Ugh, Dave’s red-flag behaviour didn’t stop after Love Is Blind – here’s everything he’s said since

In every season of Love Is Blind there’s one cast member that has you questioning how they even landed the gig, and for season eight, that was undoubtedly Lauren’s boyfriend Dave Bettenburg.

From the moment he entered the pods, Dave rubbed us the wrong way. His so-called jokes landed on deaf ears, he admitted to being shallow, and he seemed to be stuck in his old ways despite his intention to break the cycle. Those red flags grew gradually redder until Lauren finally called the relationship off in the most recent episodes.

But despite filming taking place over a year ago, which in theory gave Dave room to grow and evolve, his more recent comments and statements are just as questionable.

He didn’t hold back while discussing his ‘misogynistic’ moments

During a radio appearance on Staci & Hutch, Dave discussed the comments he made in the pods. If you need a reminder, he basically joked that women over 30 weren’t attractive.

“That’s what I was going for,” he said, referencing his claim that such comments were jokes. “I was trying to show that side of me because I talk like that, kind of sarcastic and make fun of people, with all my friends, family.”

He did acknowledge that he was “starting” to understand the pushback, but that’s still not great as this interview was over a year later. He really needed 365 days to figure out why calling a woman over 30 unattractive was problematic?

Rather than actually apologise for the hurt caused, he doubled down on the comments and focused on the hate he received because of them.

He later said the comments ‘weeded out’ the poor connections

Everyone has a game plan going into Love Is Blind, but Dave’s might be the most toxic.

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“I’m happy I approached it the way I did because, like, it landed with a lot of women, honestly. It made things fun. I have a personality, so I was happy to, like, show that side of me,” he said on The Viall Files Podcast.

In another part of the podcast, he added: “It also weeded out a lot of the people that I didn’t connect with. It helped me get there a little bit quicker. I like to keep things light, you know, keep it fun and honestly that came out in the speed date portion right away. I was just trying to have some fun with it and see who I connected with.”

Dave and Lauren defended their Love Is Blind relationship in joint statements

People online can be cruel, so much so that both Dave and Lauren felt the need to issue joint statements about being kinder on the internet. Though Lauren’s was incredibly nuanced the same could not be said of Dave’s who wildly claimed he’d been “kind and respectful” to every single person he’d ever met.

“I’ve never once said I’m perfect. I admitted that very early on in the pods. I went through this experiment the same as everyone else. I’ve always been nice and respectful to everyone I’ve ever met in my life,” he wrote.

“The amount of hate surrounding me online is insane and it’s impossible to stay quiet. Just because it’s ‘reality TV’ doesn’t mean you have to label people in a negative light. I have a life and a job outside of this and it’s really sad to read these things from people who don’t know me.”

Dave dug himself into an even deeper hole

Following another drop of episodes that didn’t paint Dave in the best light, he posted a slew of pictures on Instagram alongside the caption: “No one I would’ve rather shared these moments with.”

Unfortunately, he then undid any goodwill by sarcastically adding “I must’ve been really mean!” at the end.

His recent Instagram post suggests he’s taking some time away from social media – that’s probably for the best.

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Featured image credit: Netflix