I've noticed more than a few people lurking on this sub who're >18, and I find this extremely concerning.

Committing to MGTOW when you're 15 seems to me like an enormous mistake. Why deprive yourself of the opportunity to pursue relationships risk-free? MGTOW philosophy makes no sense when applied to teenage relationships, as there is no significant risk of divorce or other long-term harm. I believe teenage relationships are a genuinely good thing. They are opportunities to learn so much about yourself, and about women. Avoiding them will stunt your emotional, sexual and intellectual growth.
Furthermore, I believe you cannot have an MGTOW mindset without having the experience to back it up. You can't REALLY commit to something like MGTOW until you've felt the pain for yourself. If you commit without experience, I believe you will falter. You can say you truly believe MGTOW views, but belief is not binary; it is a spectrum. You can have stronger beliefs and weaker beliefs. And an MGTOW belief without experience will become weak, and it will decay.

Here is what I fear will happen:

  1. Unpopular kid gets hurt a couple of times by mean girls.
  2. He finds MGTOW, and it really resonates with him. Unorthodox and obscure philosophies appeal to the loners. Plus, it gives him an excuse for his lack of success with women, and a cause to commit to, which brings some meaning to his confused adolescent life.
  3. He spends his teenage years avoiding relationships, based on MGTOW philosophy. 14-20, the kid goes MGTOW, swears off relationships.
  4. 20 years old, he falters. He has not experienced the pain required to commit to MGTOW. He does not understand women, personally and emotionally, due to his lack of experience. He meets a girl who "gets him"...
  5. He gets into an LTR, marries, had kids... we all know what happens next. Betrayal. Divorce. Oblivion.

So here is my message:

Until you are an adult, go out there, have fun, learn, and get hurt. Get hurt while it's SAFE to get hurt. Get the pain out of the way now, before you risk ruining your life. You need to experience relationships eventually. If you do not experience them now, you will falter when you are an adult. Your belief will only be strong when you have felt the proof of it.

^(Some additional context about myself: I am 21. I have been in 5-ish long-term relationships, one lasting four years, which all culminated in betrayal. I've been developing my own set of MGTOW views long before I knew what MGTOW was. That's why, in my last relationship, I refused to marry her; I figured the risks outweigh the rewards.)

^(Despite all this, I am still not fully committing to MGTOW. I don't think young men should commit to MGTOW. I still have the chance to experiment with relationships without gambling my life savings on kids/marriage. NAWALTs, while exceedingly rare, do exist, and while my chance of finding one is practically 0, I might as well take the risk while it's relatively safe to do so, provided that I continue to keep my guard up.)