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Thread: The Scientific Case for Decriminalizing Sex Work

  1. #1

    The Scientific Case for Decriminalizing Sex Work

    Good grief, it's the oldest profession, decriminalize it already.

    Arguments in favor of decriminalizing prostitution often rely on empathy for sex workers themselves: Journalist Melissa Gira Grant contends, for example, that criminalizing sex work implicitly condones violence against sex workers, who are often afraid to go to the police to report violence and are frequently ignored when they do. Current laws (sex work is illegal in 116 countries) require that sex workers render themselves largely voiceless and invisible — which makes their interests easy to ignore.

    But new research suggests that existing legislation against sex work may also be harming society at large — and that decriminalizing sex work could help slow the spread of HIV.

    On Tuesday, scientists at the annual International AIDS Conference in Melbourne, Australia, recommended decriminalizing sex work across the globe — arguing that legalization is the most effective way to reduce global HIV infection rates. According to new research — a series of seven studies recently published in the Lancet medical journal — scientists estimate that HIV infection rates among sex workers could be reduced by between 33 and 46 percent if the activity were not illegal. “Governments and policymakers can no longer ignore the evidence,” asserted Kate Shannon, an associate professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia and the lead author of the study.


    The research, conducted in Kenya, India, and Canada, found that high rates of violence against sex workers, police harassment, and poor working conditions — all circumstances exacerbated by sex work’s illegal status — combined with lack of access to HIV prevention and care significantly increased the risk of infection among sex workers. According to recent data from the World Health Organization, female sex workers are 14 times as likely to have HIV as other women, yet fear of arrest and stigma often prevents them from seeking medical care. (A Kenyan woman quoted in the study added that when doctors at the health center she visited realized she was a sex worker, she was denied treatment.)

    Additionally, many countries, including the U.S., use condoms — and the act of carrying multiple condoms — as evidence of prostitution. (Though a bill abolishing this distressing practice passed New York’s assembly last year, it seems the NYPD is still “reviewing” the legislation.) As a result, sex workers often stop carrying (and using) condoms out of fear of arrest. (I did not know that)

    This January, Human Rights Watch reiterated its call for the decriminalization of voluntary sex work by adults, asserting criminalization “undermines sex-worker health.” Researchers at this week’s conference also cited New South Wales, Australia, where sex work has been decriminalized since 2009 — and where sex workers now have a lower rate of HIV prevalence than the general population. For its part, Canada’s Supreme Court struck down the country’s anti-prostitution laws last December and may decriminalize the activity this year. Let’s hope that others follow suit.
    http://nymag.com/thecut/2014/07/scie...-sex-work.html



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  3. #2
    It's physical therapy, it's health care. There is plenty of science to support that. The crime would be providing health care without a license, not to say I would support those laws, but we should be looking at it that way. Things are getting relentlessly shttier, so I don't expect that the physical therapy services provided by the candy stripers would be covered by Obamacare, but I don't see why they shouldn't, given all the crazy bs ("no, you're not crazy, you actually are a woman trapped in a man's body, and we can cure you by chopping your dick off") that we have now.

  4. #3
    No crime without a victim.

    The online edition of Ain't Nobody's Business If You Do, The Absurdity of Consensual Crimes in Our Free Country by Peter McWilliams
    http://deoxy.org/ccrime0.htm

  5. #4
    if sex work benefits women, don't you think the feminazis would've legalized it by now? I mean, after all we're in an age where liberals and feminists control everything, aren't we?

  6. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by PRB View Post
    if sex work benefits women, don't you think the feminazis would've legalized it by now? I mean, after all we're in an age where liberals and feminists control everything, aren't we?
    I've never said sex work benefits women. Personally, I think prostitution is a bad idea for women and men (male prostitutes and johns) but I don't think it should be illegal.

    don't you think the feminazis would've legalized it by now? I mean, after all we're in an age where liberals and feminists control everything, aren't we?
    I dunno, I'm not a "feminazi" and I've never said I believe we're in an age where liberals and feminists control everything. So I guess I'm not qualified to answer that question.

