Should prostitution be legal throughout the country?

Question

I'd like to hear some differing views on this topic. Not to stereotype, but I'm sure that some on the right feel it is immoral and some on the left feel that it is degrading to women. Are these good enough reasons for it to be illegal?

On one hand:
1) It is a victimless crime
2) If legalized, it could be regulated and made safer for men and women.
3) Practitioners could be forced to get regular AIDS tests to keep a license
4) It could be an extra tax revenue stream for the Government
5) As in Holland, it could be limited to red light districts in each city
6) It could cut down on illegal human trafficking of women from other countries because each woman would be in a registry.

I'm curious to see your viewpoints.

7) What a woman does with her body is her private business, right (same argument as abortion)

ikem- Okay, but if we based our laws on bible principles, many things would be illegal, right? In that case, it would be illegal to have an abortion, be gay, gamble, etc.

"Prostitution is legal in Nevada and they have some of the lowest STD rates in the nation. It's when you force prostitution into back alleys with no regulation that people spread STDs." -from another post

Answer 1

This question is as old as... well... prostitution. Is it right for the government to legislate morality?

Clearly, the primary reason prostitution is viewed as a vice is because of religious grounds. There are and have been religions and cultures which do not have the same provisions against. In general I agree with your points, it is better to make something legal, and thereby controllable, rather than illegal and dangerous to all parties involved.

As to those who feel it is wrong because it treats a person as a commodity, they are naive. Consider sports where athletes are expected to place their bodies and sometimes their lives on the line for entertainment. The film and modeling industry where youth and good looks often overshadow skill and talent. The military where soldiers are placed in danger for dubious reasons. Why do you think businesses use terms like "Resources" when they mean 'people working on a project', because we are a commodity, an asset.

Answer 2

1. It is a Crime with VICTIMS -- the Spouse who gets the Sexually Transmitted Disease that the other got from the Prostitute (and there are females being FORCED into prostitution all the time)
2. It will NOT be safer if regulated for men and women -- You can NOT regulate that the 'customer' must submit to AIDs, HIV, other Sexually Transmitted Disease testing BEFORE soliciting the services of a prostitute, NOR can any of these diseases show up within close timeframes of this type of sexual contact -- some I mentioned can have a 10 -20 - plus incubation time period -- thus, the innocents are then exposed through the Soliciting individual.
3. AIDS is one of the diseases that can take a long long number of years before it shows up positive on any Health Tests -- and in the meantime, everyone that the prostitute, their customers, and the innocents they have sexual contact with NOW have to deal with having this deadly condition -- all without THEIR KNOWLEDGE!
4. The Government is NOT in the business of Enslaving a portion of the population for the 'entertainment of the moment' of a select group of predatory individuals.
5. Red Light Districts exist in all cities -- just because it is not called that -- it still exists. And, having travelled extensively in Europe -- I can assure you that the Red Light Districts are some of the most violent, seedy and nasty areas of those cities -- and there are MANY Victims of the actions taking place there.
6. This in NO WAY would cut down on Human Trafficking from other countries. You STILL can NOT require that EACH Woman desired to BE a prostitute while growing up -- because there will ALWAYS be poverty, and ALWAYS be families and closed/isolated communes, or other such groups that will SELL THEIR OWN DAUGHTERS, Mothers, and Wives to gain some form of FINANCIAL BENEFIT -- and this IS SLAVERY. This will NOT go away -- it will still be there -- and the source of the Fresh Prostitutes will be still there as these same predatory and disgusting groups will CONTINUE to sell the Females into this Slavery for a Benefit.

Answer 3

Your question is quite lengthy and so deserves a substantial answer.
For a woman to sell her body for intimate purposes in order to make a living is degrading to the value of that woman. Sexual intimacy is a special bond between a man and a woman and should not be given out lightly. If a woman sells herself to just anybody, then what does she have left to give to the special person she chooses for her mate? Sure some will say that she can give her body but she doesn't give her heart except to the special person she loves.
1. It is not victimless, the woman, her partners, and all of her loved ones suffer from the personal degradation and loss of self worth. Society suffers from the loss of moral value in its citizens. The individual suffers under the weight of sin and guilt.
2. Regulating a bad activity does create safer havens for the bad activity but it does not make them right or even okay. They are still bad activities.
3. Testing isn't the end of troubles. You are treating the symptoms of the moral illness and not the cause of the moral illness.
4. How much of a price do you put on your ethics or morals. Money isn't everything. In fact if you put a price on everything, then your values aren't worth what you sold them for.
5. In Nevada, the girls are restricted to their district or house as well. They are only allowed out to get groceries and laundry, etc. They essentially are under house arrest. Not a fun restriction for them.
6. Perhaps but in Germany and Holland where prostitution is legal, they still have a huge business in human trafficing, getting their new girls from Eastern Europe and other impoverished countries.
There is nothing acceptable about prostitution and should be fought against with moral outrage by all citizens.

