# Prostituition your stance? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 27, 2009, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370 "2009-10-27T23:38:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/1 "2009-10-27T23:38:28Z")
This is assuming all the acts of prostitution is between adults and no one is being forced to do anything. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/2 "2009-10-27T23:39:19Z")
Having sex to pay for college? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/3 "2009-10-27T23:40:30Z")
A \*wide \*stance, naturally. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/4 "2009-10-27T23:55:09Z")
Doh I left out prostitution with no regulation. For the purposes of this thread some regulation can be as little as age of consent requirements. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/5 "2009-10-27T23:57:53Z")
But you’re assuming an ideal world. Out here in reality, human trafficking is pretty rampant. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2009, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/6 "2009-10-27T23:59:58Z")
> [@dangermom](#): > > But you’re assuming an ideal world. Out here in reality, human trafficking is pretty rampant. So fight human trafficking. I don’t buy into this limiting personal freedom in order to fight nastier crimes bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/7 "2009-10-28T00:04:03Z")
> [@dangermom](#): > > But you’re assuming an ideal world. Out here in reality, human trafficking is pretty rampant. Personal rights and freedoms cannot wait for an ideal world. In an ideal world, nobody would drive drunk either. Because they do, we shouldn’t outlaw driving; we should (and have) outlaw and prosecute driving while intoxicated. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/8 "2009-10-28T00:06:38Z")
_shrug_ I didn’t vote in the poll and I didn’t say what I think on the issue–I simply think it’s dumb to have an ‘ideal world’ poll. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/9 "2009-10-28T00:08:56Z")
prosti-tuition. Is that what they call the School Girl fantasy thing these days? ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/10 "2009-10-28T00:14:59Z")
I’m not assuming an ideal world. In an ideal world you could legalize prostitution with no regulation and no one would suffer ill consequences. The options for regulations more then cover ways to deal with human trafficking. The ‘no one is being forced’ is to cover things like the state saying someone needs to apply to work as a prostitute to meet unemployment guidelines. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/11 "2009-10-28T00:16:20Z")
I fail at this thread and spelling. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/12 "2009-10-28T00:38:49Z")
I voted for “legal with heavy regulation”. I do think prostitution should be legal, but I am very familiar with how closely linked even legal prostitution is to human trafficking, aka _slavery_. So I would want there to be extreme vigilance in ensuring that this isn’t happening. If that cannot be ensured, I don’t think I could support legalizing prostitution. The government should not enable trafficking. So maybe this is an idealistic fantasy. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/13 "2009-10-28T00:41:18Z")
> [@fluiddruid](#): > > Personal rights and freedoms cannot wait for an ideal world. In fact you cannot have an ideal world without personal rights and freedoms. Much of the evil in this world is perpetrated by busy bodies trying to control other people in the name of those other people’s ‘best interests’. If Prostitution were legal you could have legal prostitutes informing upon illegal prostitution houses that perform illegal trafficking. [QUOTE=Kyla] I voted for “legal with heavy regulation”. I do think prostitution should be legal, but I am very familiar with how closely linked even legal prostitution is to human trafficking, aka slavery. So I would want there to be extreme vigilance in ensuring that this isn’t happening. If that cannot be ensured, I don’t think I could support legalizing prostitution. The government should not enable trafficking. So maybe this is an idealistic fantasy. [/QUOTE] The problem with this idea is that it assumes that prohibition somehow avoids the slavery issue. People are bought and sold as sex slaves regardless of the legality of it. You’re more likely to see a sex slave with prostitution being illegal than you are with it being legal. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/14 "2009-10-28T00:57:54Z")
I’m not actually sure of my real feelings on the subject. My instinct is to say “illegal” but I haven’t really examined the issue much beyond the fact that I was raised to believe it should be illegal. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/15 "2009-10-28T01:02:57Z")
I voted Legal with Some Regulation. I feel that since the default legality of the situation is “illegal” then if you suddenly make it legal with a ton of complicated regulations, then everyone will just keep going about their normal business, aka illegally. Make it legal, inviting (for the workers as incentive to go legal) and only slightly regulated, though _strongly enforced_. Then as time goes on you can tack on more regulations as you see fit. Emphasis on the strong enforcement or things will just go back to default illegal and very dangerous for everyone involved. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/16 "2009-10-28T01:09:51Z")
Also, I think prostituition is one of the best typos ever. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/17 "2009-10-28T01:30:50Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > The problem with this idea is that it assumes that prohibition somehow avoids the slavery issue. People are bought and sold as sex slaves regardless of the legality of it. That’s why my point was that I don’t want the government to _enable_ trafficking. It does happen either way, but I would expect that government would use at least part of the financial benefit (that would result from the taxes) to go after the inevitable rise in trafficking. > [@](#): > > You’re more likely to see a sex slave with prostitution being illegal than you are with it being legal. Cite, please. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/18 "2009-10-28T02:26:47Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > Cite, please. I don’t have a cite but think about it logically. Say I am opposed to slavery but not to prostitution. I know you’re an American, and I can procure sex from you legally for money. As I know you’re an American on the up and up, what is the incentive to go to the shady place with the Mexican girls who can’t speak English? As for using a portion of the proceeds to fight human trafficking, I’m all for it. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/19 "2009-10-28T02:28:09Z")
> [@Covered\_In\_Bees](#): > > Also, I think prostituition is one of the best typos ever. Now I see what this has to do with hot redheaded Wiccan chicks! (I agree) ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370/20 "2009-10-28T03:58:50Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > A \*wide \*stance, naturally. Dammit, I came in here just for that. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prostituition-your-stance/515370.md?page=2)