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Should it be an all of america?

The 10th Amendment in me says it should be up to the states like most everyuhing else should be up to the states.

The Libertarian in me says there's a strong claim to that on the grounds of
*safer if lightly regulated legal
*never get rid of it
*tax it! Give the IRS someone else to shoot at besides me.

Yes. Prostitution isn't desirable, but it does happen, legal or not. The people who are really hurt by criminalization are the women. If the practise were to be made legal these women would have far safer work environments and be subject to a lot less abuse.

I think that if porn is legal, prostitution should be legal.

I have a friend who is a cop in central Ohio. He advocates legalizing prostitution. Because it's illegal, it draws in other crimes (drugs in particular), and the women in the profession have no real recourse when beaten by a john or their pimp. Legalizing it would help in that fashion, it might protect the prostitutes a little more. OTOH, I think it wouldn't eliminate either drugs or abuse, it would just reduce it. Legalizing it woudl allow the government to give health screenings like in Nevada. Even legalizing it, I think there would be a lot of prostitutes not complying with the law - either not reporting taxes, doing drugs, or not getting the health screenings. I don't think stable people become prostitutes - they're either desperate or unbalanced when they start in the profession. As a result, I think they tend to abuse drugs (if they weren't already) to feel better about themselves, and that is quite common in the porn industry as well. So, I think drug usage among prostitutes would be quite high.

But, I don't know how Nevada handles everything and how well it works for them.

Frazzled wrote:The 10th Amendment in me says it should be up to the states like most everyuhing else should be up to the states.

The Libertarian in me says there's a strong claim to that on the grounds of
*safer if lightly regulated legal
*never get rid of it
*tax it! Give the IRS someone else to shoot at besides me.

I agree, apart from the 10th Amendment bit because I'm British.

Once the Judaeo-Christian anti-sex bias is put aside, I can't see any basic reason why prostitution shouldn't be legalised and regulated like the building trade, restaurants, doctors, and any other type of work.

Kilkrazy wrote:
Once the Judaeo-Christian anti-sex bias is put aside, I can't see any basic reason why prostitution shouldn't be legalised and regulated like the building trade, restaurants, doctors, and any other type of work.

Because too much of a good thing is baaaaaaaaddddd

Same goes for chocolate icecream.

Quiet KK, you'll give the politicians ideas.

Agreed. Chocolate ice cream should be taxed heavily until we can no longer afford it or have the desire to fatten our bodies with its deliciousness.

youngblood wrote:Agreed. Chocolate ice cream should be taxed heavily until we can no longer afford it or have the desire to fatten our bodies with its deliciousness.

Son, I don't think you understand the deperate gravity of the situation you just put yourself in. That knocking at your door is motivational assistants Vito and Spike, who will be helping you understand the error of your ways

Give or take two hundred years and the US will have made enough social advances to be on par with my country, where prostitution is legal and taxed.

No, I don't think prostitution should be legal. OMGBBQ! I know it's a shocker (no quasi-pun intended), but prostitution degrades the man/woman who does it and destroys the very essence of those john's (for a woman Jane? I don't know, quit the giggolo business a while ago).

It just seems way wrong to me. I mean you are selling your body to be used as an object. One could argue that athletes and test-subjects do the same thing, but at this point your splitting hairs.

I think a lot of people view prostitution as another "victimless" crime, but how can you measure the physical and psychological pain that both parties involved must go through? May feel good for one person during it, but what about after?

barlio wrote:No, I don't think prostitution should be legal. OMGBBQ! I know it's a shocker (no quasi-pun intended), but prostitution degrades the man/woman who does it and destroys the very essence of those john's (for a woman Jane? I don't know, quit the giggolo business a while ago).

It just seems way wrong to me. I mean you are selling your body to be used as an object. One could argue that athletes and test-subjects do the same thing, but at this point your splitting hairs.

I think a lot of people view prostitution as another "victimless" crime, but how can you measure the physical and psychological pain that both parties involved must go through? May feel good for one person during it, but what about after?

