Posted on 05/29/2007 8:40:44 AM PDT by Slings and Arrows
When I was in college I was a professional musician. I didn’t write many songs but I used to try occasionally to write very stupid country songs hoping I would eventually write one dumb enough for Garth Brooks to record. I even had an idea for one called “When Porn Stars Get Offended.” (The punch line was: “When porn stars get offended, that’s when I’ll quit loving you”).
But, now, there is little hope my porn star song will ever become a country hit; this because political correctness now dictates that we avoid offending porn stars and prostitutes by helping to dispel myths about their private and professional lives.
In fact, one show dispelling such myths was recently defended by William and Mary President Gene Nichol. President Gene thought the show must be defended on First Amendment grounds regardless of its tendency to offend groups including, but not limited to, Christians. A cross in the campus chapel, however, had to go because it might be deemed offensive to non-Christians.
Believe it or not, the same show that Nichol defended may be coming to a local college or university near you – and it may or may not be funded by your tax dollars. Regardless, it seeks to dispel the “myth” that people who work in the sex industry are “anything short of artists, innovators, and geniuses.” Dubbed the “Sex Worker’s Art Show” it was performed at the following colleges and universities in the month of February of 2007 alone:
Northern Arizona University, College of Santa Fe, Virginia Commonwealth University, College of William and Mary, University of Pennsylvania, Haverford College, Bard College, Wesleyan, The University of Massachusetts - Amhurst, Hampshire College, Sarah Lawrence College, Case Western Reserve University, Kenyon College, and Earlham College.
These shows are intended to offer a diverse perspective on sex work by touching on themes such as prostitute’s rights. The cast of performers includes Miss Dirty Martini (see http://www.sexworkersartshow.com – especially the “performer bio” link) who recently made a cameo in the movie Shortbus, which is probably the best mode of transportation available for those who see the intellectual merits of the diversity movement in higher education. If this is all getting to be too much to believe, please resort to Google to find Miss Dirty Martini’s personal website. There is plenty of supporting documentation there.
Another of the stars of the “Sex Workers Art Show” is named C. Snatch Z. The show describes her as a woman who “strides the world with her dildo harness controlling the human catharsis like a dictator, destroying herself like a revolutionist.” If you have no idea what that means or – like the author of this column – you have no idea what any of this has to do with getting a college education, please Google her name for more information.
Another star, Kirk Read, spent two years performing a tour of 120 cities intent on spreading the gospel of “sexed-up heavy metal queer teenagers.” He has been a long time counselor at the St. James Infirmary, which is San Francisco’s free health clinic for sex workers. St. James offers “free, confidential, compassionate, non-judgmental, drop-in care.” Describing himself as both a “southern gentleman” and a “witch” he works as an apprentice to an organic gourmet chef. But before you let him handle your food, you had better do a Google search to see where his hands have been lately.
Let’s not forget the immensely talented Reginald Lamar. He (I trust he’s not a she) is the former singer of the rock band (not banned) called “The Mutilated Mannequins.” Fusing punk rock with gospel music is one of his talents. He also likes to deeply probe (no jokes, please) issues of race, class, and sex prejudices and taboos.” Before you invite him (her? it?) to your college, Google can help you more deeply probe the issue of his (?) true gender identity.
Last year, when the sex workers art show made a stop at Bucknell University, a “sex worker” rubbed lubricant all over his genitalia. This was done in front of college students, many of whom were merely teenagers. After sponsoring the intellectually slippery event, the Women’s and Gender Studies Department had the audacity to refuse to sponsor a lecture by conservative author Christina Sommers on the grounds that her work lacked intellectual merit.
When I think about certain feminist groups (like the feminists at Bucknell) and certain university presidents (I will not mention a single name: Gene Nichol, Gene Nichol, Gene Nichol) I often think that our universities are being run by a bunch of intellectual whores.
But, fortunately, since I attended the “Sex Worker’s Art Show” I realize that calling someone a “whore” might not constitute defamation of character. It might just be another reason to celebrate diversity.
His point was that there are lots of folks who have consensual sex with multiple partners, and who are not married, and yet who are not arrested as prostitutes.
There's some validity to that argument; however, his main point seems to be that all such behavior -- whether voluntary or paid -- is somehow OK, it just needs to be regulated to ensure that people don't contract diseases, and such.
