Men who say this are reallllllyyy incriminating themselves.

Men LOVE to be like, women who expect men to pay for dates/show financial investment are basically prostitutes, which means the men in question see relationships as ownership and purely transactional, like they pay the bills and you give them sex in return. Which is downright vile. Sex is not something that can be bought unilaterally, that's obscene and demeaning, and this model of relationships loses its value entirely when women gain the ability to pay their own bills and earn their own money. Given these two options (being used for sex in exchange for money vs. paying her own bills), any self-respecting woman has zero incentive to choose the former.

Here's what paying for dates actually signifies in civilized society: Not "buying sex" but rather division of labor and risk management. Women risk their lives, safety, and physical health by dating/marrying men. There is no male parallel for the magnitude of what women risk when they have children. Therefore, the man must display commitment, provider ability, investment, and long-term care. This doesn't mean he's "buying sex"--sex is supposed to be mutual, and anything less is degrading/abusive and has endless negative effects on the woman and children in the household. Paying the bills means you're gaining the woman's trust and indicating that she's safe with you. You're compensating for the risks women take when having sex, which still exist when the sex is mutual (as it should be). You're forming a relationship with the potential for sex based on mutual consent and managing the inherent risks involved in said relationship for the woman.

Decent men understand this naturally. Almost all women understand this naturally. If it has to be explained, the man is trash.

(Of course, there were and still are many places and times where marriage is obligatory for women because they're barred from gainful employment, and they have to submit to sex in said obligatory marriages because otherwise they won't have a roof over their heads anymore. This is a human rights violation with detrimental effects on the health of the woman and her children. Men who advocate this model, or pretend FDS promotes this model, are delusional and evil.)