People should be allowed to make mistakes. If it's the government's job to prevent mental duress then why not license people to breed and reject those who would be poor parents? If it bothers you, don't do it. I'm in favor of legalization, however I would never visit a prostitute myself. I find it personally immoral, but I recognize that simply outlawing the practice creates more problems then if it were legal and regulated.

It really depends on the person. Yes some are forced into this and that will never cease to be. But when you look at the (in)famous Red Light District of Amsterdam you will find men and women who have consciously chosen for that vocation. Again, this is not 100% the case but if a person wants to pursue something he or she should be able to do so.

BloodofOrks wrote:People should be allowed to make mistakes. If it's the government's job to prevent mental duress then why not license people to breed and reject those who would be poor parents? If it bothers you, don't do it. I'm in favor of legalization, however I would never visit a prostitute myself. I find it personally immoral, but I recognize that simply outlawing the practice creates more problems then if it were legal and regulated.

Of course people should be allowed to make mistakes (being a poor parent and being a prostitute are two things that meet on a regular basis I believe). By legalizing you're allowing even more people to become the dregs of society. We don't live in a morally absolute society (as much as I wish we did), but that doesn't mean that we can't say things are either right or wrong. I know that BoO isn't saying that prostitution is right, but there are somethings that the law should cover.

I wouldn't call them dregs of society. They no longer live in gutters or common houses.

The biggest issue I have for prostitution being illegal is simply the concept of why should selling something you can give away for free, be illegal?

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I'm in favor of legalization as well.

The government can't intervene on behalf of what may or may not make someone unhappy or regretful. Any time someone had sex, the exact same thing could happen.

It should be legal , because im sure there is no other way for them (it has to be a really bad situation for them to want to do so ) to earn a living thus selling their own bodies as a last resort.

Until government can find a way to support them, its not right to take their only source of income away.

Yes, prostitution should be legal. I never understood how it was illegal if you did it in private, but if you film it, it was not only profitable but legal. SOMEONE explain that one to me.

I'm going to have to go with Illegal. I've been close enough to the sex trade to know we don't want to give these guys legitimacy. It will end up like the baby farms over seas. I'm all for a brothel or two. Prostitution goes hand in hand with STDs. We all know making it legal wouldn't make people start wrapping it up. It would just make things more wide spread. I have to go with my head over my heart with this one.

Legal prostitution does actually make people start using condoms in Holland and Nevada, where it's required by law. It's one of the advantages of legalization.

I think it should be legal for the simple fact that the state should be spending it's resources on real crime (violence and theft/ damages). Not trying to make people happier - which is what social workers etc are for. Police should be reserved for more dangerous and real crime.

If you want less dregs of society, police parenting. Once the child has grown up and become a whore etc, there is little the state can do.

Many jobs present dangers to the worker or client.

Many jobs require use of the body to provide services.

There is no particular reason to single out sexual work as different to others, except for the Judaeo-Christian cluster of social hangups about women and sexuality.

Prostitution is very hard to police. Lots of men and women are having sex because it's a normal part of adult life. How can you know if sometimes the man pays the woman. Why does it make any difference?

It's not ideal for prostitution to exist but it's going to happen and having it Illegal causes far more issues that it solves. It's far better off in the open where they can be controlled and regulated.

The main issues (aside from cultural/religious hang-ups regarding attitudes to sex and women) seem to be:

The association with other crime and drugs.
The Safety of the participants from violence and disease.
People trafficking
Underage prostitutes
Proximity to children

All of these could be solved if prostitution where regulated. The attitude that keeps it illegal just seem to based entirely on illogical bloody-mindedness.

I'm in favour of legality. After all, like drugs, people are attracted to it by its very illegallity. I mean, look at arson. It's illegal, but how many of us can honestly say that at one time or another, he hasn't set fire to some big public building? I know I have.

Points of interest… criminal activity, exploitation, religion, sex; these are the main warcrys of the uninformed and tunnel-visioned do-gooders that infest our planet.

