Quirks and the ideological poison of "sex work"

[sam]

United Press International, with their 100 Years of Journalistic Excellence, put the following information about prostitution in their Quirks section between other newsworthy items like "Homemade boat trapped in backyard" and "Cops, contractors save wedged cat". It was certainly news to me that a "regular" prostitution trick in the USA costs johns $540.

Magazine: Prostitution business still big
http://www.upi. com/NewsTrack/Quirks/2008/04/14/magazine_prostitution_business_still_big/1024/

Quirks

NEW YORK, April 14 (UPI) -- Prostitution is a growth field in the United States despite a slowing economy a New York business magazine said.

Portfolio said the average "escort" experience in the United States costs about $1,364, while the U.S. "escort economy" is valued at more than $109.6 million, the New York Post reported Monday.

A survey quoted by the magazine said about 700,000 American men pay for the services of prostitutes every year.

Portfolio said there are three major types of escort experiences: the "regular," which costs about $540; the "Spitzer" -- named for former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who resigned his office after it was revealed that he paid for sex -- for about $4,300; and the "platinum," which costs about $64,000 for a "weekend-long encounter for the globetrotting billionaire."

The esteemed gentlemen of UPI are a little surprised, but very amused, to learn that the current recession (fancy word for increased poverty and financial instability) has not reduced prostitution. Perhaps they have not heard of girls and women in Iraq resorting to prostitution because, same as it ever was, war makes poverty, poverty makes girls without options, and impoverished men make themselves feel better by paying what little they have to inflict a comforting domination over someone even lower than them. Maybe they never put together that the red light districts that exist in cities in all 50 states are located in the poorest neighborhoods, or that SE Asia has become a rapist's playground because it is one of the poorest regions on Earth.

They're surprised prostitution isn't reduced in a recession because they really think prostitution is just work. The proposition that hoes will be hunky dory if prostitution were recognized as work is a pointless hypothetical in a world where reality already deems sexual servitude to be every woman's work. Men have long accepted ("oldest yadayada") prostituted women as workers, but men don't abuse prostitutes because they see them as professionals of sex , they abuse prostitutes because they see them as professional women. Men like sex. All the contempt, rape, and femicide women get, professional women get times a hundred (or, more accurately, times 40 as that Canadian mortality study showed).

[pisaquari]

Do they think "prostitution" is only comprised of escort services? The millionaires and billionaires of course can afford escort services--we are a financially gutted country with a demographic closer to that of the 1920's where the few have the riches. Of course those people can afford these services, will demand these services, because this economic situation feeds their pocket book.

"men don't abuse prostitutes because they see them as professionals of sex , they abuse prostitutes because they see them as professional women."

Spot on Sam.

[bluecoat28]

Yesteday, I spoke to the Director of Women's Studies from one of the branches of the school I graduated from and we got into a discussion about why she doesn't agree w/ Gail Dines's perspectives on prostitution/porn. This director uses the term "sex workers". I didn't argue with her because I've only just begun to think critically about prostitution and the term "sex work" but I wanted to listen to how this Director thinks.. She mentioned a "wonderful" book called Live Sex Acts. She knows I disagree with her, but I didn't want to get into a serious argument yet... I wanted her to ramble her crap. I will start a thread soon called "Gripes About Women's Studies", because I'm starting to realize how much my education lacked.

[delphyne]

A large part of the big fees for escort services are the $$$$$ for an expensive hotel room which is booked by the escort agency. They seem to have missed that point for some reason.

[hologirl2]

Blue cat,

I'm lucky the majority of female professors I've had were not propornstitution. I had one that was and she was a disturbing person. She had us read Susie Bright joking about Andrea Dworkin getting f**cked in her a**. She also thought sex was about power and was dumbfounded when i said, "I thought rape was about power". She told me she was a "pleasure feminist" who liked porn. I told her I was NOT getting my sexual pleasure off of a largely traumatized group of women. Sigh. But the women i've taken women's studies classes with were largely around 50 hence making them a bit wiser i think.