Misc Poll: Should Prostitution be Legalized?

[Daneel]

Mr. Laser Beam, after reading your response in the "Your girlfriend was in a porno" thread, it seems to me like you don't have any objection to the business of creating pornography, which I find rather puzzling in light of your comments here. In fact, it's something in American law in general that I find perplexing: Why is porn legal and not prostitution? Both involve people getting paid to have sex, so what makes porn acceptable if prostitution is not?

 

[TheMasterOfOrion]

You know Holland isn't some perfect socialist utopia like some of you guys dream about, it has serious ethnic/immigration problems, crazy use of hard drugs, gangsters drug running and gun running from Amsterdam into the European states and finally a rise of the far right in recent elections.


Not the wonderful socialist utopia

I wish they would hurry up and legalize man-whoring. I'm sick of giving freebies to all those hot female cops.

you should market yourself better

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[RJDiogenes]

For something to be illegal, there has to be a reason; some harm must be done, somebody's Rights must be compromised, some property damage must occur, et cetera.

I wish it were like that, I really do.

In other words, any legislation that doesn't mean those criteria is inappropriate.

 

[JuanBolio]

For something to be illegal, there has to be a reason; some harm must be done, somebody's Rights must be compromised, some property damage must occur, et cetera.

I wish it were like that, I really do.

In other words, any legislation that doesn't mean those criteria is inappropriate.

I agree. Unfortunately there are a shit-ton of victimless crimes on the books.

I just happen to believe in professionalism and social order. My dream is a shiny worldwide corporate paradise. I am sorry, but there is no room in it for prostitution.

This is kind of a scary dream, to my mind. What exactly do you mean by "social order"?

 

[Locutus of Bored]

You know Holland isn't some perfect socialist utopia like some of you guys dream about, it has serious ethnic/immigration problems, crazy use of hard drugs, gangsters drug running and gun running from Amsterdam into the European states and finally a rise of the far right in recent elections.

First of all, no one called The Netherlands a "perfect socialist utopia," so I don't know where you pulled that one from. Secondly, ethnic and immigration problems and the rise of the far right have jack and shit to do with this topic. Thirdly, your claims are grossly misleading if you're trying to contrast The Netherlands with the prohibition practicing US.

The Netherlands Compared With The United States

1. The Netherlands follows a policy of separating the market for illicit drugs. Cannabis is primarily purchased through coffee shops. Coffee shops offer no or few possibilities for purchasing illicit drugs other than cannabis. Thus The Netherlands achieve a separation of the soft drug market from the hard drugs market - and separation of the 'acceptable risk' drug user from the 'unacceptable risk' drug user.

2. Comparing Important Drug and Violence Indicators

3. "There were 2.4 drug-related deaths per million inhabitants in the Netherlands in 1995. In France this figure was 9.5, in Germany 20, in Sweden 23.5 and in Spain 27.1. According to the 1995 report of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction in Lisbon, the Dutch figures are the lowest in Europe. The Dutch AIDS prevention programme was equally successful. Europe-wide, an average of 39.2% of AIDS victims are intravenous drug-users. In the Netherlands, this percentage is as low as 10.5%."

4. "The number of problem opiate/crack users seems to have remained relatively stable in the past ten years (3.1 per 1000 people aged 15-64 years). In the past decade, local field studies among traditional groups of problem opiate users have shown a strong increase in the co-use of crack cocaine, a reduction in injecting drug use, and an increase in psychiatric and somatic comorbidity."

5. "Cannabis use among young people has also increased in most Western European countries and in the US. The rate of (cannabis) use among young people in the US is much higher than in the Netherlands, and Great Britain and Ireland also have relatively larger numbers of school students who use cannabis."

6. "The figures for cannabis use among the general population reveal the same pictures. The Netherlands does not differ greatly from other European countries. In contrast, a comparison with the US shows a striking difference in this area: 32.9% of Americans aged 12 and above have experience with cannabis and 5.1% have used in the past month. These figures are twice as high as those in the Netherlands."

7. "The prevalence figures for cocaine use in the Netherlands do not differ greatly from those for other European countries. However, the discrepancy with the United States is very large. The percentage of the general population who have used cocaine at some point is 10.5% in the US, five times higher than in the Netherlands. The percentage who have used cocaine in the past month is 0.7% in the US, compared with 0.2% in the Netherlands.*"

8. "The National Youth Health Surveys (in 1988, 1992, 1996, 1999) among pupils (12-18 years) showed that the increase in cannabis use since 1988 stabilised between 1996 and 1999 (De Zwart et al. 2000). According to the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study, this trend continued in 2001 (Ter Bogt et al. 2003). Use of other drugs showed a similar trend or slightly drecreased (LTP of ecstasy and amphetamine)."

You can find the sources for all of the statistics above in this link.

 

[Pingfah]

Explain.

What is marriage but a contractual agreement where by a man agrees to support, "honor", ect a woman in return for services of child bearing, household services, ect...

Sure, you can "love" the other person, but Marriage is still a contract service agreement with it's own set of terms and agreements.

Ya, that's a healthy view...

It's an absolute load of bollocks as well. There is nothing in marriage contracts about bearing children or providing household services.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

I'm pretty sure Data Holmes lives inside a Jane Austen novel.

 

[Kestra]

I'm pretty sure Data Holmes lives inside a Jane Austen novel.

Hey let's not bring Austen into this!

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Mr. Laser Beam, after reading your response in the "Your girlfriend was in a porno" thread, it seems to me like you don't have any objection to the business of creating pornography, which I find rather puzzling in light of your comments here. In fact, it's something in American law in general that I find perplexing: Why is porn legal and not prostitution? Both involve people getting paid to have sex, so what makes porn acceptable if prostitution is not?

I think it's because it's easier to shield pornography from the public at large. Prostitution tends to spill out into the streets, with whores working right out in public like that. And the crime associated with that (pimps, johns, etc.). But the porn industry can basically keep to itself, it's easier to ignore. You don't see people shooting porn movies in broad daylight or anything, and if shop clerks check IDs like they're supposed to, it's easy to keep people who shouldn't be buying porn from buying it.

 

[sidious618]

I think it's because it's easier to shield pornography from the public at large. Prostitution tends to spill out into the streets, with whores working right out in public like that. And the crime associated with that (pimps, johns, etc.).

If you've been reading this thread you'd find that legalizing it would get rid of those problems.

 

[Pingfah]

^ Yeah, he just made a great argument for legalising it

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I think it's because it's easier to shield pornography from the public at large. Prostitution tends to spill out into the streets, with whores working right out in public like that. And the crime associated with that (pimps, johns, etc.).

If you've been reading this thread you'd find that legalizing it would get rid of those problems.

So they say. I'm not sure it would be that easy.

 

[Captain Ice]

I think it's because it's easier to shield pornography from the public at large. Prostitution tends to spill out into the streets, with whores working right out in public like that. And the crime associated with that (pimps, johns, etc.).

If you've been reading this thread you'd find that legalizing it would get rid of those problems.

So they say. I'm not sure it would be that easy.

Are you not listening at all?

There are more than one of us in this thread who live/have lived/frequently travel to areas of this country where it IS legal. It is heavily regulated in these areas, and yet the problems that you mention DO NOT exist in these areas.

 

[Pingfah]

I think it's because it's easier to shield pornography from the public at large. Prostitution tends to spill out into the streets, with whores working right out in public like that. And the crime associated with that (pimps, johns, etc.).

If you've been reading this thread you'd find that legalizing it would get rid of those problems.

So they say. I'm not sure it would be that easy.

Nobody said it would be easy.

How do you see it making things worse exactly? All the things you were saying are bad about prostitution are already happening and with absolutely NO oversight whatsoever..

How do you see regulating the industry compounding these problems?

 

[John Picard]

I think it's because it's easier to shield pornography from the public at large. Prostitution tends to spill out into the streets, with whores working right out in public like that. And the crime associated with that (pimps, johns, etc.).

If you've been reading this thread you'd find that legalizing it would get rid of those problems.

So they say. I'm not sure it would be that easy.

Australia has legal brothels in most every city/town, as does Germany and many other countries.

 

[Plecostomus]

Legalize it, regulate it, tax it. Same with pot. Massive revenue stream for the government in both cases.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

And you can speak out, try and convert, proselytize all you want to anyone you want to get the to choose the choice you think is right.

Hmph. Well, as long as you grant me that small favor, I guess we're OK.

That's your right to, why wouldn't I let you...

So it doesn't bother you that I find prostitution itself a vile, disgusting concept? It *really* doesn't bother you?

You think this is easy for me? I guess I just find it hard to advocate the *legalization* of something that I find so abhorrent. It almost feels like betraying my principles. If there's some explanation you can give me as to why I shouldn't feel that way, I'd love to hear it.

 

[SeerSGB]

Legalize it, regulate it, tax it. Same with pot. Massive revenue stream for the government in both cases.

Tell ya' why it'll never happen in either case, and it isn't because of the "church" or "morals".

Money.

Law Enforcement (re: local and states) make to much money on anti-drug and "sex crimes" program funding from taxes and the govt. Plus the money coming into the campaign coffers for the politicians that come out against the "easy" targets.

It's all about the money.

 

[Data Holmes]

Hmph. Well, as long as you grant me that small favor, I guess we're OK.

That's your right to, why wouldn't I let you...

So it doesn't bother you that I find prostitution itself a vile, disgusting concept? It *really* doesn't bother you?

Nope. Not at all, and I would defend your right to say that as much as you wanted, as well as any attempt you would undertake to try and convince people from going into that line of work/partaking in that service, as well as any attempt you maid to get people to stop that do, so long as you don't use intimidation, force, violence, or trickery to do it.

You think this is easy for me?

Nope.

I guess I just find it hard to advocate the *legalization* of something that I find so abhorrent.

I'm in the same boat as you with abortion. While I find it to be murder and something that shouldn't ever be done, I defend it's legalization.

It almost feels like betraying my principles.

That would only be the case if you yourself partook in the services of, or took a job as, a prostitute.

If there's some explanation you can give me as to why I shouldn't feel that way, I'd love to hear it.

Your principles only apply to yourself, and that is all that matters. No one else behavior changes that, only yours does.

 

[John Picard]

Hmph. Well, as long as you grant me that small favor, I guess we're OK.

That's your right to, why wouldn't I let you...

So it doesn't bother you that I find prostitution itself a vile, disgusting concept? It *really* doesn't bother you?

You think this is easy for me? I guess I just find it hard to advocate the *legalization* of something that I find so abhorrent. It almost feels like betraying my principles. If there's some explanation you can give me as to why I shouldn't feel that way, I'd love to hear it.

You find it abhorrent, but other people do not. Would you rather see problematic street walkers or a clean business? It's people like yourself who pushed for Prohibition in this country, and look at how successful that was.

Legalize it, regulate it, tax it. Same with pot. Massive revenue stream for the government in both cases.

Tell ya' why it'll never happen in either case, and it isn't because of the "church" or "morals".

Money.

Law Enforcement (re: local and states) make to much money on anti-drug and "sex crimes" program funding from taxes and the govt. Plus the money coming into the campaign coffers for the politicians that come out against the "easy" targets.

It's all about the money.

Don't count on it. Oregon and California are leading the way. I know a few States out there are nailing drug dealers not on drugs, but for failure to pay taxes for a tax stamp. Yepper, just like Al Capone, it's all about the money