The fallacy of the argument, however, is to assume that there's nothing intrinsically wrong with such behavior. But the statistics, if nothing else, show otherwise.
I did not know any good could come out of marriage. I fell on the bad side. That is why it is best to take your chances and not get married. That way you will never be trapped. In short Marriage Sucks.
I think you slipped somewhere in there. You meant to hit an 'l' and somehow typed a 'p.'
You’re a complete idiot. Nobody with functional intelligence above the level of 2nd grade falls for that kind of twaddle.
They only real problem with the legal prostitution in Western Europe is the mafia importing essentially slave girls from other countries to forcibly work in brothels. Without having to worry about regular working girls the police can devote their resources towards actual abuse in the trade.
My, if you put a pix of Rosie O’Donnell beside Jeremy’s pix, they’d pass for twins.
I KNOW my second grader has a better grasp of the moral issues.
Pimping is illegal in Germany.
Brothel arrangements are that the prostitute rents a room at a brothel for a set price and then keeps all of her income (minus taxes). They are not tied to the brothel in any way.
Cities have the power to declare prostitution-free zones. Streetwalking is also illegal in some cities.
The sheer volume of foreign women in the German prostitution industry suggests that these women were trafficked into Germany
Trafficking/slavery (as opposed to legal foreign workers) does exist, often linked to organized crime, as prostitution often is in the US. The German version of the FBI (BKA) expends a lot of resources cracking down on it. Of course they don't have to expend resources cracking down on the hundreds of thousands of legal prostitutes in the country either.
Again, while what you point out is peripheral to prostitution, it is easy to overlap the two and say they are the same issue.
Comparatively, the issue of illegal immigration to the US could be compared with slavery, as illegals are often forced to work with less rights, legal protections and remuneration than citizens. But that is different from their being illegal—it is the result of the government allowing, or even encouraging them to be exploited by unethical businessmen.
But it is not fair to say that illegal immigration *causes* slavery. Nor can it be said that legal prostitution *causes* human trafficking. When such trafficking exists, it is because those governments allow, encourage or tolerate it.
Many of the immigrant prostitutes in the US right now are brought in as part of human trafficking.
But the acid test is how many of the *legal* prostitutes in Nevada are such trafficked illegals?
I would hazard to guess that few or none. Because unlike those other countries, Nevada very thoroughly polices its prostitutes. To work as a prostitute there, you must be thoroughly documented, taxed, medically screened, and accorded all the other worker protections accorded by law.
So the problem is not prostitution, it is government.
Let’s legalize, crack, pot, meth, incest, child molestation, and rape. It’s only the criminal element that makes them bad.
Prostitution rends the fabric of society, your opinion notwithstanding. That’s why.
Prostitution has always been present in human history and it has ALWAYS involved the exploitation of women BY men through violence, power, drugs, etc.
There is no getting away from the fact that bad men will exploit the weak and vulnerable in order to feed their vices. Legalizing it doesn’t change human nature it merely legitimizes it’s worst features.
You apparently don’t have the moral and intellectual depth to discern this. Your belief that sexual relations are always a commercial transaction one way or another demonstrates this.
You are simply wrong in your understanding of human nature and your prescription for change will increase misery, not reduce it.
Fraternal twins. Ron's prettier.
You are out of date. Germany legalized it 6 years ago.
Google it. There is even a 2005 story about the German govt denying unemployment benefits to women who refuse to take job offers from brothels.
Yikes!
You're right. When I think pimping I think coercive pimping. That's still illegal. In the current situation the prostitute doesn't have to take abuse or exploitation from any pimp, as she has legal recourse, where prostitutes in the US don't. The pimp basically becomes the same thing as an agent as used by actors, singers, etc.
There is even a 2005 story about the German govt denying unemployment benefits to women who refuse to take job offers from brothels.
Urban legends. Quickly retracted paperwork mixups. One was from an escort service that falsely wrote the job description, making the government think they were passing on a waitress job. It is against policy.
Legalize rape? So you’re equating a forced, violent crime that has a clear victim with a consensual transaction between two adults?
BTW, most US prostitutes don’t report the instances when they are raped because of the illegality of their trade.
And Rosie's moustache is thicker.
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