I just saw his news conference and I want to throw up. There he stands with his poor wife and has the nerve to apologize with his sad looking wife next to him, like a shield. "Let's feel sorry for Spitzer because his wife is humiliated." Guess what? He humilated her!

I am totally disgusted by the idea this fool plays around with prostitutes, a crime from what I gather, and has the temerity not to immediately resign. He needs to go and right away.

Why so many posts about conspiracies and political maneuvering? Not much outrage against sexual exploitation?

I personally think Spitzer is a deceptive and manipulative liar who didn't think the rules applied to him. Actually, I should have said he didn't think the laws applied to him. This guy should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, primarily because he is a former prosecutor and a sitting governor. Federal and state prosecutions.

You wrote:

"Was this phenomenally expensive prostitute a kidnapped sex slave? Was she participating in the business against her will? If not, do we think that Spitzer might open a rational national dialogue about the nature of prostitution?

Fact is that if you legalized, regulated and taxed the hell out of prositution and marijuana you would turn massive enforcement/incarceration expenses into sources of income."

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Here we go. The argument to legalize an industry that requires people to debase themselves for money. Forget that they may have emotional/psychological problems or addictions that contibute to their behavior. Forget that diseases are passed along. Forget that "free will" is an odd term to use in regards to a person selling their bodies to another person in exchange for money.

Eliot Spitzer has exposed himself as the very worst type of hypocrite by paying women for sex. His actions show that he cares very little about others, espcially the poorer and weaker among us all, who find themselves in difficult straits. This guy is not the great crusader against corruption. He's just another lying politician who enjoys power. From what I gather, he filthy rich so it's not about they money.

There are numerous problems in "regulating" prostitution aside from all of the pitfalls of regulating an industry that provides services for some pretty unhappy or shady characters. The underlying issue for me is that it does harm to the people involved. The women.

You also seem to miss the basic fact that enjoying sex and having sex with strangers for money are two totally different things. At least I hope you know that. One is fun, the other is dehumanizing and exploitative.

It's morally repugnant, unethical and a crime. Period.

I would also ask you to reread the very small portion of the transcript that was released by the feds. A very unflattering and frankly, disturbing picture is emerging about Eliot Spitzer. What makes a john "difficult?" Let's all guess...

You wrote:

"Alecsmom

It's morally repugnant, unethical and a crime. Period.

You're certainly entitled to think so, but I just want to ask a couple questions. How do you feel about pro-life advocates who say that abortion must be a crime because it is also "morally repugnant?"

And is it truly justice if a crime has no genuine moral basis?"

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Here's the distinction:

Prostitution IS a crime. It's a crime meaning it's against the law. The law that we all are supposed to follow.

Abortion however, is NOT a crime. Big difference.

BTW- Abortion foes don't just state that abortion is morally repugnant, they state that it is ending life. That's why they WANT it to be a crime.

What does "genuine moral basis" mean? There's significant evidence that prostitution is harmful to the prostitutes so it certainly is not a victimless activity.

I believe the legal difference is that people who act in porn movies or photos are not being paid to have sex, they are being paid for having it filmed and sold. The customers are those who buy movies. There's no direct payment for sex. It's viewing a sexual act which is not illegal.

Prostitution involves the direct payment of money for sex.

This newest chunk of information confirms that not only did Spitzer break the law, but he knowingly did so and made considerable effort to avoid detection. This suggests strongly multiple criminal acts. He's out and probably going to prison also.

There's a clear difference between prositution and pornography. The customer never has sex with anyone in the film. They don't pay for sex.

You are simply wrong. Prostitution, legalized and montiored, STILL does not remedy the problems connected with the enterprise. You may not want to see the prostitutes as victims, but that doesn't mean the don't suffer. I suggest you do some reading on the state of prostitution in a place like Amsterdam. There are no rosy pictures coming from that area of the world either. In fact, I read recently that the city is trying to close the Red Light District down.

but now that devotion to his family is now being used by a small handful of rabid Clinton fans to smear him. "Obama has a real marriage and a great family ...he must be dirty!" LOL!

What a state we have come to when we attack people for not being proven adulterers and johns, which is even worse.

As for Spitzer, he's a hypocrite and a criminal and should leave office now. He has totally failed to live up to, as he said, his own standards not to mention the law.

I think we have such lowlifes for politicians largely for two reasons:

1) Far and away, hubris. These people lose track of what they owe to others. They focus squarely on themselves and what they perceive as their needs. Politicians must have some deep well of arrogance or self-regard since it's brutal getting elected to anything of importance.

2) Power uniquely clouds one's vision. The more powerful some people become, the less they are able to see their own failings.