Answer 4

Like legalizing marijuana, there are so many benefits to legalizing prostitution, from tax revenue to safety for the clients and providers, it would even reduce the cost of service because more women and men would be driven into the business and intense competition will develop which will lead to a drastic price drop and better quality of service.

However, legalizing such a bill would face overwhelming opposition from many lobby groups simply on moral grounds, even proposing such a bill will possibly jeopardize a senator's reputation and will certainly come back to bite him when re-election comes. Hence such a bill will never get passed in most states.

Answer 5

The legalization viewpoints are generally that it would be safer, regulated, etc., and that it's your body you can do what you want, etc.

The viewpoints against its legalization are usually confined to its being degrading to women or just generally undesirable. I have another reason to be against it.

We live in a society where we are expected to work in order to live, if by chance we can even find a job which covers our expenses. This is already problematic enough that some people have to turn to illegal prostitution. Imagine if it were legalized... it would become a situation into which many women feel obliged to put themselves, and the economy would grow around it, and it would only increase the number of women forced to be prostitutes. Very few women would choose prostitution over another job which pays the same, even women who don't mind working in strip clubs, or sex lines, etc.

And when an economy continues to grow, it doesn't grow with room for these women anywhere else but in prostitution, and if they advance, their place as prostitutes will be expected to be filled, by the businesses (and many corporations would certainly step in) who make money on it... As an example, when the economy collapsed in Argentina, where I'm currently living (and where controlled prostitution is legal, by the way) many families were forced to start digging through the trash in the cities, taking out recyclables, and gathering them in patched-together cloth bags on carts.. these bags are gigantic, at least one and a half to two times a person's height and three or four times their width. don't compare it to someone in the U.S. who goes around with a trash bag collecting cans and plastic bottles to buy liquor money, they work very hard and collect barely enough to live (about $10/week).

My point is that this happened in 2001 as an emergency provision. Now the economy of Argentina is continuing to grow, but it grows around them... this class exists and has little opportunity for advancement, and may exist for years to come. We could create a similar prostitution class, with no room for advancement, if we legalize it and let businesses promote it.

Answer 6

Yes. These men and women are choosing to provide a service. If we make it legal, it will be significantly safer, for all the reasons you mentioned. Also, making it illegal certainly hasn't stopped it, just as making it legal wouldn't cause women to suddenly decide to become prostitutes.

Answer 7

I believe it should be legal for several reasons....
1. Make them pay taxes on the dollars they earn...just like immigrants.
2. If it were legal there would be less disease and more people being treated.
3. I think less people would want the "street walker" prostitute.
4. We already have so called "massage parlors" what do people think goes on there?
5. It is not hurting anyone but themselves....much like drinking, smoking, etc.
6. Just like weed.....the government would be able tax and control it, if legalized.
So YES! GO FOR IT!

Answer 8

no i disagree it shouldn't be legal b/c a woman or a man should not be treated as an item or a thing. i think that there should be focus on love and marriage for people out there so they don't feel used. it's not just about stds, people have feelings and deep down nobody wants to feel used and who will take care of them when they get old other than someone who's been by their side all along and that comes from marriage not prostitution.

Answer 9

Seems selling your soul is up for grabs in many countries. People sell themselves, their children, marraige....their body parts? Not only there but everywhere else. Any species that gains monitary benefit off the pain and humiliation of others.....isn't human to me. No one should have to go that far to eat or just live. Animals don't even do do that.

Answer 10

It is not a Victimless crime-where ever prostitution is high-disease is also. And it is passed down often. And other bad things seem to follow. High Drug count and crime. Look on web. It has never cut down on human trafficking many still want more-younger victims. Many programs have followed this. And there are emotional problems. Research is available on the web.