- Thread starter JustRiley
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Madman
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- Aug 12, 2011
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I'm not ashamed to pay for sex—and other men shouldn't be either
As a man who has spent an embarrassing amount of money on prostitutes and other various sexual encounters, I was excited when I heard about a “National Day of Johns,” because I thought I was being honored.
I suppose you could say I am the consummate john. I’m loyal, I’m dedicated and I will always come back—even as it seems as though efforts to shame johns are on a national upswing throughout the country.
I cannot even fathom a guess as to how much money—let alone time—I’ve spent on paid sex in the last 25 years. Although I can tell you that when Charlie Sheen confessed he’d spent $50,000 in one year, I nodded my head and saw it as an achievable goal. Because I’ve never actually tallied the dollar amount of my sex addiction, my therapist tells me I should—her logic being that a concrete cost would make it more definitive and its consequences more tangible.
But really, perhaps the most shameful thing I can admit is this: I’m not really ashamed. And neither should any of these other (unmarried) johns who have been arrested.
If these men are anything like me, they might simply feel more comfortable with prostitutes. I never pick them up to be abusive. I always feel extraordinarily loving and close to them. When I first began soliciting sex for money, it never occurred to me that some of them are possibly forced into prostitution or have abusive pimps. I must have known it deep down on an intellectual level, but hadn’t witnessed anything to confirm it.
Until I did.
The only experience I’ve had with an element of violence being present was driving on 48th Street in New York once and talking to a girl through my passenger window. (A big part of my addiction is the ritualistic aspect and, for some reason, I only liked to pick up prostitutes who talked to me through the passenger window.) As we were speaking, a van full of girls stopped and a guy who I assume was her pimp, bounced her across the hood of my car and threw her in the van.
This is why I’m a firm believer that prostitution should be legalized and pimps should be thrown down an elevator shaft.
Law enforcement stings designed to shame men who pay for sex are nothing more than the state blowing its own morality horn. Being a comedian who is single allows me a luxury most johns don’t have, which is the freedom to discuss the topic openly. And not from a ‘case study’ point of view, but from the honest point of view of someone who has spent the equivalent of a Harvard Law School education on purchasing sex.
By keeping prostitution illegal because we find it “morally objectionable,” we allow (or, more accurately, you allow) sex workers to constantly be put into dangerous situations. Studies have shown that rapes and STDs dropped drastically between 2003 and 2009 in Rhode Island after the state accidentally legalized it. The American Journal of Epidemiology showed that the homicide rate for prostitutes is 50 times higher than the next most dangerous job for a woman, working in a liquor store. You don’t need a Masters in sociology to understand it would be much safer for sex workers if they were permitted to work in places that provided adequate security. Legalizing prostitution would also alleviate the fear a sex worker may have about reporting the abusive behavior of a john out of fear of arrest.
The illegal aspect of prostitution has never deterred me, nor would legalizing it cause me to engage in it more.
The decision people make to have sex for a living would undoubtedly confuse and repulse a large part of the population. But in a free society, people must be allowed to make choices for themselves that are incomprehensible to others. By keeping prostitution illegal and demonizing all of its parties, we (you) are empowering pimps and human traffickers and anyone else who wants to victimize sex workers because they feel helpless under the law.
Give sex workers rights. Give johns a break.
Jim Norton is a comedian, New York Times bestselling author and host of “The Jim Norton Show” on Vice.com.
JIM is awesome!!!
As a man who has spent an embarrassing amount of money on prostitutes and other various sexual encounters, I was excited when I heard about a “National Day of Johns,” because I thought I was being honored.
I suppose you could say I am the consummate john. I’m loyal, I’m dedicated and I will always come back—even as it seems as though efforts to shame johns are on a national upswing throughout the country.
I cannot even fathom a guess as to how much money—let alone time—I’ve spent on paid sex in the last 25 years. Although I can tell you that when Charlie Sheen confessed he’d spent $50,000 in one year, I nodded my head and saw it as an achievable goal. Because I’ve never actually tallied the dollar amount of my sex addiction, my therapist tells me I should—her logic being that a concrete cost would make it more definitive and its consequences more tangible.
But really, perhaps the most shameful thing I can admit is this: I’m not really ashamed. And neither should any of these other (unmarried) johns who have been arrested.
If these men are anything like me, they might simply feel more comfortable with prostitutes. I never pick them up to be abusive. I always feel extraordinarily loving and close to them. When I first began soliciting sex for money, it never occurred to me that some of them are possibly forced into prostitution or have abusive pimps. I must have known it deep down on an intellectual level, but hadn’t witnessed anything to confirm it.
Until I did.
