Who’s talking about “she”?… IACB is male, please get even your minor facts right.

Hi Peter.

….

wtf? Even playing along with your assumption that there are not straight male prostitutes I completely fail to see why the solutions to the problems it raises wouldn’t be apparent to everyone.

Americans can butt out about what they think WE should do with our laws.

Why would being American prohibit you from suggesting solutions?

Oh my, wall to wall McD, KFC, Disney and Nevada whore houses— naa that’s not “nationalism” (as in the Tory sense) that’s avoidance of cheezy, tacky, negative globalization, cultural imperialism al la Yankee style. Sorry but not a great fan, myself.

What you are doing here is arguing that someone is not welcome in this debate as a consequence of them being foreign. That falls under the “Xenophobic comments” prohibition, I do believe, in addition to being utterly fucking stupid. Just because she “isn’t from ’round here” doesn’t mean she’s incapable of making valid suggestions, or at least you’ve given no evidence for why she should be.

Not since the British Nationality Act 1981.

Interesting, Iain. I hadn’t heard of that one.

Not since the British Nationality Act 1981.

Big-C Conservative = controlling what people are legally allowed to do with their bodies; small-c-conservative = in favour of the status quo.

The people, both male and female, arguing in a country where the safest forms (i.e. advertised, not on the street and with physical back-up against abusive punters) forms of prostitution are illegal, that the criminalisation of prostitution is a Bloody Stupid Idea are definitionally neither Conservative nor conservative.

And your point is?

Seriously, you believe that I am suggesting you cannot comment on this blog? Your paranoia and fragile sense of self serves you well my friend.

More like you cannot tolerate confrontation without dissolving into attack.

Ask yourself—” if you are having such a powerful reaction—then what are you in need of defending IACB” ?

Dear oh dear your hysteria serves you well.

Oh, and on the “interfering in other’s politics” and “conservative” business – this certainly didn’t stop several UK radfem sisters (hi, Delphyne) from throwing their weight behind the pro-Republican PUMA blogs during the last election.

God, you radfems truly deserve yourselves.

So what James? it’s not all about you—and yes prostitution IS a woman’s issue (along with boys, girls, gay men and transfolks)

Americans can butt out about what they think WE should do with our laws.

Oh my, wall to wall McD, KFC, Disney and Nevada whore houses— naa that’s not “nationalism” (as in the Tory sense) that’s avoidance of cheezy, tacky, negative globalization, cultural imperialism al la Yankee style. Sorry but not a great fan, myself.

And if you are typical of your ilk it would seem that my strong suspicion that “Radical” Feminists are in fact the most conservative strain of that variable ideology was entirely correct. Your nationalism is the height of isolationist absurdity and you clearly have nothing productive to contribute to this debate. You seek only to purge the sensible participation of others on the basis of their sex, your bizarrely and blatantly incorrect presumption of their party affiliation and their geographical location.

Your bigotry is exactly the sort of thing that the left requires none of. And finally, its “British Subject”. A nationalist should know that sort of thing.

No, I happen to be a UK citizen who objects to USian interference. Mk?

“So apparently neither men nor foreigners are allowed to comment on this “women’s issue”. How very misandrist nationalist.”

“How very misandrist nationalist.” (just repeating this)

Got any more “made up” words in your GCSE (‘O’ level) repertoire?

Thank you.

I’d rather have Americans participating in this debate than nationalists. See: logic obeys no borders.

Do you actually have a serious point to make, or are you simply trolling?

“Renegade Evolution and any of the other sex workers who have been taking part in these debates – don’t bother on this one. Not unless whatever you’ve got to say has been peer reviewed and passed as plausible by a panel of middle-aged wankers in white coats first.”

Though you are dismissive of the peer review process, you really should have learned from attempts to use flawed research & statistics in your Cif articles that by adopting such an approach you leave yourself open to accusations of holding to the notion that proven facts are unimportant if you believe strongly enough in your position.

As it stands, Melissa Farley is a particularly poor emaple of a research to base such a position on. Her research is, normally, privately published, thus enabling it to avoid both the peer review process & approval by a research ethics board; c.f.:

http://myweb.dal.ca/mgoodyea/Documents/Methodology/Flawed%20theory%20and%20method%20Weitzer%20violence%20AW%202005.pdf

http://www.scot-pep.org.uk/A%20commentary%20on%20challenging%20men's%20demand%20for%20prostitution%20in%20Scotland.pdf

Unity,

Whilst the general tone & thought processes displayed in your piece can’t be disagreed with, I must concur with the opinion expressed by others that the regulated brothel system, as found in Nevada is not a particulary good example to adopt.

Firstly, the Nevada system, as has been mentioned earlier, allows too much power to the brothel owners; in that the sex workers are required to live on site & can only operate under the auspices of such owners.

Secondly, the fact that they are required to undergo compulsory STI testing is not only invasive, but re-inforces the fallacy that sex workers, in Western Europe, North America & Australasia are major vectors in the spread of such infections, the reality is that they have a lower rate of infection than is found amongst the general population & that safer sex practices are near universal amongst such workers within these regions. The resulting perpetuation of this myth only serves to further the stigmatisation of sex workers.

Additionally, the requirement for sex workers to register as such actually increases the difficulties they will experience when seeking to leave the industry.

Finally, all such systems are open to corruption; as was evidenced by the similar system that was in operation, in France, during the earlier part of the 20th century.

A variation of the decriminalised New Zealand system; allowing for the specific conditions applying in the UK, together with investment in support systems for those who either wish to leave the industry or, due to factors such as substance abuse, could not find work in the newly decriminalised indoor sector, would appear to be a much better option than those put forward by the (neo)abolitionists or the regulationists.

Glen Parry

You’ve been watching too much Max Hardcore IACB—–figures.

Actually IACB (much to my surprise) I actually agree with you on quite a few issues – on several points. Watch out you’re loosing your creds.

Then:

Which is why -I- say keep your US interference to yourselves, that’s if you can possibly imagine butting out of some other countries politics—–even for a moment.

Thank you.

So apparently neither men nor foreigners are allowed to comment on this “women’s issue”. How very misandrist nationalist.

Can I lend you a speculum to help you crawl out of there?

Which is why -I- say keep your US interference to yourselves, that’s if you can possibly imagine butting out of some other countries politics—–even for a moment.

Thank you.

Seriously, noone can see it?

Actually IACB (much to my surprise) I actually agree with you on quite a few issues – on several points. Watch out you’re loosing your creds.

Try going to the Cannes film festival, who did you think were hired for the boats etc? I would say high-end prostitution has a lot of drugs attached to it.

Gregory Carlin

Irish Anti-trafficking Coalition

The Spanish researchers’ schematic division of the prostitution market seems coloured by a Spanish peculiarity – brothels labelled ‘Clubs’ which, like all businesses, require a municipal licence to open but are not fully legal. In most countries where prostitution is not fully legal, brothels shade into luxury trade and into house prostitution with no clear divide; and escorts, like house prostitution shade into the street trade with little clear distinction. (The overlap between brothels, escorts and house prostitution should have been evident to the researchers. It is clearly visible in the prostitution ads which are a staple of most Spanish newspapers classified advertising.)

That’s just John’s style – pithy and heavy on the irony.

Trust me, you’ll get used to it pretty quickly.

“That wasn’t his point I think. I took it to mean “how can you call sex work abusive, given how much they earn for the conditions, if you’re not going to call minimum wage jobs abusive at the same time”

Yeah, I see the point now that its but that way. Its just that the way the prior statement was phrased, it sounded like sex work was being cast as something that wasn’t high-value labor. Sorry if there was any misinterpretation there.