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Prostitution, stripping, webcam shows etc...
| Sex work is immoral & should be eradicated | 30 | |
| Sex work is acceptable & legitimate work | 154 | |
| I don't care | 78 | |
| My feelings about it are more complicated than the above choices | 92 |
I think that it should be legal. I think this for both practical and ethical reasons. Practical because it prevents prostitutes being abused and murdered by taking it out of the hidden nature of an illegal activity.
Ethically because it is legal to sell things and it is legal to have sex. I see no reason that combining the two and selling sex should be illegal.
It is legal if you use the loophole as follows: "any money paid is for companionship only. Anything else that may happen is up to the consenting adults"
All "sex work sites" like "adultwork" in the UK or "back page" in USA have this statement (or something similar).
No one prostitutes on street corners anymore (except the seedy places and/or idiots).
That still isn't as good as it could be for three reasons.
A: Brothels are still illegal in those countries and a legalized regulated brothel is by far the best way to protect both the sex workers and the community from STDs and violence.
B: People still get prosecuted for something that should be legal. Wasting police resources and court time on complicated cases to imprison call girls.
C: Despite what you believe, curb side prostitution still exists in those places to a large degree. When brothels exist the demand for curb side prostitution goes way down and hence it happens far less.
I think some sex work, where the workers are forced by circumstance into the job and a large cut of the money goes to pimps, is wrong. I don't have a problem with sex work on principle though.
As long as they are willing to do it and not being forced then that is their choice.
Porn is legal. And that porn stars are paid to have sex, the only difference between prostitution and porn is that porn is filmed.
Mixed feelings about it. I don't think people should be denied the right to do it but I also feel that they should be aware that by doing it, they (a) subject themselves to the notion that they are a commodity and (b) affect perceptions about their gender in a wider way.
Is it not a bit presumptuous to say that every sex-worker is "subjecting themselves to the notion that they are a commodity"?
I mean, it may be possible that some sex workers adopt the notion that they're highly skilled at providing a selective service in exchange for money, like any other skilled employee. If someone wants a sink fixed, they call someone with the skill to fix it who has made themselves available on the public market to take care of the problem. Some people have trouble finding intimacy in their lives, but have the money to exchange for services rendered in having that need fulfilled by a professional. It's not so esoteric and bizarre of a notion, people pay for therapy, for other forms of companionship, and for other things they can't acquire on their own. I don't personally see how all sex workers are "subjecting THEMSELVES" to a degrading notion like that. Some may even find it empowering and rewarding to do something they love and to be paid for their expertise in the field.
Not to say that every sex-worker lives such an idyllic life, but neither do they all wallow around like so much objectified, negatively viewed degenerates.
As for affecting other people's perceptions, well, that's sort of inescapably inevitable. People are always going to interpret the world around them as they will. If they think it's a degrading, objectifying practice their view of the gender in question will likely drop, but if they view it as a legitimate practice, it won't. That, and it's generally folly to believe one has any real power over other people's perceptions.
Aw, thanks! :)
I didn't know I qualified as a "feminist" to be honest. There are so many very strong opinions on how to define labels, but...
...sex positive? Definitely! Sex has many fantastic health benefits. Also it feels good and it's fun. I also dislike the notion that someone would hear "I'm a sex worker" (from someone who is) and automatically assume they're some weak, objectified, desperate victim of a cruel addiction to drugs or need for money - rather than someone who does what they love for a living. Anyway, rant over :P (it wasn't directed at you)
I've never paid for it, but I salute the compassion you must have to provide fulfillment to people (perhaps handicapped) that can't get it for free. Some people have no other way to experience an angel's touch. (Please ignore the ensuing and stifling ignorance that my comment will likely produce.)
Well I don't see what's wrong with your comment. Sex is an important part of life. Not everyone has easy access to it. Some people enjoy sharing it with other people. Money is necessary to live in our society. It's kind of a no-brainer to connect the dots here. That's probably why it's the world's oldest profession.
I don't see selling sex (when it doesn't involve some junkie, or someone being forced to do it, or someone feeling trapped into doing it against their own desire) as anything other than an exchange of services.
Absolutely. It would be very presumptuous to say that every sex-worker is "subjecting themselves to the notion that they are a commodity"? Just as it would be very presumptuous to say it could never be an issue and thus no sex worker has ever subjected themself to that risk.
I know it's not a difference of opinion as I feel the same as you, but if you read it as me saying "every single sex worker in the entire world is exactly the same", I apologise because I didn't mean it as a sweeping generalisation, more that it's a risk for some people. I stand by that because I've seen it (just as I've seen some people not be affected by it). The job isn't suited for everyone.