The only experience I’ve had with an element of violence being present was driving on 48th Street in New York once and talking to a girl through my passenger window. (A big part of my addiction is the ritualistic aspect and, for some reason, I only liked to pick up prostitutes who talked to me through the passenger window.) As we were speaking, a van full of girls stopped and a guy who I assume was her pimp, bounced her across the hood of my car and threw her in the van.
This is why I’m a firm believer that prostitution should be legalized and pimps should be thrown down an elevator shaft.
Law enforcement stings designed to shame men who pay for sex are nothing more than the state blowing its own morality horn. Being a comedian who is single allows me a luxury most johns don’t have, which is the freedom to discuss the topic openly. And not from a ‘case study’ point of view, but from the honest point of view of someone who has spent the equivalent of a Harvard Law School education on purchasing sex.
By keeping prostitution illegal because we find it “morally objectionable,” we allow (or, more accurately, you allow) sex workers to constantly be put into dangerous situations. Studies have shown that rapes and STDs dropped drastically between 2003 and 2009 in Rhode Island after the state accidentally legalized it. The American Journal of Epidemiology showed that the homicide rate for prostitutes is 50 times higher than the next most dangerous job for a woman, working in a liquor store. You don’t need a Masters in sociology to understand it would be much safer for sex workers if they were permitted to work in places that provided adequate security. Legalizing prostitution would also alleviate the fear a sex worker may have about reporting the abusive behavior of a john out of fear of arrest.
The illegal aspect of prostitution has never deterred me, nor would legalizing it cause me to engage in it more.
The decision people make to have sex for a living would undoubtedly confuse and repulse a large part of the population. But in a free society, people must be allowed to make choices for themselves that are incomprehensible to others. By keeping prostitution illegal and demonizing all of its parties, we (you) are empowering pimps and human traffickers and anyone else who wants to victimize sex workers because they feel helpless under the law.
Give sex workers rights. Give johns a break.
Jim Norton is a comedian, New York Times bestselling author and host of “The Jim Norton Show” on Vice.com.
JIM is awesome!!!
Madman
Reviewer
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2011
- Messages
- 17,534
He mentioned he doesn't care and good for him. If he's not married, his family already knows how he gets his groove on then he has nothing to worry about.
PS.... I forgot to mention one very important thing,
Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go!
Tranny, make me a picket sign with this slogan!!!
raying:
W
Wanker
Guest
tell the comedian to wait until the new bill gets approved. Who will be smiling then?.
He's located in the US where it is already illegal.
U
User-E
Guest
He mentioned he doesn't care and good for him. If he's not married, his family already knows how he gets his groove on then he has nothing to worry about.
PS.... I forgot to mention one very important thing,
Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go! Harper's got to go!
Tranny, make me a picket sign with this slogan!!!
U
User-E
Guest
Two men charged in attack on London escorts
Alleged attacks on three London escorts on the long weekend — police contend they were lured by a couple, assaulted, threatened and robbed — highlights the sharp divide over Canada proposed new prostitution law.
Opponents warn Bill C-36 would put sex trade workers at more risk for violence, but supporters say the London cases underline the benefits of criminalizing those who seek to buy sex.
“It’s safer for a woman to work in her own apartment, on her own time, where she knows what’s in her home — where the door is, where the phone is,” Naomi Sayers, a former sex worker and academic, said Thursday.
Founder of the Southwestern Ontario Sex Workers, a group opposed to the new federal legislation, Sayers warns the Conservative government’s law would compromise safety in the sex trade. “If the bill passes, sex workers will continue to work,” she said. “But everything that lets them do it safely will be different and more difficult.”
London police allege a man and woman working together answered three different online escort ads, two on Sunday and one Monday, in each case asking for a meeting. “When the escort attended, she was greeted by the couple, at which point she was robbed,” said Const. Ken Steeves. “It’s very concerning because escorts, regardless of gender, go to places and meet with people who are not known to them. That in itself is a risk.”
The escorts reported to police, who arrested a man and woman Wednesday. One woman had minor injuries. “Safety is our No. 1 priority and we take all matters seriously, regardless of your lifestyle,” Steeves said.
Debate on Canada’s proposed prostitution law, tabled in June and drafted after the Supreme Court struck down the previous laws, is expected to resume when MPs return from their summer break in the fall. New legislation must be on the books by December.
While Bill C-36 criminalizes the buying of sex, “Prostitution is inherently violent and this is an example of that,” said Megan Walker, executive director of the London Abused Women’s Centre and an outspoken advocate of the proposed law. “Bill C-36 decriminalizes women and holds johns (men seeking to buy sex) accountable, (so) an escort can safely go to the police and the police can investigate,” she said. “It doesn’t end with women reporting to police. They can get a referral and we can provide a safety plan. And for those women who choose to leave prostitution, we can provide an exit strategy.”
