The SWOP-East blog -- Sex Workers Outreach Project

News Bits (Wednesday)

2008-10-29T09:05:00.000-07:00

Mostly leftover bits from last week (sorry). And AIDS stuff.

Ghana realizes the ABC method is a bunch of CRAP.

The ideal college job: visiting sex clubs and interviewing sex workers. (Notice how they differeniate between porn stars and sex workers?)

Have an STI? Send your sex partners an e-postcard announcing your status. Sounds silly, but if it fosters honest communication and better health -- then e-postcards it is.

UK Scouts are fully prepared for sexual adulthood. Can you imagine trying to accomplish this in the US?

MIT has created a new sexual assult service.

St. Louis students being tested for HIV after an HIV-positive student possibly infected others. No real details as to what went on. Being high school, I can only imagine this will turn ugly and someone will end up in therapy.

Bali sex workers at increased risk of AIDs because government interference has led them to start working in remote villages.

News Bits (Tuesday)

2008-10-21T07:49:00.000-07:00

Some of these were from last week but I forgot I collected them. Sorry.

Does a former rapist deserve to work with vulnerable women? Not sex work-related, but interesting and disturbing.

European Baptists trying to eradicate prostitution. If Catholics couldn't, what makes you think you can?

Queensland to crack down on escort services or any outcall sex service.

Free Speech Coalition dinner (and show/awards, whatever).

A look at McCain's and Obama'a domestic AIDS plans.

Sex addiction rises as economy goes down, or maybe it's just old-fashioned stress relief. What's good for sex workers is seen as a problem for their clients.

Nepal has a Condom Day.

News Bits (Tuesday)

2008-10-14T14:41:00.000-07:00

Comparing a computer company to dating a former sex worker. Tired of how okay it is to see sexual women this way. Find a new analogy.

City tries to fine banks for foreclosed homes that have become work-havens for local sex workers.

Violent crime rates rise in a city that still likes to focus on arresting sex workers.

"Children are growing up in neighborhoods with either prostitution or drugs, with sex acts, needles or condoms, and they grow up thinking these things are OK," Lewis said. "Why should we be shocked when they have a warped value system?"

No, we don't want children thinking condoms are okay. I understand the relutance to expose children to streetside sex or drug use. At least the sex workers are practicing safer sex.

Long piece on Hugh Hefner, Playboy and America's most famous blondes (or sex workers -- depending on your perspective).

Street worker defends her choices and her work in the midst of a sting operation. You go girl!

A dominatrix took a bit of advantage of her slave, to the tune of $300,000.

Not much to the post, but great title: "Stab a Prostitute, Go to Jail" .

More on the sex worker assaulted by a US Maine in an Aussie brothel.

Sixteen Indian authors on AIDS and those at highest risk. Interesting project piece.

Added note: there are a lot of arrests going on. TONS.

News Bits (Monday)

2008-10-13T10:45:00.001-07:00

Thailand cracking down on prostitution?

Sex worker does CPR on a client with a heart attack. Blogger professes astonishment she would care so much about her client.

US Marine raped and assaulted a Sydney sex worker, though most of this article is about a Marine that was badly beaten on a road (far as I can tell, the attacks are unrelated).

The economy hits Spanish sex industry.

An off-duty jailer follows two strippers home and shoots someone else. For whatever reason, I'm not understanding this story but wanted to report it anyway.

Male sex workers at risk in Mumbai.

Straight-laced wife decides to talk to scary, scary strippers in the guise of journalism.

News Bits (Sunday)

2008-10-12T09:16:00.001-07:00

Bad vacation experience includes too many prostitutes. Oh, and food poisoning too. But really, the hookers were too much.

UK feminist workshop pities and objectifies strippers.

Thai brothels in the woods. Allegedly a trafficking destination as well.

Strip club folds due to economy?

Everything to do With Sex Show in London.

Attempted prostitution in a grocery store parking lot.

