Poll: Prostitution should it be legal?

[AndyFromMonday]

The risk of legalizing prostitution is that people will exploit women through the framework of the laws.

How so? Also, there are male prostitutes as well. Don't forget that.

DISCLAIMER: I realize this is a double post. Still, if I edited my original post the person I quoted wouldn't receive a message that I've responded to their post.

 

[Veldel]

EDIT: Also OP, I understand WHY there is a poll for being sick and sexist, but people do know that there are Male Prostitutes as well right? There's nothing really sexist about that >.>

was mostly a joke option for the idiots who are batshit stupid over stuff in beleving somthing no mater whats said >_>

 

[Toshiooh]

Well it all comes down to how its going to be legalized. For example I would disagree with the idea of brothels since it puts the prostitutes in a very difficult situation were they need to stay within the brothel to get money and put up with the monopoly of whoever owns the place. And if they leave they are at the mercy of the police.
This solution only profits the "pimp".

I might agree if prostitution was considered a legal job that would have a certain amount of government protection. This would imply that people could launch their own companies selling sex as a product. But the government would never do that. Since it would be considered immoral to most people. .

By the way government tolerate a certain amount of prostitution but seem to be against through the wording of the law. For example in England selling sex is illegal but buying it is not.

And in country's were regulated prostitution is tolerated such as Germany and Luxembourg (i.e Brothels), the illegal human sex trade profit a lot by selling their service cheaper than the government.

So really I can't agree with prostitution since it always seems like the woman/man is in danger of some form of abuse

 

[Jonabob87]

The victims would be you and your sister. It comes into the category of indulging a mental illness instead of treating it. Like telling someone who has schizophrenia to try and get on with the voices in their heads.

The entire purpose of physical attraction in human's is to choose a "mate". We know that an overwhelming number of the population find the thought of having sex with a family member utterly detestable, because the healthy human psyche doesn't see family members as viable mates. This is for genetic reasons, more likely to have mentally/physically ill children.

This means that the psyche that becomes physically attracted to a family member is unhealthy and is in need of treatment, not encouragement.

Eh. I disagree with your post. By your definition of mental illness (you only becoming sexually attracted to someone who you see as a potential mate) then most people would be mentally ill.

That's the opposite of what I said.

 

[KaizokuouHasu]

I don't think my view is original, buuut...

I think it should be legal, but discouraged (by means of offering alternatives, i.e. benefits; monetary, educational, etc). In the end sex with strangers is practised a lot in today's society, and should some women and men choose to ask for some sort of payment for sex (or 'service'?) that isn't too different from a normal one-night stand (which are usually paid via drinks and/or dinner depending on how you arrange it).

If a man or woman choose to live of prostitution, however, there needs to exist some rules or laws; it needs to be consensual on both parts, and this needs to be enforced by the legal system. It is ALWAYS rape when one part do not - or do no longer in some circumstances - consent to the sex. In court of law being a prostitute must not be an influence on the final ruling. It must also be kept under some form of moderation. A prostitute, and their clients, need to be able to be safe of STD's and abuse. Prostitutes must therefore make some sort of commitment with a GP where they can regularly be checked for STDs, which of course is a confidential process. That said, STD checks should be obvious for anyone who have sex in general. As for abuse... well everyone deserves to live without fear of oppression.

Finally: prostitutes must be self-employed - not working under, or for, a pimp. They should never have to find themselves in a position where work is being forced upon them to meet some criteria, or where they can be threatened over income and/or security. The law should protect them as citizens, that's everyone's right.

There is more that needs to be added to this, but we're still talking speculatively. Prostitution is and remains illegal in many places of the world, but for many it is the only means of supporting yourself because of the lack of (perceived) options that are available. In more sad cases, prostitution is not even a choice and is forced upon yourself. That is why it needs to be regulated. Enjoy sex and want to make money out of it? Ok. Need money so use sex and a means to make some? No, I think there needs to be a thorough review on such individuals.

I'm from a welfare state... Sweden. I do think there should be an age limit as well. Preferably above the legal age of consent.

 

[minimacker]

Isn't it that selling sex is perfectly legal, but BUYING sex is illegal?

At least that's something I've read somewhere.

 

[godofallu]

Wow the Escapist community really wants prostitution. I wonder why?

Personally i'll stay as far away from that stuff as possible. We're a civilized country, and we don't need that kind of business.

 

[Outright Villainy]

Legalisation means tax, regulations and a way to stop pimping, or at least severely reduce it. So yeah, it should be legalised.

 

[ProfessorLayton]

That's the opposite of what I said.

I believe there are a lot more people than you would think that aren't repulsed by it.

 

[mjc0961]

Brothels, yes. Street corners, no.

But it would cause issues with divorces, is it enough of a reason to divorce and woman/men win the settlement if the partner have purchased the services of a LEGAL prostitute.

You mean, is it enough of a reason to divorce and woman/men win the settlement if the partner has cheated, and the answer is fuck yes it is. Does it really matter if someone cheated with a legal prostitute instead of an illegal one? No. The partner is still cheated.