But Sayers and other opponents say criminalizing johns leads to hurried and hidden transactions, which prevent sex workers from any kind of screening of clients. “The goal shouldn’t be to abolish prostitution but to protect the sex workers,” Sayers said.
Thomas Lako, 22, and Amar Youssef, 20, both of London, face several robbery, armed robbery, assault with a weapon and uttering threats charges. Youssef faces additional uttering threats and possessing a prohibited weapon charges. Both appeared in court Thursday.
THE 101 ON BILL C-36
What happened:
The Supreme Court last December decided parts of Canada’s prostitution laws are unconstitutional because they violate the rights of sex workers. Ottawa has until December to pass new legislation.
Proposed new law:
I added the puking emoticons as a symbol of the emotions I experience while reading this horseshit.
Alleged attacks on three London escorts on the long weekend — police contend they were lured by a couple, assaulted, threatened and robbed — highlights the sharp divide over Canada proposed new prostitution law.
Opponents warn Bill C-36 would put sex trade workers at more risk for violence, but supporters say the London cases underline the benefits of criminalizing those who seek to buy sex.
“It’s safer for a woman to work in her own apartment, on her own time, where she knows what’s in her home — where the door is, where the phone is,” Naomi Sayers, a former sex worker and academic, said Thursday.
Founder of the Southwestern Ontario Sex Workers, a group opposed to the new federal legislation, Sayers warns the Conservative government’s law would compromise safety in the sex trade. “If the bill passes, sex workers will continue to work,” she said. “But everything that lets them do it safely will be different and more difficult.”
London police allege a man and woman working together answered three different online escort ads, two on Sunday and one Monday, in each case asking for a meeting. “When the escort attended, she was greeted by the couple, at which point she was robbed,” said Const. Ken Steeves. “It’s very concerning because escorts, regardless of gender, go to places and meet with people who are not known to them. That in itself is a risk.”
The escorts reported to police, who arrested a man and woman Wednesday. One woman had minor injuries. “Safety is our No. 1 priority and we take all matters seriously, regardless of your lifestyle,” Steeves said.
Debate on Canada’s proposed prostitution law, tabled in June and drafted after the Supreme Court struck down the previous laws, is expected to resume when MPs return from their summer break in the fall. New legislation must be on the books by December.
While Bill C-36 criminalizes the buying of sex, “Prostitution is inherently violent and this is an example of that,” said Megan Walker, executive director of the London Abused Women’s Centre and an outspoken advocate of the proposed law. “Bill C-36 decriminalizes women and holds johns (men seeking to buy sex) accountable, (so) an escort can safely go to the police and the police can investigate,” she said.
“It doesn’t end with women reporting to police. They can get a referral and we can provide a safety plan. And for those women who choose to leave prostitution, we can provide an exit strategy.”But Sayers and other opponents say criminalizing johns leads to hurried and hidden transactions, which prevent sex workers from any kind of screening of clients. “The goal shouldn’t be to abolish prostitution but to protect the sex workers,” Sayers said.
Thomas Lako, 22, and Amar Youssef, 20, both of London, face several robbery, armed robbery, assault with a weapon and uttering threats charges. Youssef faces additional uttering threats and possessing a prohibited weapon charges. Both appeared in court Thursday.
THE 101 ON BILL C-36
What happened:
The Supreme Court last December decided parts of Canada’s prostitution laws are unconstitutional because they violate the rights of sex workers. Ottawa has until December to pass new legislation.
Proposed new law:
- Called Bill C-36, it would criminalize clients — not prostitutes. Often called the Nordic Model. Sex workers can’t be prosecuted for advertising, but websites and publications can be.
- Opponents: Say it would force sex workers into the shadows, because clients don’t want to be charged.
- Proponents: Say that approach gives sex workers a better chance to leave the trade.
I added the puking emoticons as a symbol of the emotions I experience while reading this horseshit.
chokemychicken
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2011
- Messages
- 303
It doesn't look good for the industry. I hope everyone stays safe waiting for the final outcome.
"...an escort can safely go to the police and the police can investigate,” she said
The advocates of the new bill are just full of contradictions...making selling something legal but buying it illegal is the most ridiculous thing a faulty mind can come up with. You are making the industry go underground and then state they can safely go to the police...:SayWhat?:
The advocates of the new bill are just full of contradictions...making selling something legal but buying it illegal is the most ridiculous thing a faulty mind can come up with. You are making the industry go underground and then state they can safely go to the police...:SayWhat?:
