There was a story on the news about this, and I thought it would be an iteresting debate. I am undecided.

Lydia, you may be uniquely qualified to state that legalizing prostitution won't solve any of the real problems with human trafficking and various kinds of abuse. And you may certainly be right, but I believe that if we were more honest with outselves and dealt with sex more openly and with the understanding that it is a human biological urge that everyone (basically) has, instead of dealing with it in the prudish, bigoted, crazy way that we do, a whole lot of our sex-related acting out would be curbed. So if we were honest and made prostitution legal, it might be a step in that direction.

In European countries and Canada, where nudity on television is normal, where human sexual activity is considered a normal function, and the naked human anatomy is not considered dirty or shocking, they seem to have much healthier sex lives. We make having missionary position sex with our married partners the only kind of sexual activity that is acceptable in the U.S. But of course, that's just the acceptable theory and behavior - not reality! Which I believe is kind of what you were also trying to point out.

The way the fundamentalists fight sex education in our schools is actually fundamental in keeping Americans in the dark and thinking of sex as the forbidden fruit.

In the paper this morning there was a man who got caught in the act with a prostitute in the back of his car. HE got arrested, not her. I live in CT. It's against the law here to pay for sex with a prostitute.

Edited June 2, 200917 yr by pattygreen

Praise the Lord!

As far as I'm concerned, whatever people want to do with their own bodies, so long as it doesn't infringe on the rights of others, should be legal.

Nobody cares if a woman chooses to have sex with a man (or vice versa) after he buys her a nice dinner. Why should anyone object if, instead of paying for dinner, he offers to simply give her the same money that the dinner would have cost him in the first place?

How different is it from a man sleeping with his secretary and then giving her a raise?

Am I morally opposed to prostitution? Absolutely. But I can see no legitimate grounds why it should be illegal.

i completely agree!!!!:wink2:

Originally Posted by gadgetlady

As far as I'm concerned, whatever people want to do with their own bodies, so long as it doesn't infringe on the rights of others, should be legal.

Nobody cares if a woman chooses to have sex with a man (or vice versa) after he buys her a nice dinner. Why should anyone object if, instead of paying for dinner, he offers to simply give her the same money that the dinner would have cost him in the first place?

How different is it from a man sleeping with his secretary and then giving her a raise?

Am I morally opposed to prostitution? Absolutely. But I can see no legitimate grounds why it should be illegal.

I disagree with this Gadgetlady. ALL sin infringes on everyone else. It's wrong morally and before God to sell your body for sex. Even if you do it after a dinner date. Or if you're a secretary and you sleep with your boss for a raise. (All sex outside of marriage is wrong) It's a sin, and once you start accepting sinful acts by making them lawful when they once weren't, and the people turn their backs on God's rules and make their own rules to follow, He will turn his back on us, and let us have it our way. Then the consequences will have to set in.

I understand that it wouldn't be possible to make all sins unlawful, but, it's not right to already have a law in this country against something that is sinful and then turn it around to make it acceptable. When we start accepting what's right as wrong and accepting what's wrong as right, then we are in trouble and there is no turning back morally. Let's stand up for righteousness and keep the laws as they are. Illegal.

Originally Posted by gadgetlady

As far as I'm concerned, whatever people want to do with their own bodies, so long as it doesn't infringe on the rights of others, should be legal.

Nobody cares if a woman chooses to have sex with a man (or vice versa) after he buys her a nice dinner. Why should anyone object if, instead of paying for dinner, he offers to simply give her the same money that the dinner would have cost him in the first place?

How different is it from a man sleeping with his secretary and then giving her a raise?

Am I morally opposed to prostitution? Absolutely. But I can see no legitimate grounds why it should be illegal.

I disagree with this Gadgetlady. ALL sin infringes on everyone else. It's wrong morally and before God to sell your body for sex. Even if you do it after a dinner date. Or if you're a secretary and you sleep with your boss for a raise. (All sex outside of marriage is wrong) It's a sin, and once you start accepting sinful acts by making them lawful when they once weren't, and the people turn their backs on God's rules and make their own rules to follow, He will turn his back on us, and let us have it our way. Then the consequences will have to set in.

I understand that it wouldn't be possible to make all sins unlawful, but, it's not right to already have a law in this country against something that is sinful and then turn it around to make it acceptable. When we start accepting what's right as wrong and accepting what's wrong as right, then we are in trouble and there is no turning back morally. Let's stand up for righteousness and keep the laws as they are. Illegal.

Patty, that whole line of thinking is invalid if you don’t believe in religion (and therefore sin). I think a person’s body is a tool and they should be able to use it if they can. Baseball players are blessed with athletic ability and are able to use their bodies to make millions. I have no problem with somebody using their own body to make a living, even if the only talent they have is their own sexuality. I do have a problem with the scum that force people into prostitution against their will though. If a person is able to use their natural talents, then I say more power to them – as long as they are making the decision themselves.