News Bits (Saturday)

2008-10-11T09:00:00.000-07:00

Spitzer costume for Halloween.

A rapper's career is just like a stripper's. (One of the benefits of being a stripper is "lots of attention." Um, yeah, every stripper wants lots of stripper-attention when she's not working.)

Stripper who hires a lawyer to defend her doesn't deserve a judge to hear her case (among other things). Everyone has rights but sex workers.

Sad story from a former child prostitute somehow blames prostitution for her problems, not the mother who abandoned her. This article also mentions Operation Clean Sweep (or whatever it was) of a few months ago which netted a total of what --18? trafficked children and arrested tons of adult sex workers.

A look at the modern world economy, how it affects women and workers. Not a look at sex work.

Yet another blogger outraged over the middle-class UK callgirl Lara. How dare Lara speak in defense of herself or make her own life choices that don't agree with what everyone else thinks she should do? The nerve!

Springfield IL contemplates cracking down on customers of prostitutes.

I generally don't like reporting on these things as I find it depressing, but this case of the terrible murder of a UK sex worker wrenched me. Another name for the December 17 list.

News Bits (Friday)

2008-10-10T12:52:00.001-07:00

Does sex sell products?

Women's rights best way to fight AIDS in Uganda -- and everywhere. Yay! Someone is getting it!

Teenage girl is a child pornographer for taking photos of herself. By that rational, every sex worker can also be arrested for trafficking themselves if they travel.

Coffee table book on the history of porn: 1969-2009.

Max Hardcore sentenced (no news there), more disturbingly a woman who ran a fictional story site was sentenced. Granted, the site dealt in the abuse of children, but there were no pictures (or models).

Introducing the $1000 lap dance. Finally.

OMG! Strip club operates in neighborhood and it doesn't go to hell in a handbasket!

"Gaps" in sex trafficking "enforcement" in Minesota. It's not "enforcement" it's just business-as-usual where sex workers are the only criminals in illegal sex work. And any actual trafficking victim is still considered a criminal.

New movie about child trafficking: for labor, sex and warfare. It's a "seat-of-your-pants rally for a modern abolitionist movement, boosted by celebrity activists Daryl Hannah, Ashley Judd and Julia Ormond." We need some celebrity activists.

Journalist bothered by salicious headline writing in the death of a young woman. Thank you.

News Bits (Thursday)

2008-10-09T16:11:00.000-07:00

The caffeinated edition, and I'm in a mood too.

One of those "it had to happen" things: US government listens to phone sex via wiretapping, all in the name of fighting terrorism, of course.

Community campaign to shame the men who seek commercial sex. Notice this bit: "prostitution gradually wears down a neighborhood over time, bringing down property values and bringing in a criminal element." Might it not be the criminal status of prostitution that harms the neighborhood and the women involved? Just a thought. Otherwise, it appears sexually-available women are responsible for the decline and fall of just about everything.

Whale-watching is like prostitution because...maybe I missed the connection. I don't think the writer clearly closes the gap. I found this amusing, which is why it's here. (I kept waiting for her to mention local streets where people can watch prostitutes at work and play. Or maybe tours to the birthing grounds of prostitutes.)

Someone else who can't make the mental leap into consensua sex work. They compare prostitution with call-center work. Most girls I know would rather have sex for a living. It's not as demeaning as working at a call-center.

Ukrainian banknotes may contain hidden prostitutes! Counterfeiters can now hide a whole human on a bill! Actually, it's only images of women naturally assumed to be prostitutes (what other kind of woman would go on a bill?). I want to collect the whole set.

Another blogger thinks the majority of Canadian sex workers are victims of one sort of another. Sigh. I can't understand why people like to sky-dive, but it doesn't mean I think they're all forced out of airplanes.

Former madam of Sheri's Ranch writes a book. I saw her speak and had a lot of anger about many of the things she said. Like prostitution "needs to be controlled" or the phrase "choosey Suzies". Excuse me, it's my body -- I can be as choosey I want to be. This is the shit that makes me mad.

