Prostitution - Immoral means Illegal?

I was just thinking..prostitution is illegal because of STDs right? Instead of spending so many of our tax dollars trying to round up hookers and their customers, why not just legalize it, and after testing them for STDs, issue licenses to the hookers?

If the prostitutes are clean, then what's the problem? What risk to the citizens is there besides the same risk we take each day as we walk to our cars? Sure, there's still psychos out there..but prostitution shouldn't be illegal because some of the customers might be nuts. I believe that might be one of the reasons as well, beatings n whatnot.

I spose I didn't consider the fact the customers might have STDs..well, how about testing for customers before the "event?" Allow the pimps to open up admissions clinics which will test for STDs and then provide ID cards for those who passed the screening. Perhaps make the customer go through the testing a few days before they wish to engage, so that the test results will have time to be returned to the doctors and be analyzed.

Admittedly, this wouldn't remove all possibility of a transition of the diseases, but it would make it much less likely. I believe the probability would be lowered to an acceptable ratio.

I expect that will be alotta BS to have to go through for some tail, but it would solve the problem at hand, and also seems a bit more logical than simply outlawing prostitution all together. Does anyone know why this isn't being done already?

Well, though I am NOT a Christian, however, I would assume, sense whenever there is any debate here about anything moral, the bible is thrown into it, that most of them that are Christian would be against Prostitution whether legal or not, as it is against their moral structure....

Worlds Oldest Profession

Yes, It's immoral but it shouldn't be illegal, nobody is being forced to go to them and as an adult you're allowed to have sex with anyone you want so long as it's within the confines of age laws.

These "moral values" are being imposed on us.

The legalities of prostitution have nothing to do with STDs. It is a moral issue, pure and simple.

If people would adjust their moral standards to reflect reality, it would be different.

If one uses prostitution, or sex itself, to try to harm another human being it is morally bad. If one uses either to help or give pleasure to another human being it is morally good. It is as simple as that.

www.capital.demon.co.uk...


BG

I am suprised that any government would feel it necessary to say something which harms none (atleast not without their knowledge) should be illegal because *some* feel it isn't "right." The solution to this issue is obvious, why don't we use our medical knowledge to make this safe?

Originally posted by SkyFox2
The solution to this issue is obvious, why don't we use our medical knowledge to make this safe?

Unfortunately, it will never end.

Some say (myself not included) that STDs are punishment from God; that gays, prostitutes and adulterers are reaping what they sow.

Others contend that the government has found a cure for most of these problems and does not release it in order to weed out the "undesirables" of our society.


BG

[Edited on 7-11-2004 by beergoggles]

Prostitution is legal in many countries.

I think that in Portugal it is legal, and Portugal has a majority of Christians, but maybe the South European Christians are different from the American Christians.

Prostitution is not illegal because of STD's. It is considered a "gateway" crime which breeds drug abuse, extortion, abuse, theft, and other types of crime. These facts are provable and provide a leg to stand on for law enforcement.

Morality is also a method of keeping prostitution out of a community, or a state. Arguing morality will get you nowhere.

BTW, isn't there at least one other thread discussing these very same issues?

George Carlin once said something like .....

"If selling is legal...and sex is legal, why isn't selling sex legal?"

[edit on 7-11-2004 by Soulterashaun]

Yes, an exact quote, used it before myself but substituted "sex" for the obvious word. One Carlin fan to another, could you substitute it as well. Edit.

Originally posted by jsobecky
Morality is also a method of keeping prostitution out of a community, or a state.

The question remains: Who's morality.


Morality and religious values are directly connected.

The fact that prostitution is considered a "Gateway" crime is probably true in some respects, as they are forced to live in the darker regions of our society. This is damn shame. We should not assess a value on human beings according to how well they conform to the morals of the religious.

What if other things Christians or any other religious group despise were considered "crimes" like oh, I don't know... practicing witchcraft, maybe? would they also become illegal?

Exactly who is the victim in the crime of prostitution? Your values?


Respectfully,
BG

Here's a recent thread where prostitution and legality was discussed:

www.abovetopsecret.com...

Includes arguments for and against legalizing prostitution, and reasons why prostitution is illegal in many areas. Arguments against those reasons are also included, as well as some hypocracy in the arguments and laws.

Originally posted by beergoggles
The question remains: Who's morality.

Morality and religious values are directly connected.

Exactly who is the victim in the crime of prostitution? Your values?

Whose morality? The morality of the majority, the governing majority. It could be as small as an Amish community or as large as a state.

One's religion does define one's morality, but so does common sense. Keep that in mind, because it is an important point.

You keep wanting to bring Christianity into this discussion, and by doing so, build an argument that Christians are forcing their morality on the rest of us.

Who is the victim in prostitution? The prostitute. We're all adults here; whatever goes on between two people (or more, hell, I don't care) is none of my business. But the world of prostitution isn't all just negotiated sex, happy and harmless. People enter it for more reasons than just to make money. Many times it is a method of coping with deep-seated psychological problems due to abuse, neglect, or something else. Many prostitutes are already drug addicts before they are prostitutes. They get wrapped up with some scumbags that give them drugs and sell them, then discard them like an empty beer can. Then where do they go? Where can they go? Back to the streets, doing whatever they have to to make it through one more hour, one more day.

And you think the first thing on their mind is getting a clean bill of health from the local clinic? How long is that good for, anyway? Till their next partner? Very possibly. They would have to be checked after each encounter to guarantee that they are not infected with an STD.

So it isn't as simple as saying that Christians are forcing their morality down our throats. It's just not true, to begin with. The issue is much more complicated.

Originally posted by jsobecky
Whose morality? The morality of the majority, the governing majority. It could be as small as an Amish community or as large as a state.