There's no excuse for making it, or keeping it illegal, a woman has the right to body-autonomy, and if you make prostitution illegal then you are telling her what she can and can't do with her own body, and that goes against basic human rights.

Because there's no such things as male prostitutes of course. -_-

I am so sick of sex things being turned into women's issues when they apply to both genders. Rape and prostitution aren't just things that happen to or can be done by women.

 

[Exterminas]

Guess what, it is legal in most parts of europe and we aren't descending into an abyss of filth and abuse. At least not for the last two thousand years.

Dunno about the future though.

 

[Agayek]

There's no reason not to regulate it. If someone wants to be paid to have sex, and others want to pay for it, there's literally no reason to stop it.

The only valid legislation about prostitution is to ensure that the workers actually want to be there. As long as they are there voluntarily, nothing more should be done.

 

[Ajna]

21 or over only

lolwut?

How would that make sense? I don't think the age of consent is 21 in any US state. If it were declared at a federal level, I could maybe see 18, but really, my logic on it is revealed in my opinion:

Sex is legal. Giving someone money (for any damn reason) is legal. Why is it that combining the two is not?

Hell, I don't even see why it should/would be taxed, because it's a service, and by my understanding (mind you, I know just barely more than jack shit in terms of tax law) services are not taxable.

I could understand government regulation to keep whores clean and such, but really, don't see why that's necessary. If prostitution was legal, odds are all you'd see is the brothels and such on the street would look nicer and cleaner, and become more reputable establishments. The sorta grey-area "call girls" and "full body masseuses" would be able to be honest about what they're dealing. In the same way that retailers checking ID on MA17+ games is standard practice (but not law), I can imagine having on-site verifications of the "cleanliness" of any employees being standard practice in the industry, without it being law.

Now, it's entirely possible that the industry would stay exactly as seedy, and hookers would be just as likely to be disease-ridden and beaten by their pimps. But I don't think that's very likely. And at least this way things would be the same, but a guy (or girl! No stereotypes here!) wouldn't have to be afraid of going to jail because s/he wanted to get laid.

Oh, and a quick line at anyone who might think of replying to this with "Why would a girl need a prostitute? If she's at all attractive, she'd just have to ask any male friend and she'd have an instant in." But really, think about that for a second. That's not the sort of thing you confess to your friends about ("Dude, I really need to get laid."), so it would come out of the blue, and thus be both surprising and awkward. Whereas a hooker is a couple hundred (I think? I honestly don't know), and consequence-free.

(BTW: When I said "how would that make sense?" It wasn't intended as a snide ridiculing of your opinion. I just can't see why 21 would make sense as the age limit.)

 

[Radoh]

The only real reason that it isn't legal here in the states is lack of tax on the income. If they paid the government and started having "quality assurance" check ups, then yeah, it would probably get legalised. Though I won't speak anymore on the quality assurance.

 

[Veldel]

Wow the Escapist community really wants prostitution. I wonder why?

Personally i'll stay as far away from that stuff as possible. We're a civilized country, and we don't need that kind of business.

Everywhere has that kind of buesiness it its just not legal here and thinking it should be legal duesnt mean you need to be involved in doing stuff with prostitutes. It could bring in money and help provide some prection for the people who do it as well and with good regulations it can help generate and possibly reduce std's and such due to requirments in being clean for brothols and such.

 

[godofallu]

I've gotta disagree. I work as an infectious disease epidemiologist with HIV/AIDS and I can tell you that anywhere between 28-40% of the people I have surveyed for a study either are/were a prostitute or had a sexual encounter with one. Many of my colleagues work with other STD's and the rate among prostitutes and their clients are sometimes two standard deviations higher than normal people. I don't see any problem with banning it outright until we cure AIDS. But then again, I don't think suicide is right either, so that's where I'm coming from. I suppose if it was heavily regulated, but that is just awkward. Who the hell would want that job?

By that reasoning, shouldn't sex be illegal? Because I'm pretty sure if you compared people who are not sexually active with people who are sexually active, one group would be enormously overrepresented in the statistics. The only logical thing to do then would be to outlaw sexual activity. Is that alright with you?

Personally i'll stay as far away from that stuff as possible. We're a civilized country, and we don't need that kind of business.

So stay as far away from that stuff as possible, if you want. We're a civilized set of countries, and we don't need people like you sticking your nose in other people's genitals. You have no right to dictate how other people live their lives just because of what you find distasteful.

Actually that's exactly why it's illegal. Because the majority of the population of the U.S. finds it immoral. Which is why rape is illegal.

We don't want whore houses on the American mainstreet. Sorry.

 

[zacaron]

as george carlin put it: Selling is legal, F*cking is legal so why isn't selling f*cking legal?

also I live in canada so its legal here as long as your not advertising on the streets

 

[DementedSheep]

I think it is legal in NZ just so long as you work out of a registered brothel and not on the streets, use protection and have regular health checks.
I have no problem with it aside from it making me slightly uncomfortable but me being slightly uncomfortable with something is not reason to have it banned. Not a career I would want but if someone else decides to do it power to them. It does need to be regulated to protect both the prostitutes and their customers and they shouldn?t be working out on the streets in the middle of the night.