Once again, shooting/harming sex workers is funny to men.

Interesting musings on class among sex workers, female sexuality, work and legal issues. All-around a good read.

Porn store built on the iTunes concept. It was just a matter of time. I'm actually surprised by how long it took someone to do this.

Three Bits

2008-10-07T09:21:00.000-07:00

Sexual rights for Nambian women. Though this discussion stems from the efforts to fight AIDS, any discussion that looks at a society's core sexual values is worthwhile. Yay Nambia!

Male sex workers the focus of the fight against AIDS in Bali. They need more education and medical support.

How to get hookers off the street: give them a makeover! Come on, Oprah, you can do this too! Clean up America's cities by offering some nice clothing. That's all hookers need anyway. With some properly applied makeup and designer duds, all their problems are solved! Who needs to make money when you look great?

Casual Friday Edition

2008-10-03T14:23:00.000-07:00

College girl auctions her viriginity via The Bunny Ranch. And I just gave it away!

Strippers make casinos even sexier -- this is news, apparently. I'm really just curious how many strippers actually enjoy spending their free time at the club -- essentially.

AIDS has probably been around for 100 years. This isn't casual news, really. I'm fascinated.

New Bits (Thursday)

2008-09-18T12:07:00.000-07:00

A rather global round-up day, with more positive news than usual.

Sex workers with natural HIV immunity? They're being studied, of course.

Young brides just have a lower quality of life overall -- in most of the world. Not news and not sex work related, but thought I'd share. It's a women's issue.

Debunking the UK Poppy "Big Brothel" report.

Healthy sex life makes neighbors think she's a sex worker.

Robberies like this illustrate the need for decriminalization -- for both parties.

Fish-for-sex leads to rampant HIV. Sex work is far more universal and nuanced than most people think. Especially the abolitionists. What are they going to do -- abolish the need to eat?

High-end sex workers in India. Strangely enough, it is believed that their relative privilege may bring about more positive changes for sex workers.

Malawi to use local beauty salons to distribute female condoms. A fine idea and one that could be easily replicated here in the US.

SWAN will educate sex workers about their human rights over the next several months in Slovakia.

News Bits (Monday)

2008-09-08T11:03:00.001-07:00

UK nun who supported sex workers dies.

Sex worker steals a sleepy guy's van. I don't support thievery, but this is funny reporting.

Helen Mirren endorses legal brothels. While this was reported here several months ago, this news piece includes the info that she had spent the night there too. Still, not sure legal brothels are the best answer. (Thanks to a friend for this link.)

Indian journalism has sunk to a new low: four men fake a sex raid and rape two women.

UK Christians pressure papers not to accept adult advertising because they believe it leads to trafficking. Notice that their estimated numbers of trafficking victims do not in any way reflect the recent numbers from Operation Pentameter. People just pull these numbers out of their ass.

Note to Mark Clarke: chasing women down in your car does not help them in any way. Would you like someone to do that to you? Strange that he doesn't seem to care a whit about the customers who surely draw sex workers to the area.

This has nothing to do with anything here, I just liked it.

In the UK, a brothel is a brothel if more than one woman offers sex -- paid or unpaid, actual sex or not. I'm guessing most apartment buildings and college dorms are brothels too. Maybe some bars or concert venues? Certainly all strip clubs are. (This explanation is near the end of the article.) Just a brilliant clarifying of any grey areas.

Last legal brothel in Taiwan closes. (Thanks to a friend for the link.)

Melbourne considering banning alcohol from strip clubs.

Aussie stripper rapes a man at a bachelor party.

woman set on fire after refusing to travel and begin working as a prostitute.

News Bits (catch-up)

2008-09-07T15:09:00.000-07:00

Raising awareness among Mongolians who are at-risk of being trafficked. There's a joke in here somewhere, but I can't think of it. I especially liked this part: "It was especially important to educate sex workers because almost all of them knew nothing about TIP and they are at high risk for being trafficked."

