on why this "holiday" is rife with problems.

And its not 'bitterness' that makes it so.