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Path: utzoo!utcs!lsuc!pesnta!hplabs!amdahl!rtech!jeff
From: jeff@rtech.ARPA (Jeff Lichtman)
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: Re: How to start getting rid of porn
Message-ID: <169@rtech.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 21-Feb-85 18:20:35 EST
Article-I.D.: rtech.169
Posted: Thu Feb 21 18:20:35 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 27-Feb-85 09:17:47 EST
References: <1612@pur-phy.UUCP> <4716@cbscc.UUCP> <128@v1.UUCP> <774@utcsri.UUCP>
Organization: Relational Technology, Berkeley CA
Lines: 29

>   But back to the article being rebutted.  While liberalizing laws concerning
> what happens to two individuals in the privacy of their home is something I'm
> in favour of, I don't think that the legalization of prostitution is likely to
> help attitudes much at all.  We *are* North Americans, and as such, we are
> unlikely to view prostitution as an honourable or sacred profession.  To
> legalize it would just make it more widespread and likely hurt attitudes
> towards women in general (remember that given our background, the vast majority
> of the population looks down upon prostitution and this *isn't* going to change
> with legalization). 
> 
>   Tom West
>  { allegra cornell decvax ihnp4 linus utzoo }!utcsri!west

In most of the places where prostitution is legal (e.g. in several European
countries) it isn't looked on as a sacred or honorable profession.
The main reason it was legalized in those places (or never made illegal)
is that the people making the laws recognized that the consequences of
making it illegal are worse than prostitution itself.  Licensed and
regulated prostitutes aren't as likely to have veneral disease, don't need
pimps to bail them out of jail, aren't as likely to steal from their
customers, are more likely to get protection from the police when they
are threatened with violence or even beaten up, etc.

My own reason for wishing the prostitution were legal in this country
is that prostitutes are human beings who don't deserve to be thrown in
jail or harassed for doing what some people believe is sinful.
-- 
Jeff Lichtman at rtech (Relational Technology, Inc.)
aka Swazoo Koolak