  7. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by PRB View Post
    if sex work benefits women, don't you think the feminazis would've legalized it by now? I mean, after all we're in an age where liberals and feminists control everything, aren't we?
    Feminazis would be against it cos it also benefits men too. I bet they would be totally OK with it if it was girl-girl only. But the blatant sexism of such a law would fully expose the whole philosophy behind feminism.

  8. #7
    I did a few years working as a truck driver and I often wished there could have been a legit legal brothel. I mean really, imagine what that could do for truck drivers physical and mental health. Not to mention the way Trucking has notoriously high turnover and is always short on drivers. This would help offset the weariness and solitude of that kind of job.

  9. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by Suzanimal View Post
    I've never said sex work benefits women. Personally, I think prostitution is a bad idea for women and men (male prostitutes and johns) but I don't think it should be illegal.

    I dunno, I'm not a "feminazi" and I've never said I believe we're in an age where liberals and feminists control everything. So I guess I'm not qualified to answer that question.
    The good pay with little time investment are the benefits of prostitution, lots of jobs are soul and time steal, body breaking, and mind numbing. Some of jobs that are legal today are guaranteed to shorten your life by a lot but society still thinks its Ok to do. Its a good paying job that most women who have no skills can pull off. So apart from not locking women up when they are caught, it benefits women by being a reliable fall back, good paying profession option when they are desperate. If I had not marketable skills and was desperate for money, its day labor for me and that is even more embarrassing than prostitution.



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  11. #9
    I for anything that might cause law enforcement to work on violent crimes rather than meddling in the private lives of people.

  12. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by juleswin View Post
    The good pay with little time investment are the benefits of prostitution, lots of jobs are soul and time steal, body breaking, and mind numbing. Some of jobs that are legal today are guaranteed to shorten your life by a lot but society still thinks its Ok to do. Its a good paying job that most women who have no skills can pull off. So apart from not locking women up when they are caught, it benefits women by being a reliable fall back, good paying profession option when they are desperate. If I had not marketable skills and was desperate for money, its day labor for me and that is even more embarrassing than prostitution.
    I don't disagree with anything you've said.

  13. #11
    No victim no crime. That's all I have to say. Next....

    'We endorse the idea of voluntarism; self-responsibility: Family, friends, and churches to solve problems, rather than saying that some monolithic government is going to make you take care of yourself and be a better person. It's a preposterous notion: It never worked, it never will. The government can't make you a better person; it can't make you follow good habits.' - Ron Paul 1988

    Awareness is the Root of Liberation Revolution is Action upon Revelation

    'Resistance and Disobedience in Economic Activity is the Most Moral Human Action Possible' - SEK3

    Flectere si nequeo superos, Acheronta movebo.

    ...the familiar ritual of institutional self-absolution...
    ...for protecting them, by mock trial, from punishment...


  14. #12
    Quote Originally Posted by PRB View Post
    if sex work benefits women, don't you think the feminazis would've legalized it by now? I mean, after all we're in an age where liberals and feminists control everything, aren't we?

    So PRB is a liberal AND a feminist? I learn something new every time he posts.
    Quote Originally Posted by TheCount View Post
    ...I believe that when the government is capable of doing a thing, it will.
    Quote Originally Posted by Influenza View Post
    which one of yall fuckers wrote the "ron paul" racist news letters
    Quote Originally Posted by Dforkus View Post
    Zippy's posts are a great contribution.




    Disrupt, Deny, Deflate. Read the RPF trolls' playbook here (post #3): http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...eptive-members

  15. #13
    Quote Originally Posted by PRB View Post
    if sex work benefits women, don't you think the feminazis would've legalized it by now? I mean, after all we're in an age where liberals and feminists control everything, aren't we?
    No they are usually on the opposite side of the spectrum and think there needs to be harsher laws, particularly against John's and sex traffickers. They believe prostitution causes sex trafficking, when in fact it is ILLEGAL prostitution that causes sex trafficking.

