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Sunday, Nov 8, 2009
"Harper Valley P.T.A." turns out to have been written by that ole storyteller Tom T. Hall, by way of Jeanie C. Riley.
Bobbie Gentry, however, did also write "Ode To Billie Joe."
[re-rail thread...3, 2, 1]
as you were...
I'm pretty sure vice would make no distiction between what Melissa does and the runaway girl on the street corner do. But, I really don't care whatever arrangements are made between two consenting unmarried adults. What really disturbs me about this story is the fact that there are men using their low/mid level positions in HR to pressure/entice job seekers into private prostitution! I hope this is just an example of one person trending. If I had gone to an interview and heard that my "skills" were more suited to fucking for shoes I would have immediately called my lawyer and taken HIS job.
So why not take it one step farther? What about the woman who marries a man for his money? Is there really a difference? Let's face it, as long as the human race exists, women flocked to the man who could best provide for her and her children. Humans are not alone in this. The same principle applies to most mammals and birds. The preference for a strong partner is a basic survivor skill bred into our genes for millions of years. That's the reason women are capable of prostitution. Rememebr the saying "Power is the strongest aphrodisiac?"
Having read the complete Daily Beast article, I am inclined to agree that the account may not be true or that many facts may have been changed to make the account more palatable.
When she says:
I waited three months before I felt ready to make a physical commitment to him. This was no different then (sic) any of my other relationships...
this stretches credibility in several directions.
But when she says:
... because of him I have had several internships at well-known PR companies
this also seems a stretch to me, though possibly it explains a lot.
I don't work in the public relations industry, but the whole basis of public relations, as I understand it, is trying to influence mass media to portray a client in a more favorable manner than merit alone would dictate--usually by offering sex, money, or some other kind of freebie to individuals with decision-making power. Hence the links between public relations and prostitution are intimate.
While the idea that someone was intrigued when offered a horizontal position instead of the real job she applied for is somewhat demoralizing, it's not like this kind of thing hasn't happened for forever and a day. And never before have women in these kind of arrangements been seen as or called prostitutes. They weren't "respectable" by any means. They were "kept women."
In the eras when a woman couldn't be respectable unless she avoided sex with anyone but her husband, it was reasonable to look down on such arrangements where money and gifts greased the sexual wheels outside of marriage. It's not reasonable now. Women are not judged by whether or not they have sex. If they could choose to have sex and be "kept" by a rich man before at the price of their respectability, they sure as heck can choose it now.
It wasn't "prostitution" before and it's not now.
I'm pretty sure vice would make no distinction between what Melissa does and the runaway girls on the street corner do.
Somehow I doubt that if this article were sent to the Philadelphia police vice squad, and the woman could be identified, that there would be an arrest or a prosecution.
A gold-digging friend of a friend described her benefactors as "investors." Well, I thought it was amusing!
Belatedly, I'd like to agree with those who point out that it's her decision, and that prostitution should be legalized. What I was reacting to in my first post was the silliness of pretending that's not what this is.
Men paying women for sex?!?!?!
That is just effed up!
When did this start happening?
Of course this is straight-out prostitution, let's drop the crap about a distant cousin. But who cares?
What would have been interesting about this article would be if this woman embraced the word "prostitute" and tried to throw off the stigma associated with it. If she's content with selling her body so she can wear designer shoes to college, she's not alone. People kill each other to get a good deal on a tv at Wal Mart in this country. Are we really surprised about this woman?
with a few exceptions, the VAST majority of relationships between men and women ARE based on some level on money.
men have something women can get by themselves, by working, or through men.
but WOMEN have something men cannot get by themselves, but only through women.
what is that 'thing' women have and men cannot have EXCEPT thru women?
acceptance by the female sex, companionship with a woman, sex and love.
if a man is to be hetero, he must have a woman to achieve these things in his life.
fortunately SOME men have the one thing that helps ease women into pretending they like us men, and that is chattel.
so live it up girls! You have ALL the opporunities in the world to make it yourselves, and somehow, this is STILL preferable and the way things are conducted between the sexes. Must be AWESOME to be a beautiful young woman. MOST men know of what I speak.
the baubles are a symbol.
given push and shove, collapse of society, the powerful wealthy man is preferable to a man without money or power.
at least if I were a woman, I would probably think this way.
call me not a man, but what is wrong with waiting three months?
...for three freaking months before you bump the uglies?
I propose that prostitution to be defined as any sexual activity in which a woman feels entitled to less than half the male partner's total assets for her services rendered.
We already know what it's called when she feels entitled to half or moreso. Is that clear cut enough?
Frankly, I don't know why a woman is entitled to a single dollar.
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