Condom ringtone (probably in Bangledeshi). Great idea though.

No, my dear Jonathan, most sex workers probably would not consider your job list to be somehow better than sex work. Sorry. You had crappy jobs.

"We do not want to cook or knit! We are not dying for lack of sewing machines," shouted Elena Reynaga, founder of the Argentine Association of Female Sex Workers and the first sex worker to ever address an International AIDS Conference."

Exactly.

A sad, stupid burglary of a strip club.

Book review: If You Want Closure In Your Relationship, Start With Your Legs,. Not a work of fiction, apparently.

A politician who realizes the Swedish model doesn't work. Wish she could change others' minds.

Female sexual fantasies, including pretending to be paid for sex. Come on girls, admit you really want the money.

Call-Girl Wives, retro fiction.

Vitter wants to use campaign funds to pay for his wigggling out of the Palfrey trial.

The Phillipines recognizes the Catholic Church is full of it -- at least in regards to AIDS prevention. The country is encouraging condom use.

Sri Lanka's success in fighting AIDS seems to be based on fidelity, though most Sri Lankan women with AIDs got it from their husbands. Still, the country has a really low AIDS rate and provides free treatment to those with AIDS.

Mostly Stale News Bits

2008-08-29T18:39:00.001-07:00

I've got a backlog of 1400 Google Alerts that I have to go through for $pread. Thought I'd share some that won't appear in my column.

Ugly commentary on Ashley Dupre (Kristen) and her possible show. Though I think they could've thrown in "whore" a few more times if they'd really tried (my ex-boyfriend could help with the editing).

Guy tries to blame escort service for his issues. He doesn't even make a good hobbyist.

Fluffy book about high-end escorts irritates reader. Hopefully they didn't believe the story.

Shining City, about a man turned Internet agency pimp, again makes me wonder how much he did or didn't get right.

Pink and black colors on a website, coupled with high-heeled shoes, can indicate an adult business. Web designers beware.

Saudi Arabia once again at the forefront of human rights: husband and wife jailed: she was 16 and pimped out by her husband.

Cult of Gracie Radio with Jennifer Cody Epstein

2008-07-16T04:08:00.000-07:00

Tonight on Cult of Gracie radio: Jennifer Cody Epstein, author of The Painter from Shanghai, a novel based upon the life of prostitute turned Post-Impressionist painter, Pan Yuliang.

You can read more on Jennifer's process with the book here, and a brief interview with her at Silent Porn Star too.

But don't miss the show, live, tonight at 9 P.M. (central) ~ I'll be giving away a copy of The Painter from Shanghai!

Call in questions and comments are welcome at 1 (646) 200-3136.

Meet Kyle Payne

2008-07-12T20:49:00.000-07:00

(h/t to Belledame for bringing this to my attention)

Everyone, meet Kyle Payne.

In his own words:

“Kyle is a social justice educator, writer, and activist. Much of his work is concerned with putting a stop to violence against women. For years Kyle has served as an advocate for survivors of sexual violence and other forms of abuse, in addition to promoting what he calls “a more just and life-affirming culture of sexuality” through activism and education. As a researcher, Kyle has studied the feminist anti-pornography movement and is particularly interested in men’s roles in confronting pornography and the rape culture. In addition to his pro-feminist work, he is involved with anti-racist, free speech, peace, and anti-globalization movements.”

You can also see Kyle’s educational merits, Honors and Awards, and his seemingly laudable activities.

If you take some time to read some of Kyle’s work, you will see he is very anti-pornography, has dedicated himself in many ways to educating men about the affects porn has upon them and fighting rape culture and stereotypes of masculinity, much like Robert Jensen. Kyle’s writing is moving, he’s been included in the Carnival Against Pornography and Prostitution, he links and praises many other anti-porn bloggers, and even, much like his Stop Porn Culture role models, does presentations on the harmful nature of pornography, which are, of course, non-2257 compliant and do not consider the feelings of the people in the images used.

