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Sunday, Nov 8, 2009
TinaS1
Published Letters: 780 Editor's Choice: 21
weirdly, Prohibition actually worked as far as drunk driving was concerned. Read the literature. Nobody wanted to be caught as a drunk driver and accidents involving alcohol decreased almost to the vanishing point.
It didn't, in the end, turn out to be a good enough argument to keep Prohibition because of the huge cost to society in the form of organized crime.
Prostitution is a billion dollar industry for organized crime, and some may make the legalization argument. However, I would argue for the approach of Sweden--make prostitution legal for the women who are selling but not their buyers. So the women can't be prosecuted, but the johns can, and are. It seems to be working.
It's possible to drink responsibly; it's not possible to treat women like cum rags responsibly. They are two different issues and need to be treated differently. What we need to get rid of is this stupid mentality that prostitution can be good for any woman. Someone over at Cary Tennis' column just posted some of the emails he got from a high class "call girl" friend--her loneliness and fear of falling in love with one of her steady clients, not to mention her expressed wish to "settle down", were palpable. And she is from the "good" class of prostitutes--no pimp, no addictions, works out of her home--all of the prereqs that GG describes. And yet this 20 year old woman is already clearly deeply scarred.
Prostitution isn't a victimless crime. It just isn't. People shouldn't be treated that way. Only if you have no moral compass can you argue that it is just fine.
to publish her private emails on a public letters forum?
That's all I really want to know. If you didn't, you deserve every bad name in the book.
organs "we don't need"?
People who sell their organs for money--we're almost always talking about kidneys, aren't we?
Walking around with only one kidney is a big health risk and will almost certainly shorten the lifespan of a third world dweller with no health care. Not to mention short term follow up complications.
We aren't thinking right if we imagine for a minute that selling kidneys for profit is a benign practice. Neither is selling babies, but oh, well.
you are arguing from a viewpoint of compassion and empathy, and I do not think you will get much of either from men who are willing to go to prostitutes.
And yeah, I do think a lot of the squealing outrage on the threads that predictably shows up from guys who insist that prostitutes are all putting themselves through college and having a gay old time is coming from men who use or have used prostitutes.
Of course for all their bloviating about how noble and respected prostitution is, they aren't going to tell us that, because that's the skeleton in their closets and in their heart of hearts, they do know better. So.....MYOB!
Pretty gruesome, isn't it?
And as for GG's going nuts over the topic of people "butting in" to this politician's private life....get off it, GG, he's a public servant. His private life, to the extent that it reflects on his judgment and principles or lack thereof, is public business. Get over it already.
If you have been paying attention at all, you would know that I advocate only putting the johns and pimps in jail. They are the ones committing the offense.
I don't wish to infantilize women as some want to suggest. But hell, if we can make a law that says you have to wear a motorcycle helmet or fasten your seat belt, we can make a law that says you can't endanger your physical and mental health by prostituting your body. Yes, it's your own body. But we make laws every day saying what people may or may not do with their bodies, for the public good. Prostitution is a societal evil much greater than not wearing your motorcycle helmet. It should remain illegal.
Legalization has not helped one iota in the countries where it has been enacted. Nor has it stopped human trafficking. This really does have to be considered.
You're welcome, my dear.
way to cherry pick out of context, girl.
Why didn't you include the rest of the post?
you aren't going to get a direct answer to this because the advocates would have you believe that all prostitutes are having joyous sex with handsome men to put themselves through law school. If you dispute this, they will call you an idiot.
What's the percentage, I wonder, of this idealized type of prostitute as opposed to the ones who are caught up in some or all of the issues you describe?
1%? 3%?
One can only guess, but it is safe to guess that prostitutes who meet all the requirements to be good examples of the Happy Hooker--psychologically strong, self-employed, work in clean, safe surroundings, turn down clients who abuse them, no habits or pimps to feed, etc. etc. are very, very few. Statistically insignificant, I would even venture to say (no, I cannot prove that). Like I said, I think even for highly paid girls it's more wishful thinking than reality. Never mind the obvious, that it's inherently degrading to sell access to your body cavities.
But be prepared to hear about all the happy Harvard graduate hookers because the ones you acknowledge--almost all prostitutes, that is--don't exist in the la-la land of these posters. They just don't, and even if they did--hey! Legalization would fix everything!
At Salon, we create our own reality, just like certain Republicans we know....
Much of the initial coverage about Fort Hood turned out to be wrong. Is there anything wrong with that?
The accountability imposed by another country for the CIA's kidnapping and torture reveals much about our own.
Fox News' morning show plays to type, talking about whether Muslims in the Army should face "special debriefings"
The survivor and author is upset about comparisons some on the right are making to genocide
Once seen as a lunatic fringe, reactionary anti-women groups are courting respectability
Salon headlines in your mailbox
