>>12653110 (lb)
>>12652644 (lb)
Unfortunately for us, how we appear doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. It sucks to look like fools, sure, but it's also inconsequential. What really matters is the effect we have/had on peers/relatives/friends. I know a lot of us probably lost quite a few, but for the colleagues we didn't lose we have effectively helped to expand their perception of the News and the overall situation.
Datefagging sucks, it's demoralizing, it's damaging to unity, and it's altogether entirely human to do it (take for example how Christ and Paul basically told the Early Christian Church that there's absolutely no way they could predict God's timong, but it doesn't stop devout Christians from trying even today). So discourage it, but don't hate people for it.
Take what has happened as this: a humbling event. It's time to grow our faith, not our worldly wisdom, and trust that this is entirely God's plan.