Kyle, it would seem, is a good ally to feminists, to the anti-porn movement, and a strong voice out there speaking to men about how they must change for the betterment of not only women, but themselves.

But what about what you don’t know about Kyle Payne? Well, here is what people do not know about their understanding, groundbreaking male ally Kyle.

Kyle Payne was arrested for breaking into the room of and assaulting an unconcious female student at his University while he was a resident advisor. He plead guilty to felony attempted burglary in the second degree and two counts of invasion of privacy. Kyle Payne, feminist ally and enemy of pornography, agrees that "with an intent to arouse my sexual desire, I photographed and filmed Jane Doe and her breast without her consent."

Also, according to a thread at EleanorsTrousers, who was all over this story from the get-go, Kyle Payne was asked to leave BV University for having child pornography on his computer.

So, yes, meet Kyle Payne, a man who is staunchly against pornography, a man who is dedicated to men rethinking their views on sexuality, privilege, rape culture, and masculinity, a man who spent time as a Rape Crisis Advocate. A man who assaulted and photographed a unconscious young woman under his authority as a university resident advisor, for his own sexual gratification and without her consent. A man who had child pornography on his hard drive, a man who’s blog, The Road Less Traveled, is filled with angst and turmoil and emotion, condemnation for the exact sort of behavior he himself has engaged in.

That is the real Kyle Payne. Hypocrite of the worst kind.

And sure, you can go ahead and question my motives all you like, after all, according to many-a-anti-porn advocate, women in the sex industry speaking of their own experiences, unless they are the right experiences, cannot be trusted. We have sketchy motives and vested interests and what not, however, Kyle Payne’s actions speak for themselves. I’d have reason without those actions to dislike him, reasons such as assumption, denial of agency, illegal use of images, disregard of performers feelings, shock tactic language, and serious overgeneralization, the same reasons I dislike those who Kyle supposedly looks up to and takes as leaders: Dines, Jensen, Russell, so on. However, Kyle Payne’s own actions and deeds? Considering those, I do not see how any anti-porn advocate, “real” feminist, person concerned with feminist issues, or mere human, could take this man and make him or call him an ally of any sort.

Kyle Payne is no ally. He is a predator, abuser, and hypocrite. He is a man who talks about the evils of porn, listens to the stories of rape and assault victims, and vaunts his good deeds and ally status all the while being everything he is supposedly fighting against, everything women…be they rad fems or porn performers…fear.

Kyle Payne is not an ally. He’s an abuser. And he should be exposed as such.

More from Belledame

I LIKE this woman...

2008-07-12T09:36:00.000-07:00

Stripper arrested for Subway pole dances...

News Grab Bag

2008-07-10T09:03:00.000-07:00

Satire: bored high-end escort writes a fantasy blog about being an IT employee.

This almost made my physically ill: dead hooker removal service. Why do men think dead women are so funny?

Fake Facebook profile tells everyone woman is a sex worker, she gets plenty of offers, but is instead offended that men want to pay for her favors. She claims the incident has destroyed her confidence, I wonder why it didn't build it instead.

Escorts are "sexually addicted" as well as completely ignorant of their job, according to a cop (you know, those power-addicted guys).

Vitter and Craig try to save marriage, this article includes commentary.

California to decriminalize sex work for minors.

Bush named "Best President" in the fight against AIDS. No, this is not a satire piece (though it may've been paid for).

Women using microbicides to fight AIDs may complicate matters if they do get AIDS. Back to condoms.

AIDs-testing card for black people in the US. Though I agree efforts need to be made in the black community (black women are especially vulnerable), why not make this card available to all? Though it's not a perfect solution in and of itself.

Gloria Brame On XXBN

2008-07-08T15:27:00.000-07:00

I'm very excited to have Dr. Gloria Brame on Cult of Gracie Radio tomorrow, July 9th (at 9 P.M. central), on XXBN.

