Who Would Marry This Person?

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Drew Peterson, the four-times-married 54-year-old whose third wife turned up dead in a bathtub, and whose fourth wife disappeared and never turned up at all, claims he is newly engaged to a 23-year-old.

Why any woman would find this individual remotely attractive is beyond me, but experts have been weighing in with theories (some women have an unusual need for excitement, others just suffer from cripplingly low self-esteem).

Peterson himself has claimed that women frequently hand him their phone numbers.

In better news, a good friend told me yesterday that her brother, a nice and normal divorced man in his early 50s, is enjoying a serious relationship.

"Is the woman around his age?" I asked (I really didn't have to ask; I instinctively knew the answer).

"Yes," my friend answered. "They like to do a lot of the same things. He's happy. For the first time in a long time, he feels really good about the future."

The Scariest Man in America?

Drew Peterson has been married too many times and is suspected of murdering his third and fourth wives. This morning's Today featured an interview with another woman who nearly married the former cop 26 years ago. She explains what prompted her to break off the relationship here.

According to a previous report, the latest wife, Stacy, initially found the suspect attractive because he bought her a car and other expensive gifts. I don't know whether or not Drew Peterson is responsible for his wife's disappearance, but it's been my experience that men who shell out for big-ticket items early in a relationship are not good bets.

Also not good bets:

- Guys who attempt to cut off a woman from her friends and family

- Guys who threaten other males who make the mistake of talking to "their" woman.

These men may seem charming and protective at first, but they often turn out to be needy, insecure, and scarily controlling. If you end up with one, it's possible he won't kill you, but he will definitely make you miserable.

Beware.