Criminal activity… EVERY job on the planet has elements of fraud, vice, corruption, drug use, violence, bullying, cheating, stealing, and every other criminal activity you can name or think of… EVERY job and profession.

Exploitation… Remove the criminal element (and I mean the organisers, the business of sex, the abusers of human life… NOT the employees at the ground level) and you will have a “regular” job activity like every one else… shoot up, snort, bully the mailboy… just like everyone else.

Religion… YOU do what YOU want to do and LEAVE us the @#%* alone. If We want your opinion on “normal” life… well, not for me, I’m into equal time and equal pay and equal choices for EVERYONE.

Sex IS life… it’s not a part of life… without it, we ALL are extinct.

So many do-gooders hate the profession Mon to Fri and then use them on weekends… So many do-gooders rally to stamp out porn Mon to Fri and then watch from their massive video / DVD porn library on weekends.

Hypocritical do-gooders ARE the problem.

Mik

Ok, let's clear up a couple of misconceptions.

1. The vast majority of prostitutes are not selling their bodies. They are renting the use of them for a specified amount of time.
2. Virtually every employee does the same thing. They rent either their entire body, or a portion of it, for the use of another person. For example a laborer. They rent the use of thier body to the employer. They have an agreement as to exactly what uses of the laborer's body is permitted, for example lifting and carrying. You hire that person. You are making use of that persons arms, legs and back rather than of another body part typically used for reproduction.

3. STDs exist independently of prostitution.

4. Condom use is typicaly higher among prostitutes than among the general population. (makes logical sense, if your livlihood revolves around your body, contracting an STD would tend to interfere with your ability to earn a living.

5. Prostitution has been around since human society has.

6. Prostitution is more honarable work than some other professions I can think of. For example Lawyers. Both professions screw people, but the prostitute is more honest about what they are doing, and thier clients typically enjoy the process.

*edit, one of my earlier posts had the picture deleted, for non war gaming content. The picture itself was a cartoon. It consisted of a young lady in a short skirt and top, leaning against a street light talking to a policeman. The caption read:

"I am not selling sex, I am selling condoms with a free demonstration"






Automatically Appended Next Post:

Frazzled wrote:The 10th Amendment in me says it should be up to the states like most everyuhing else should be up to the states.

The Libertarian in me says there's a strong claim to that on the grounds of
*safer if lightly regulated legal
*never get rid of it
*tax it! Give the IRS someone else to shoot at besides me.

Frazzled, I agree wholeheartedly with your position on if it should be legal, however it is up to the states. There is no federal law stating that prostitution is illegal. All prostitution laws are state laws. That is why it is legal in Nevada. You are quite correct in saying that the 10th amendment would prohibit congress from passing a law making prostitution illegal. However, much as it pains me to say this, and no matter how much I think that the federal government has twisted the constitution, the 10th amendment is for all practical purposes, useless. If congress wants to pass a law, they will just say that they are regulating interstate commerce. For example, Congess recently passed a bill, The Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act H.R. 1913. It doesn't matter if you support the legislation or not, the constitutionality of the law is very questionable. Here is the exact verbiage that congress used to circumvent the 10th amendment:

`(B) CIRCUMSTANCES DESCRIBED- For purposes of subparagraph (A), the circumstances described in this subparagraph are that--

`(i) the conduct described in subparagraph (A) occurs during the course of, or as the result of, the travel of the defendant or the victim--

`(I) across a State line or national border; or

`(II) using a channel, facility, or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce;

So basically, the bill is stating that if the person drove on a federally funded road, that affects interstate commerce, and therefore can be regulated by congress. This is the typical verbiage employed by congress to pass any law it pleases, by basically defining everything that occurs in the United States as affecting Interstate commerce. For example, the Supreme Court has ruled that a farmer that produces milk inside a state, sells it only to state residents, and only within the state, is still subject to federal regulations, because the people that purchased the milk might have purchased the milk elsewhere, from for example, a farmer from a different state.