SPRITUS MUNDI says:
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Really? I think that people who disparage the honesty of those with different opinions are being less than perfectly polite, not to mention rational.
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Sigh. It was not my intention to disparage anyone’s honesty. I simply think that saying “I wouldn’t behave in this way, but I don’t care that you do because I see nothing wrong with it” is inconsistent. There is obviously “something wrong with it,” at least so far as you (the generic you) are concerned, or you wouldn’t choose not to do it yourself. It appears to be a profession you would prefer your daughter not engage in; how is that consistent with saying you have no problem with it?
This, of course, begs the question, which in the context of gambling would be “why is it not okay to gamble away all your money?” Why wouldn’t you do it? Why wouldn’t you wan t your daughter to do it?
Who said anything about condemning the outcome? The OP asks “At what point does someone’s involvement in sex work render them unacceptable in your eyes, the sort of people you would never associate with or want your (grown) children to know (or heaven forfend, BE)?” To me, responses of “I wouldn’t do it, but I don’t mind if you do” simply beg the question. If it’s okay, then why wouldn’t you do it? There is no “condemnation” there, merely the recognition that if you would not do it, or have your family member do it, there must be something negative about it, at least so far as concerns you and your family.
So engaging in pornography is not a “desireable” goal? Once again, this begs the question: Why not?
Again, why not?
My explicit response would be that I did not intend to offend anyone. Perhaps “inconsistent” or “irrational” would have been a better word choice than “not being perfectly honest?” In any case, my point still stands: It is by your own omission not a “desireable” occupation for you or your daughters. If it’s “okay,” why is it not “desireable”?
Thank you, COUNT, for your defense of my profession. 
It’s a rare thing around here. But the point I am trying to make is just as ENDERW intepreted it: any job can be degrading, because “degrading,” or even “unacceptable,” is a matter of opinion. I am merely pointing out that a person who says “it’s okay for you, if you want, but not for me or my family” obviously has someissues, be they ever so minor, with the profession – and issues that extend beyond the individual, since he or she wouldn’t want a family member doing whatever, either.
ROBODUDE says:
Again, dishonest is probably not as good a word as “inconsistent” for what I’m getting at. If I say, “I would never be a Muslim,” I am neither disrespecting the fact that some people are Muslim, nor claiming that my beliefs are more valid than theirs. I am, however, clearly saying “I have issues with Islam that would prevent me from following it.” And, in the context of sex work, those issues can obviously extend beyond mere personal taste, since people have not just said “I wouldn’t do it” (a matter of personal taste) but also “I wouldn’t want my daughter to do it, either.” My question remains: If it’s a perfectly legitimate and not harmful profession, why wouldn’t you want your daughter to do it?
I think BURUNDI’S response is the most typical, in that I think many people feel that way. Perhaps it is only a “visceral” response, but many people in our society DO think, deep down, that there is something “wrong” with sex work. I know I do. The question presented is what is wrong with sex work. I don’t think a response of “I don’t care if you do it, but I wouldn’t want my daughter to do it” answers that question.
--Gaudere}