    Using your logic, conservatives who are anti-gangs would be for the legalization of drugs, because that would put the drug dealers and most of the street gangs out of business. But they are actually for harsher penalties, most of the time.
    "He's talkin' to his gut like it's a person!!" -me
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    "Each of us must choose which course of action we should take: education, conventional political action, or even peaceful civil disobedience to bring about necessary changes. But let it not be said that we did nothing." - Ron Paul

    "Paul said "the wave of the future" is a coalition of anti-authoritarian progressive Democrats and libertarian Republicans in Congress opposed to domestic surveillance, opposed to starting new wars and in favor of ending the so-called War on Drugs."

  16. #14
    Sex laws only benefit the ugly and moral segments of the population..........

  17. #15
    Account Restricted. Admin to review account standing


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    Legalize it!

  18. #16
    Quote Originally Posted by dannno View Post
    No they are usually on the opposite side of the spectrum and think there needs to be harsher laws, particularly against John's and sex traffickers. They believe prostitution causes sex trafficking, when in fact it is ILLEGAL prostitution that causes sex trafficking.

    Using [your] logic, conservatives who are anti-gangs would be for the legalization of drugs, because that would put the drug dealers and most of the street gangs out of business. But they are actually for harsher penalties, most of the time.
    Fixed it. Using logic would be more accurate. The problem is that lots of conservatives and feminists do not use logic.

    Quote Originally Posted by tod evans View Post
    Sex laws only benefit the ugly and moral segments of the population..........
    How does it benefit any of those people?

    I'd probably qualify as "ugly and moral" (morally conservative at any rate, which I think is what you meant) and I fail to see how I benefit from this.



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  20. #17
    Quote Originally Posted by FreedomFanatic View Post
    How does it benefit any of those people?

    I'd probably qualify as "ugly and moral" (morally conservative at any rate, which I think is what you meant) and I fail to see how I benefit from this.
    Ugly folks have a much better chance of getting laid if prostitution is illegal 'cause as we all know if something is illegal it cost more which leaves out a vast segment of society....

    Moral people benefit from imposing their morals on others whether they want them or not, just as many of the laws we all bitch about are.

  21. #18
    Quote Originally Posted by Yung_Hustler View Post
    Legalize it!
    The blank slate of living means you are naturally free to do it. Government restricts and criminalizes it.

    That might seem like a subtle distinction, but still important. Advocating legalization lends credence to government authority, at least in an academic sense.

    Government does not grant rights. It can only take them away.
    Quote Originally Posted by TheCount View Post
    ...I believe that when the government is capable of doing a thing, it will.
    Quote Originally Posted by Influenza View Post
    which one of yall fuckers wrote the "ron paul" racist news letters
    Quote Originally Posted by Dforkus View Post
    Zippy's posts are a great contribution.




    Disrupt, Deny, Deflate. Read the RPF trolls' playbook here (post #3): http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...eptive-members

  22. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by VIDEODROME View Post
    I did a few years working as a truck driver and I often wished there could have been a legit legal brothel. I mean really, imagine what that could do for truck drivers physical and mental health. Not to mention the way Trucking has notoriously high turnover and is always short on drivers. This would help offset the weariness and solitude of that kind of job.
    All jobs, not just trucking, and even the unemployed.

  23. #20
    Quote Originally Posted by tod evans View Post
    Sex laws only benefit the ugly and moral busybody segments of the population..........
    FIFY. Lots of moral people don't mind other people engaging in prostitution. Myself, for one.
    Quote Originally Posted by Torchbearer
    what works can never be discussed online. there is only one language the government understands, and until the people start speaking it by the magazine full... things will remain the same.
    Hear/buy my music here "government is the enemy of liberty"-RP Support me on Patreon here Ephesians 6:12

  24. #21
    Quote Originally Posted by PRB View Post
    if sex work benefits women, don't you think the feminazis would've legalized it by now? I mean, after all we're in an age where liberals and feminists control everything, aren't we?
    Sex-positive feminism is a relatively new spectrum of feminist thought that sees sexual freedom as an important component of women's freedom. In fact, this wave can probably be seen as a direct response to the efforts of anti-porn (and prostitution) feminists. So feminism is again, not too dissimilar from most ideological movements in that there is a lot of internal dialogue and debate between factions.

