I saw a large, pink advertisement on the D.C. Metro today urging men to become sperm donors — the first such ad I have ever seen on Metro. In addition to receiving $100, you’ll be helping some loving couple design their own child — plus you’ll become the father of some kid you’ll never meet or even know about. Because there’s always adoption, but who wants to take a risk on babies that lack college-educated gametes?

Of course the ad didn’t actually say any of those things — only the parts about the $100 and the college education.

Such ads were commonplace in New York City’s newspapers when I lived there, especially Columbia’s student paper. The egg-buyers were particularly aggressive, demanding very specific traits with regard to height, hair color and GPA — and paying women top-dollar for “good eggs.” But I don’t think I’ve ever seen such ads displayed so prominently along the morning commute, especially not here in Washington.