Game within the game

Riddle me this, Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, Napoleon, Idi Amin, Attila the Hun & countless other tyrants. What do they all have in common?? Aside from the fact that between the aforementioned alone, they've killed enough people to occupy 3 planets, they also shared a similar trait. No bullshit. Lacking in tact & diplomacy throughout their political careers, they made up for that with direct claim to what they desired & a locomotive-like momentum in the pursuit of these things. While I could never look at these individuals without feelin sick to my stomach, I must admit that, on a certain level, we'd like to be like them. Only on that level, which is the need to be direct of your wants & needs & to have the will to go after it with such ferocity.
Why I would even say that would assuredly make you wonder if I should have a CT-Scan or visit a mental health professional, I'm sure. But I promise you, I choose this analogy, not to get a reaction, but to pose a question, which has yet to be asked, so bear with me.
I've recently begun watching movie trailers instead of actual movies, for reasons that will not be mentioned, including the trailer for "He's just not that into you". Looking at the trailer, I literally found myself with my jaw dropped, wondering to myself "Who in the blue hell wrote the rule book"??
I'm 28-years-old, dating for a while, although my dating life has been.....near-extinct, which is probably the best term for it. But, my experience has shown me that, regardless of gender, age, social status & what not, there still is a fundemental element that links all dating in general, the mind-games involved, a.k.a. the game within the game. The game that begins when two people feel that spark, the slightest sizzle of chemistry.
While I am admittedly a novice at this game, I believe I do have some understanding to clearly state the following;
1) The most undesired thing to do is to let the principle (date) immediately know that you like them. The aim is to keep them wondering.
2) Phonecalls after the dates should be made by the man, for reasons that I believe fall on the fragile male ego, which I must confess, I also have, along with the 2-3 billion other fools that I share this planet with. And so on & so forth, BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH!!!
As far as I can ascertain, the aim of the game, within the game, is purely military in nature. To minimize any potential losses should this outing be fruitless & potentially embarrassing. I mean, sure it is a risk to one's self-esteem & ego, especially to have somebody that you, might, like not like you back. And if your exceptionally insecure, you might be prone to bouts of depression, insomnia, helplessness & inspired to drink until even the 84-year-old toothless woman sellin gum & ciggs on the street corner late one night seems attractive enough to you & no, this is not random babble. I've seen that happen to a few individuals with my own eyes, individuals whom I haven't been able to look at ever again since that night. But, as usual, I'm straying off topic.
The idea that we have these rules & ultimately play the game within these rules makes me wonder just what it is we're hoping to achieve or prevent?? If I were to take a wild guess, I would say we do this to prevent rejection, which is a suitable answer, since the ability to accept it requires confidence that the average person doesn't have. But that doesn't make us weak or insecure. It just makes us human. But the idea that we've resorted to elements of military strategy to simply confirm whether or not the person we have feelings for feels the same way is almost a waste of time. It implies neuroticism & obsession. We date to meet people, we date to find something that we don't have on our own, we date to erradicate whatever feeling we have in solitude that we find unacceptable, be it lonilness & sheer sexual frustration. But playing the game, especially since there is no universal rule book, contrary to what some may believe, is simply stupid & risky.
If there's sombody you like, then tell them. Hell, take a risk if need be, but make sure it's worth it, because life's simply too short to spend it wondering if the cool guy/girl thinks your cool enough to be seen with & it's certainly too unpredictable to put somebody through some emotional drama just so you can have a laugh since, as my baby brother once said, "karma's a bitch".
Whether in the long run or for the moment, nobody wants to be alone. Why risk that by playing "emotional battleships" with somebody, especially since at the end of the day, there are no real winners, only losers??