    The research shows that in addition to these health benefits, prostitution's legalization seems to help reduce the number of victims of human trafficking, as well as violence against sex workers overall. This is the case in Germany (a country that used an imperfect approach to "legalizing" prostitution, yet there have been some successes). Even demand-side approaches to fighting prostitution (locking up people who solicit prostitutes) result in no real changes in either the number of prostitutes or their customers.
    Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just and that his justice cannot sleep forever. Thomas Jefferson

  25. #22
    People are free to boink hundreds of partners of either sex; but let some money change hands and it's immoral. Is this actually about vice? Or unregulated commerce? Does the State feel awkward being in partnership with whores?
    All modern revolutions have ended in a reinforcement of the power of the State.
    -Albert Camus

  26. #23
    Quote Originally Posted by otherone View Post
    People are free to boink hundreds of partners of either sex; but let some money change hands and it's immoral. Is this actually about vice? Or unregulated commerce? Does the State feel awkward being in partnership with whores?
    It's still legal to pay 2 other people to have sex while you film them and sell porno tapes. Pay some to have sex with you and it becomes illegal.


  27. #24
    ///
    Quote Originally Posted by TheCount View Post
    ...I believe that when the government is capable of doing a thing, it will.
    Quote Originally Posted by Influenza View Post
    which one of yall fuckers wrote the "ron paul" racist news letters
    Quote Originally Posted by Dforkus View Post
    Zippy's posts are a great contribution.




    Disrupt, Deny, Deflate. Read the RPF trolls' playbook here (post #3): http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...eptive-members



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  29. #25
    Quote Originally Posted by tod evans View Post
    Ugly folks have a much better chance of getting laid if prostitution is illegal 'cause as we all know if something is illegal it cost more which leaves out a vast segment of society....
    Wouldn't more ugly people be able to hire prostitutes if it were legal and cheaper?


    Moral people benefit from imposing their morals on others whether they want them or not, just as many of the laws we all bitch about are.
    I'd actually consider busybodies of this sort to be immoral, but I guess I get your point. Personally I'm ultra-conservative in my personal life and morals, and I don't think prostitution is moral or something that evangelical churches should tolerate in their churches. But its absolutely nobody's right to use force to prevent it.

    Paul the Apostle said in 1 Corinthians 5:9-13 that sexual transgressions are only the church's business if they occur within the church and that the remedy is to excommunicate unrepentant sexual sinners from the church. Paul says that it is none of the church's business if it occurs by people who are not in the church.

    The religious right either has never read Paul, or they think they know better than him. Either way its plain sad.

    Quote Originally Posted by otherone View Post
    People are free to boink hundreds of partners of either sex; but let some money change hands and it's immoral. Is this actually about vice? Or unregulated commerce? Does the State feel awkward being in partnership with whores?
    Well, ANY sexual relationship outside of the marriage union is immoral as far as I'm concerned, and as far as the Bible is concerned. IT doesn't make any difference if its for money or not.

    Certainly not something that should be criminalized.

  30. #26
    In other words...... some scientists somewhere are horny.

  31. #27
    Quote Originally Posted by FreedomFanatic View Post
    Wouldn't more ugly people be able to hire prostitutes if it were legal and cheaper?
    You're missing the point;

    Many ugly people would choose to neglect their peers in order to imbibe in poontang way out of their league if it were more affordable, leaving a large segment of ugly society frustrated and unfulfilled...


    Quote Originally Posted by FreedomFanatic View Post
    I'd actually consider busybodies of this sort to be immoral, but I guess I get your point. Personally I'm ultra-conservative in my personal life and morals, and I don't think prostitution is moral or something that evangelical churches should tolerate in their churches. But its absolutely nobody's right to use force to prevent it.

    Paul the Apostle said in 1 Corinthians 5:9-13 that sexual transgressions are only the church's business if they occur within the church and that the remedy is to excommunicate unrepentant sexual sinners from the church. Paul says that it is none of the church's business if it occurs by people who are not in the church.