I do agree with BJean, that since it is a crime right now, the Johns and Pimps should be getting busted too – not just the prostitutes. If it were legal and if we were less prudish about sex in general, maybe some of the seediness would be taken out of the equation and it could be handled in a more civil manner.

If the people would live according to God's laws, whether they believed in Him or not, this place would be a Utopia. As far as sex is concerned, it would end all sexual diseases, including AIDS, and teen pregnancy problems and controversial disputes about homosexuality laws, this debate on legalizing prostitution, and a host of other problems the world has due to sex outside of marriage. We just need to listen to God. Even if you don't believe He exists, you have to admit that following the bibles way is the only way to end the worlds problems. No one else seems to have the answer to these world issues. I believe our Creator knows what He's talking about.

Balderdash, patty. The Bible tells us that it is right to take an eye for an eye. It speaks to war and fighting and all that. Utopia would never be achieved if all people lived according to the Bible because all people can't even agree on what the Bible says to do. Just because you think you have magically decoded everything in the Bible and you think you know exactly what God intends for us, doesn't mean that you're right - only that you BELIEVE you are.

The Bible was written at a time when there was no way for the stories to be validated. Today if someone wrote one of the stories in the Bible, there would be cameras and news media all over it, proving it to be all true or not true. I'm not calling the Bible a pack of lies, but I am saying that it isn't necessarily an historical document that we should blindly embrace as the final word on human behavior. It's a lovely book and a facinating book and a cruel book and it is many things, but it is not a book that represents the absolute as you say that it does.

As far as prostitution I totally disagree with the idea that prostitution is practically the same as a woman having dinner with a man and exchanging dinner for sex. Prostitution is not that. Prostitution is not a secreatary trading sex for a raise.

Prostitution is sex with generally no emotional relationship, without a love connection, without respect from the prostitute for the john or vice versa. It is more of an animalistic behavior. There is obviously a need for that type of outlet for human creatures and that is why I believe it needs to be regulated and accepted for what it is.

In this discussion it doesn't help to make it out to be an abomination or a date. It is something that is a part of humankind and has been for as long as people cared to document it. Expecting human beings to be godlike creatures is like beating your head against the wall. Ain't going to happen. So accepting the behavior for what it really is and dealing with it in a realistic and rational way and in a way that is beneficial to society, is what needs to happen.

Patty, I’m curious about something. How would you suggest that an unmarried man that has no intention of marring deal with the biological need to address the sexual urge that he has? BTW, I’m not saying women don’t have these urges too, I’m just trying to make a point that there are unmarried people out there that have very real sexual desires. Let’s just say for the sake of argument that we have a 25 year old man with no present or future wife. Should he be celibate the rest of his life? Biology just doesn’t work that way, the sexual urge is one of the strongest we face as animals. It seems to me that prostitution can be and is a simple business transaction for people like this.

The Bible was written at a time when there was no way for the stories to be validated. Today if someone wrote one of the stories in the Bible, there would be cameras and news media all over it, proving it to be all true or not true. I'm not calling the Bible a pack of lies, but I am saying that it isn't necessarily an historical document that we should blindly embrace as the final word on human behavior. It's a lovely book and a facinating book and a cruel book and it is many things, but it is not a book that represents the absolute as you say that it does.

This is so true. I know that many might think that with my skepticism on this matter that I have no interest in the Bible. On the contrary, I find it utterly fascinating how it has captivated people for so long. I do find religion and religious scripture to be very interesting, just not very believable.

The multiple times and ways it has been translated and passed on, alone make me wonder how much has been changed, or was translated to mean something totally different?

Haven't we all played the game where you sit in a circle and whisper in the persons ear to your left something and then they pass it on, until it makes the circle and you see how it changes. What makes this any different?

And just the language even, I have heard some hilarious translations of things from one language into another.

Would the world be better off if we ALL lived by the bible--very likely but a Utopia I don't think so. Just my opinion. And to expect all different people of the world to accept "our" translation of a book and expect them to live by it is surely as ridiculous to them, as to expect us to live by their beliefs to their Gods.

The multiple times and ways it has been translated and passed on, alone make me wonder how much has been changed, or was translated to mean something totally different?

Haven't we all played the game where you sit in a circle and whisper in the persons ear to your left something and then they pass it on, until it makes the circle and you see how it changes. What makes this any different?

And just the language even, I have heard some hilarious translations of things from one language into another.

Would the world be better off if we ALL lived by the bible--very likely but a Utopia I don't think so. Just my opinion. And to expect all different people of the world to accept "our" translation of a book and expect them to live by it is surely as ridiculous to them, as to expect us to live by their beliefs to their Gods.

The Bible is a collection of writings, and the earliest ones were set down nearly 3500 years ago.