We are all a commodity. I whore off a third of my life to a job that bores the hell out of me so I can afford the lifestyle I want.
If someone wants to be a sex worker and enjoys it, which many off them do, and they make a good living doing it then I'm jealous off them.
I know a woman who is into swinging and all sorts and I know that if she wasn't so ugly she would probably go into escorting and have the time off her life.
And to any one that's thinking of saying about girls that have been trafficked or drug addicts, those are two completely diffrent issues.
My bus stop used to be outside a shelter for recovering heroin addicts, many of whom were also sex workers. I got talking to them occasionally and what was clear was not what most people think (took up prostitution to raise money for drugs) but that both their prostitution and their drug abuse was rooted in their self-image and neither the prostitution or addiction assisted the situation. This isn't the case for everybody but it was several cases I saw with my own eyes on more than one occasion.
Every time someone asks about people's opinions on sex work it quickly turns into people's opinions on drug addiction. While drugs do make some people turn to sex work I don't think sex work makes people turn to drugs. I only put that bit at the end because I thort it would be nice if once it could stay on topic but obviously not.
I don't often say this but I have seen a few escorts over the years. Some were inteligent university students looking for extra cash, some stayed in the job for a few years and some disappeared off the site after deciding quite quickly it wasn't for them. My first was in her mid twenties and lived in a place worth at least twice what mine was and drove a car worth triple. None were crack whores.
I am not trying to criticize you at all. But doesn't any occupation that takes a person's labor, require that person to "subject themselves to the notion that they are a commodity"?
Yeah, it does. Particularly for me as, in my last job, my boss referred to his staff as "units" and he saw us only in terms of the balance of what he paid us and what money we made for him. At one point he sold me to another company for half a million pounds (which I struggled not to be flattered by).
But the work I did for him was very much what would be seen as work as opposed to normal interaction that isn't usually commodotised (like sex). Logically, I'm not sure it makes a difference, but it felt like it did. This is why I said I had mixed feelings, though. I can see this from both sides.
Sex is a beautiful thing you should be enjoying with the person that loves you. Don't just throw it around because when the person that loves you and you want to have sex with them it's not going to mean much.
I personally do not agree with the idea of someone letting someone else use them like an object. So I'm against it.
The only problem I think there is with sex work is that it can make relationships difficult. That plus I imagine the amount of work sex workers get dwindles as they get older so its not a good idea as a life long career. But if someone wants to do it as a side job for a while or to pay there way through college then go for it.
I think if you want to do it thats your thing but it isnt healthy you can get many diseases and are putting your life indanger if your having sex with random people.
Getting paid to have sex. I can't think of a better profession. I'm definetly thinking of a career change. I'm good at showing men a good time. (If I do say so myself.) xx
I think a better title would have been "What do you think of sexual occupations". When I read this I thought you were questioning what sex was. That is that persons choice. However if they are snobs about it and act like they are better since they are fucking the world I do not see anything wrong with shaming them. If they are forced into this kind of thing I think the people forcing it should be punished. I also do not blame anyone forced into it and would never say it that persons fault and I think they should be forgiven. Since its not as though they chose to do it of free will.
I don't understand why it's okay for someone to be a masseuse but not a prostitute. Disregarding any mention of 'happy endings' they're both jobs where you hire someone to rub parts of your body for a period measured in halfhours. I mean, I wouldn't want to do either job but I don't think it's morally wrong in any way, just kinda icky like how I wouldn't want to work in sewage or as a cashier.
I just drill a slut sometimes when my girlfriend is not in the mood to fuck me.....
So OK. To the man, the woman is a sex object. To the woman, the man is a money object. Is this mutual objectification of just a top quality fuck for a nice pile of cash?
As long as you are doing it out of choice (ie not forced into it) then go for it....the money is great if you're good at what you do and if you don't want to do a particular thing then you don't have to. I have a friend who used to do it and she was great at it, high class and loads of cash. Some people really enjoy it so why shouldn't they have the option. Also there is never a shortage of clients willing to pay.
I've considered it when I was 16. I wanted braces and couldn't afford them and i knew a girl who went to Kings Cross (Sydney) every Wednesday night to work streets. She invited me to try it but I got scared and went home.
People should have every right to do their desired work but if it is done in a way that harms or makes a negative impact on individual/s (like being forced or brainwashed in to these or taken advantage of somebody's naive or tough situations ), it should be stopped.