    The religious right either has never read Paul, or they think they know better than him. Either way its plain sad.
    "The Church" is notorious for "using force" ie; government, to do their bidding....

    Try to express your desire to not use government to enforce morality to the congregation in your church and see what response you get...

    I too am a Christian but I know the majority of my brethren in my congregation believe it's their duty to enforce their beliefs on others through government edict and enforcement. For this reason I shun the lot of 'em.....

  32. #28
    Quote Originally Posted by tod evans View Post
    You're missing the point;

    Many ugly people would choose to neglect their peers in order to imbibe in poontang way out of their league if it were more affordable, leaving a large segment of ugly society frustrated and unfulfilled...


    Heh heh.
    Quote Originally Posted by TheCount View Post
    ...I believe that when the government is capable of doing a thing, it will.
    Quote Originally Posted by Influenza View Post
    which one of yall fuckers wrote the "ron paul" racist news letters
    Quote Originally Posted by Dforkus View Post
    Zippy's posts are a great contribution.




    Disrupt, Deny, Deflate. Read the RPF trolls' playbook here (post #3): http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthr...eptive-members

  33. #29
    in all seriousness, if it became legal, id be first in line at the next trucking school! fun times ahead! lol
    Quote Originally Posted by VIDEODROME View Post
    I did a few years working as a truck driver and I often wished there could have been a legit legal brothel. I mean really, imagine what that could do for truck drivers physical and mental health. Not to mention the way Trucking has notoriously high turnover and is always short on drivers. This would help offset the weariness and solitude of that kind of job.

  34. #30
    Quote Originally Posted by Suzanimal View Post
    Good grief, it's the oldest profession, decriminalize it already.
    Arguments in favor of decriminalizing prostitution often rely on empathy for sex workers themselves: Journalist Melissa Gira Grant contends, for example, that criminalizing sex work implicitly condones violence against sex workers, who are often afraid to go to the police to report violence and are frequently ignored when they do. Current laws (sex work is illegal in 116 countries) require that sex workers render themselves largely voiceless and invisible — which makes their interests easy to ignore.

    But new research suggests that existing legislation against sex work may also be harming society at large — and that decriminalizing sex work could help slow the spread of HIV.

    On Tuesday, scientists at the annual International AIDS Conference in Melbourne, Australia, recommended decriminalizing sex work across the globe — arguing that legalization is the most effective way to reduce global HIV infection rates. According to new research — a series of seven studies recently published in the Lancet medical journal — scientists estimate that HIV infection rates among sex workers could be reduced by between 33 and 46 percent if the activity were not illegal. “Governments and policymakers can no longer ignore the evidence,” asserted Kate Shannon, an associate professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia and the lead author of the study.*


    The research, conducted in Kenya, India, and Canada, found that high rates of violence against sex workers, police harassment, and poor working conditions — all circumstances exacerbated by sex work’s illegal status — combined with lack of access to HIV prevention and care significantly increased the risk of infection among sex workers. According to recent data from the World Health Organization, female sex workers are 14 times as likely to have HIV as other women, yet fear of arrest and stigma often prevents them from seeking medical care. (A Kenyan woman quoted in the study added that when doctors at the health center she visited realized she was a sex worker, she was denied treatment.)

    *(I did not know that)

    This January, Human Rights Watch reiterated its call for the decriminalization of voluntary sex work by adults, asserting criminalization “undermines sex-worker health.” Researchers at this week’s conference also cited New South Wales, Australia, where sex work has been decriminalized since 2009 — and where sex workers now have a lower rate of HIV prevalence than the general population. For its part, Canada’s Supreme Court struck down the country’s anti-prostitution laws last December and may decriminalize the activity this year. Let’s hope that others follow suit.
    http://nymag.com/thecut/2014/07/scie...-sex-work.html
    Scientists are a little slow on the know. Economists figured this out long ago.
    Quote Originally Posted by BuddyRey View Post
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