Many devout Jews and Christians believe that the full text of the Bible was given to Moses by God on Mount Sinai. Though the Bible's earliest origin may always be a matter of faith, it remains a fact that after the Bible was recorded, many different versions existed. It wasn't until the first century B.C.E. (Before the Common Era, aka B.C.) that Jews settled on the canon of their scripture, and it was around 400 C.E. (Common Era, aka A.D.) that Christians agreed on all the books of their New Testament. Today, countless translations and interpretations of the Bible exist in English and many other languages. But what is written in them has not changed at all throughout the years. This has been proven by the world's oldest known copy of the complete bible (in bound book form), dating from 300-350 AD, called the Codex Sinaiticus. It is a translation from Hebrew and Greek manuscripts into an all Greek bible. It is believed that it may be one of 50 original bibles that the Emperor Constantine commissioned after converting the Eastern Roman Empire to Christianity. It was discovered at the Monastery of St. Catherine in Sinai, Egypt, which was built on what is traditionally believed to be the site of Moses' burning bush.

Although most of the Old Testament text has been destroyed, the New Testament text has survived and is in general agreement with the text used to establish the KJV of the bible.

Even if you felt that God is not real, his plan for mankind as written in the bible surely would bring a peacefulness to the world. Btw, even if you don't believe it, the end times will bring that exact peacefulness to the world when Jesus returns one day.

I'd love to discuss that with anyone interested in end time events as told by scripture.(new thread of course)

Edited July 20, 200917 yr by pattygreen

Patty, I’m curious about something. How would you suggest that an unmarried man that has no intention of marring deal with the biological need to address the sexual urge that he has? BTW, I’m not saying women don’t have these urges too, I’m just trying to make a point that there are unmarried people out there that have very real sexual desires. Let’s just say for the sake of argument that we have a 25 year old man with no present or future wife. Should he be celibate the rest of his life? Biology just doesn’t work that way, the sexual urge is one of the strongest we face as animals. It seems to me that prostitution can be and is a simple business transaction for people like this.

An unmarried man will need to meet his sexual need himself. I do not believe that masturbation is a sin. God gave us our bodies and we can touch them and make ourselves feel good in any way.

One thing about living this life God's way.... To God, our lives are but a breath. For he is an eternal being. When he set forth his rules, he did so with the understanding that we are also eternal beings like him. If mankind could understand that this life is soooooo very short compared to eternity, they would be able to comprehend what God asks us to do here. This life, as far as God is concerned, is a decision making time for each human he created. He gives us all 80-100 human years to determine our destination for all eternity. He also gives us the guidebook to follow so that those years will go well with us as we await the time when we will go to spend this eternity in his home. Therefore, all the 'rules' that God gives us for a good life here are given to benefit us, and not to harm us. When his rule to us was to not have sex until you are married, it was to benefit mankind. One man, one woman. No STDS, No AIDS, No teen pregnancys, etc. Think of all the good that would come out of getting married and then having children and sex with just one partner. I could type a list of world problems that could end.

This is so true. I know that many might think that with my skepticism on this matter that I have no interest in the Bible. On the contrary, I find it utterly fascinating how it has captivated people for so long. I do find religion and religious scripture to be very interesting, just not very believable.

Why is it fascinating to you that the bible has captivated so many people for so long? If the words in the bible were not inspired by God, I don't believe they could do anything. The book would have been forgotten or lost many centuries ago. But the fact that the bible is still in circulation and is the #1 best seller of books anywhere has to show for something. God will not allow his words to us to be hidden or lost or removed from our presence, because if he did, then he could not hold us accountable for not seeking to know him. The bible in its entirety is the only way for us to get to know our creator. They are his only words to us. He would never allow them to be destroyed.

Why do you feel that the scripture is not very believable?

"Patty, that whole line of thinking is invalid if you don’t believe in religion (and therefore sin). I think a person’s body is a tool and they should be able to use it if they can.

Our bodies are the temple of the Lord. His dwelling place. It's not a tool to be used for sinful acts. Sex is for the married couple only (1 man and 1 woman)

Baseball players are blessed with athletic ability and are able to use their bodies to make millions.

playing a ball game is not sinful, so have fun and use your body away doing it.

I have no problem with somebody using their own body to make a living, even if the only talent they have is their own sexuality.

God has given each person their own special talents. Some are better at certain things than others. He does want us to use the talents that he gave us, but not in the acts of sin.(like prostitution)

I do have a problem with the scum that force people into prostitution against their will though.

agreed.

If a person is able to use their natural talents, then I say more power to them – as long as they are making the decision themselves.

Just because a person makes a decision themselves about something, doesn't mean it's okay.

I do agree with BJean, that since it is a crime right now, the Johns and Pimps should be getting busted too – not just the prostitutes.

In CT it is illegal both ways.

If it were legal and if we were less prudish about sex in general, maybe some of the seediness would be taken out of the equation and it could be handled in a more civil manner.

Putting restrictions on the sexual act, like keeping it between married couples only, is not being 'prudish'. It's being wise. When you say "taking the seediness out of the equation", I tend to think of mankind trying to make sin more acceptable. Making what is wrong right. Isn't this what most people try to do with God's laws? What's wrong with righteousness?

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