About Gloria: Dr. Gloria G. Brame is a licensed clinical sexologist, a leading international authority on BDSM and fetish sex, and a long-time kinky person. You can find out more about Gloria at Sex-Kitten.net: Gloria Brame Discusses Sexual Freedom in America, BDSM in Film, as well as the review of her book. More information on Gloria is available at her website, GloriaBrame.com, and her blog, Inside the mind of Gloria Brame.

Here's a recent bit from her blog; a post titled At Home With The Brame-y Bunch:

Setting: the three of us sitting on my bed, discussing how we'll have paid off our mortage in 10 years. 10 years! Wow. On so many levels.

Ketzl: (confident) "Of course, by then, we'll have a successful poultry and goat operation going."

Me: (wistful) "If only I had the time, how I'd love to have a dog rescue by then."

Will: (pensive) I would like to start a prostitute rescue.

Click here to listen to the show live, and call in with your comments and questions for Gloria at 1 (646) 200-3136.

The Economy Of Sex Work

2008-06-30T11:21:00.000-07:00

The Enduring Allure of Hooker Sex, by Pondi Road:

The hooker fills the important void between fantasy and reality; she is our collective dream weaver. What "normal" man will admit to wanting to spend an evening licking a woman's toes, being walked on in heels, being ridden like a horse, living out sadomasochistic impulses or participating in dom-sub verbal play? The list of our secret desires is endless. With the hooker, he only needs to be able to pay, and she (unlike his wife or girlfriend) will never judge. As a goddess of the underworld, she has already seen it all. She is both a solace and a testament to the normality of his "abnormal" sexual fantasies.

Brothels Having Troubles Due To Fuel Prices, by CR/LF:

Fewer truckers means less whoopty-hoo is going on in the brothels, which means less income for these hard-working ladies, which makes the ladies cranky enough to kick the ass of any guy who uses the term 'whoopty-hoo' for fucking.

More stupidity

2008-06-28T14:36:00.000-07:00

The comment about asking the girls to stop what they are doing. Then in the same paragraph saying they are doing it to survive. Brilliant logic there vice cop lady.
By Veronica De La Cruz and David Fitzpatrick
CNN
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SACRAMENTO, California (CNN) -- For more than two years, undercover cops on the Sacramento Police Department's vice squad have been working one of the most draining beats: trying to crack down on online child prostitution.
Girl arrest

Sacramento police have nabbed nearly 70 underage girls for child prostitution since 2005.

Police have nabbed nearly 70 girls under the age of 18 since 2005. Most of the girls were released to foster or group homes. Those are just the official figures; investigators think there are many more child prostitutes out there.

It is no easy task.

"We're asking these girls to do a big thing ... which is to stop what they're doing," said Sgt. Pam Seyffert of the Sacramento Police Department. "Stop what's working for them. Surviving is basically what they're doing."

Sacramento police are working with the FBI as part of a nationwide campaign to combat underage prostitution called Innocence Lost. The goal of the program, which is now in almost 30 U.S. cities, is to decriminalize the girls and concentrate on catching the pimps who control them.

"It really makes me angry," Seyffert said. "I think everybody on the team has different reactions to it, but I just flat out get really angry that some guy thinks he can take this girl and basically deprive her of her freedom."

It is not uncommon for the officers on the unit to put in 30-hour shifts. Oftentimes, their work is heart-wrenching.

Child prostitution is even tougher on the parents of these girls. Roslyn and Sergio's daughter had been missing for more than two weeks. They waited for hours at police headquarters in hopes that their daughter would be found.

Vice squad officers found her in a downtown apartment with Bruce William Carter, a 21-year-old man who police said had posed on the Internet holding fistfuls of cash. He pleaded not guilty to charges of statutory rape and was held in lieu of $35,000 bail.

The couple's daughter, who had just turned 17, was detained but not arrested.

