Re:Rhode Island unintentionally decriminalized indoor prosti...
by x0x0 on Friday July 18, 2014 @08:17PM
(#8056225)
I mostly agree with you, but worry that trafficking vs voluntary aren't so much two different things but a continuum, and worry where we should draw the line.
That said -- and it's amazing how many people are so stupid -- it's very difficult to successfully ban transactions that are, if not morally voluntary (ie the whore could be trafficked), at least voluntary in the moment. The same applies to drugs, prostitution, and sex. As Bill Hicks said: We had a war on drugs, and drugs won. (Though most republicans don't even believe their own bullshit; the number that have smoked a joint or who look the other way when it's their daughter knocked up at 17 or their mistress or their wife is pretty astounding).
Re:Rhode Island unintentionally decriminalized indoor prosti...
by vacri on Friday July 18, 2014 @10:52PM
(#8056505)
It's legal here in Melbourne as long as the prostitution takes place within a registered brothel. This allows the police to do spot checks and confirm that things are above board, including health checks. Streetwalking is still illegal. It's still not perfect, for example, a trafficking ring was broken up a few years ago by the police, but it seems to have struck a happy balance.
Others have already waved the wikipedia card, but I feel that there is one aspect which deserves clarification.
Above all, we should divide prostitutes into two groups: sex workers (who have, for whatever reason, chosen the profession); and the victims of human trafficking. In my mind, trafficking is no different from slavery. It's a vile thing. A sex worker, on the other hand, can choose to have a pimp -- but one is not required.
I have absolutely no problem with law enforcement cracking down on trafficking. Those people are not selling their services out of their own will. But trying to mandate morality by law makes my hair stand out.
I happen to believe that indiscriminately cracking down on all forms of prostitution is simply a waste of resources. The similarity between aggressive pro-lifers (who want to impose their own views on how women can use their bodies) and anti-prostitution zealots is not that big. Control in the name of morality ... or just in the name of their personal delusion.
Makes little practical difference.