When Is Paying for Sex Acceptable?

[Guest]

Quite right Steven, I may not be a diplomat but I'm also not pedantic. The title of the thread is about paying for sex, not who commits the crime (the john or the prostitute). The Nordic countries make paying for sex illegal because in their view paying for sex inherently exploits the prostitute and leads to all sorts of societal problems with crime, drugs, disease and so forth. Why would I call them the most progressive countries? Well, compare their citizens' level of happiness, social mobility, per-capita income, life spans, lack of wealth inequality and economies to other European countries such as Belgium and it's pretty clear that they're doing something right...at least if these are qualities you value.

 

Boy, I'm jumping in at the end of a long string which, I'll have to admit, I haven't thoroughly read. There are certainly situations in which prostitution can be immoral, as with any other job. If the prostitute is unduly pressured to do this job, that would be immoral. Also, if the client has an agreement with a spouse or partner not to have sex with other people, then any sex with people outside the relationship--for pay or not--would be immoral. I think it's rather ridiculous to say that any particular line of work should be illegal just because the worker is exploited, because then none of us would be working. Of course my employer is exploiting my skills. Why the hell would he pay me if he weren't? I'm exploiting them for a salary in return. The client is exploiting the prostitute for her need for money. The prostitute is exploiting the client's strong biological urges. Great. Mutually advantageous situation. When I go to the grocery store, the clerks are being exploited for their need for monetary income. The grocery store is exploiting my need to feed myself. That's how the economy works, guys.

I was surprised by Steven Draker's chart showing how many countries have legalized prostitution without regulating it. That seems like a recipe for problems to me. The best way to minimize problems associated with prostitution, such as pimps who threaten prostitutes, organized crime involvement with prostitution, and disease, is obviously to regulate it. It's so obvious, I find it incredible that this even has to be mentioned. Sex workers should be licensed, checked regularly for diseases, and, preferably, work in licensed establishments as well. There should be hot-lines set up (paid for with licenses, taxes, etc) where prostitutes or clients can file complaints about abusive behavior, be it from clients, sex workers, or the employers/brothel management.

I'm not sure I agree that Scandinavian countries can brag about per-capita income as it relates to being progressive as a country. All of the countries which have a higher GDP with purchasing power parity per capita than the US are either awash in oil, or have hanky-panky banking laws to account for their wealth. Norway, Qatar, and Brunei all have oodles of oil and very small populations, making it easy to spread the wealth. Sweden, Denmark, Finalnd, and Iceland aren't so lucky.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/Gdpercapita.PNG/800px-Gdpercapita.PNG

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita

 

It seems fairly obvious to me that the best solution for everyone involves legalization, regulation, and enforcement. This system would provide the best combination of protecting the sex workers, the clients, and public health.

[Steven_Draker]

Yeah, the media and people all over the place are getting impervious to things that a short while ago would have been scandalous. Now people come out and back into the closet, they confess to having concubines, leaking sex tapes, hiring hookers, being swingers, having extra families on the side, doing crack... I personally see it as a really positive thing. The exploitative scandal media is losing ammunition little by little and society at large is becoming a little more adult, less inclined to living in the adolescent outrage of a recluse teenage nun.

 

It's interesting that Juan choose to use coming out of the closet, hiring hookers and doing crack in the same phrase. Shall we stop at 'doing crack' or can we add pushing drugs and human trafficking? Where do we draw the line?

 

I think that as common and morally acceptable 'paying for sex' is within this Board (although some might find it shameful), a large part of the society will always find it ethically wrong and morally unacceptable. Why politicians have to resign when they're caught in sex scandals?

[Steven_Draker]

Why would I call them the most progressive countries? Well, compare their citizens' level of happiness, social mobility, per-capita income, life spans ...

 

Not to mention that the countries you mentioned have one of the highest suicide rates in the Western world.

 

Often people with biased opinion only see the good parts, or the bad parts, instead of looking at the big picture.