"It hurt," said Roslyn, who appeared weary and a bit shell-shocked. "Because you don't want to see your children involved in things like this. You don't realize how dangerous the Internet is. Now, we got to keep her away from the Internet."

Police say most of the ads appear on Craigslist, the popular and free Internet classifieds site, under a category named "Erotic Services." Even though Craigslist has posted a bold disclaimer warning against human trafficking and the exploitation of children, law enforcement officials said it doesn't seem to deter girls from posting the ads or men who are searching for sex.

But why would a girl sell her body online?

To help answer that question, Sacramento police made arrangements for CNN to interview a 14-year-old girl who said she'd started selling herself as a prostitute at the age of 11.

"I wanted to feel loved. ... I wanted to feel important," said the teen, who wanted to be identified only as Monique.

She said she used Craigslist because it was free and she could post dozens of ads a day. Even though she understood the seriousness of what she was doing, she said she didn't care.

"You could put stuff in your ad like 'wet and wild,' 'fun and sassy,' things like that to catch their attention, to make them want you," she said.

Craigslist executives said they abhor the fact that their site is being used for child prostitution but believe that the problem could be harder to track if they removed the category.

"It would be a bigger problem if we removed that category and had those ads spread throughout the site," said Jim Buckmaster, chief executive officer of Craigslist.

Both legal experts and police say Craigslist bears no legal responsibility. Undercover officers said the fact that the listings can be traced helps them pinpoint the girls and sometimes leads them to pimps.

For her part, Roslyn has a strong message for the man arrested in connection with her daughter's detention.

"I want him to stay away from my daughter," she said. "I'm going to put a restraining order on him. Every time he goes near my daughter, I'm going to call the police and have him put in jail."

Even though they have more work than they can handle, vice officers hold out hope that they can save more girls from a life of prostitution.
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Stupidity on Sex Work

2008-06-26T06:56:00.001-07:00

Instead of worrying that you have a hooker in your family tree, maybe sex workers should start a genealogy service to look for a sex worker-rich family history.

12.3 million people in slavery? Including sexual slavery? And it's all because of porn?

Hollow Bodies is a new book about sex trafficking in Armenia, Bosnia and India.

Headline: More than 300 arrested in FBI crackdown on child prostitution. What they don't say till later in the article is that of the 345 people arrested, 290 were adults. This also means they're still happily arresting children. Yup, that's solving the problem, Fibbies.

Someone looks at the above article much like I have.

And more commentary here.

Love this opener: Sometimes the path to stardom means taking the low road. i.e., playing a hooker in a movie. Thanks.

Christian book about the evils of prostitution. What I'd like to know is how much personal research the author has. Or how much personal knowledge they have of prostitution in order to make their claims. Seriously, I'd love to know.

Comments on Articles

2008-06-22T08:36:00.001-07:00

No, News Bits is not back. Just thought I'd share today.

Civilians discovers TER and the possible legal implications of explicit reviews. Get ready for citizen complaints leading to investigations/arrests. One of my main issues with explicit review sites to begin with.

Phone-therapy, which is a pretty good idea. I liked this part

"Stephanie currently works as a stage technician at Niagara on the Lake, Ont., but it's a seasonal gig so she also works as an exotic dancer to augment her income. Is phone therapy helping her transition out of the sex industry? "I don't think the sex industry is something you need to get out of," she says. "What phone therapy is doing is giving me the courage and the voice to stand up for myself."

Duke is offering a course on sex work this fall.

Slutty McWhore gets a magazine column. While that's great news, what caught my eye here are the comments. I think my ex saw this article.

Parent tries to explain "hooker clothes" to her kids. While she's trying to be enlightened, I think my problem with her is that she fails to realize you can't always identify a hooker by her clothing or demeanor.

Making up Stats on Child Prostitution in Georgia

2008-06-19T09:12:00.001-07:00

Thankfully, this newspaper questioned the motivations and numbers this child-prostitute-rescue group was throwing around.

2008-06-18T17:14:00.000-07:00