While that may be a very true and valid point, I think we'd all agree that in Reality, what someone says and what they do are often two different things especially when it comes to personal matters and morality. We all live in a society that is so completely saturated in hippocratical, 'Do as I say, not as I do' B.S., it's enough to make anyone physically ill. The point that I'm trying to get at here is that the so called 'Moral Majority' is without a doubt a Collective Minority of meddlesome yet politically powerful control freaks who, behind closed doors, could make a Street Walking Transexual, Crack Smoking, Child Pornagrapher seem almost respectable.

Who is the victim in prostitution? The prostitute. We're all adults here; whatever goes on between two people (or more, hell, I don't care) is none of my business. But the world of prostitution isn't all just negotiated sex, happy and harmless. People enter it for more reasons than just to make money. Many times it is a method of coping with deep-seated psychological problems due to abuse, neglect, or something else. Many prostitutes are already drug addicts before they are prostitutes. They get wrapped up with some scumbags that give them drugs and sell them, then discard them like an empty beer can. Then where do they go? Where can they go? Back to the streets, doing whatever they have to to make it through one more hour, one more day.

That may be very true indeed. I would like to add the idea that if that is in fact true, why is it that they are currently being seen and dealt with as 'Criminals' instead of 'Victims'?

As long as society continues to deal with the situation where these alleged 'Victims' are treated as 'Criminals' left to fend for themselves within a 'Criminal's Environment' things will never get any better.

Originally posted by mOjOm
While that may be a very true and valid point, I think we'd all agree that in Reality, what someone says and what they do are often two different things especially when it comes to personal matters and morality.

The reality remains the same - morality is defined by the majority.

I have no accounting for hypocrisy. It's something some of us are born with.

I would like to add the idea that if that is in fact true, why is it that they are currently being seen and dealt with as 'Criminals' instead of 'Victims'?

As long as society continues to deal with the situation where these alleged 'Victims' are treated as 'Criminals' left to fend for themselves within a 'Criminal's Environment' things will never get any better.

They are treated as criminals because the law says they are criminals. The majority defines morality, which is the basis of law. If they want out of the environment, they need to take the first step, because society is not going to mold itself to accomodate their world.

See the merry-go-round ride we are on?

Originally posted by SkyFox2
I was just thinking..prostitution is illegal because of STDs right? Instead of spending so many of our tax dollars trying to round up hookers and their customers, why not just legalize it, and after testing them for STDs, issue licenses to the hookers?

If the prostitutes are clean, then what's the problem?

Just an fyi statistics of today show that females between 18-30 have std's and it's not because their hooker's it's because their bar sluts and sleeping with guy's for free...

Prostitutes are far more careful then this age bracket, this age bracket has the invincible syndrome, whereas prositutes know that their sleeping with many guys for a living thus making sure they are protected as much as possible.

Of course you get your sleeze bags who don't care but the careful ones far outnumber the sleeze bags...

If we're going to discuss prostitution we have to look at it thorugh different perspectives... And there are many.

One of the reasons why prostitute's become p's is because it's the black market, no taxes, no regulations, it's a true free market system with no IRS interference, and no Governmental regulations to tell them what they have to do in order to do what they want to do..

Social deviants could give two #s about social structure...

Originally posted by Nerdling
Worlds Oldest Profession

If you ask anybody what the world's oldest profession is, they would say prostitution . But the truth of the matter is, it's been "sales".

Originally posted by jsobecky


I have no accounting for hypocrisy. It's something some of us are born with.
As long as society continues to deal with the situation where these alleged 'Victims' are treated as 'Criminals' left to fend for themselves within a 'Criminal's Environment' things will never get any better.

They are treated as criminals because the law says they are criminals. The majority defines morality, which is the basis of law. If they want out of the environment, they need to take the first step, because society is not going to mold itself to accomodate their world.See the merry-go-round ride we are on?

If you want to get down to what's criminal, what's criminal in our reality really isn't criminal... It's personal choice... Bad personal choice, but personal choice nonetheless... Regulating bad choices wasn't one of the government's job as outlined in article one section eight of the constitution. I agree with you jsobecky, legislating morality is something you cannot do, if you do it, you'll still get it, it becomes a game of catch and mouse, and these "social deviants" learn the ropes, and now you have a billions of tax payer's dollars going to a lost cause... It's a waste... As long as it's not hurting anybody else or pestering other people, let it be.

This # is never going to go away... Live with it, just like people live with Abortion... Just like people like with alcoholism...
It's the same #, just a different pile.

Originally posted by LadyV
Well, though I am NOT a Christian, however, I would assume, sense whenever there is any debate here about anything moral, the bible is thrown into it, that most of them that are Christian would be against Prostitution whether legal or not, as it is against their moral structure....

I am a Christian (follower of Christ) and I beleive that prostitution is an immoral sin to Christians - I can not tell anybody if they are wrong or right because that is not my place - especially if they do not follow Christ. All I can do is stand up for what I believe. The book of Romans in the Bible sums it up well; I wish more Christians would take time to read it.

However, I think that prostitution is illegal for different reasons, depending on the state. I think that STD's play a big role, but also sometimes big money is exchanged without taxes being paid to our government -

Most "Hookers" do have mental problems. Drugs, abuse, something they use as an excuse for being LAZY. It's "easier" to sell their bodies than find a job....at first.........then its' too late. They get deeper into the depression cycle. Call girls are just prettier "Hookers", still the same issues. You would be amazed how many "ex-call girls" marry wealthy men and think they left the profesion only to get caught "cheating" and going back to work. Or marry someone wealthier and "trade-up". It should not be illegal to sell one's body. It is a personal decision. The 10 commandments don't cover this issue. Wasn't Mary Mag a hooker?