Prostitution is already legal

Post Reply New Topic

Prostitution = illegal
Porn = legal
So, prostitution + camera = legal

Argue with that

In which country?

Any country where porn is legal really

Porn AND prostitution are legal in the Netherlands. How about that?

Sorry, can't reply, I'm already packing my bags

Sex in public is legal in Hungary, though... So hard to choose!

Oh yes I will argue with that, thank you.

First of all, I make no judgments against people who choose to work in erotic film or sex trade, as long as they put some thought into their decisions and some care into what situations they place themselves into. There are plenty of people who don't, but there are also people who do. Both porn and sex trade are risky businesses, but not impossible to maneuver oneself through wisely. There are some individuals in both professions who actually enjoy their work, and know how to stay reasonably clear of the risks (much like you'll find in any other line of work).

That said, and while there are similarities, there is an important distinction between the two professions, erotic film actor and prostitute.

An erotic film actor performs alongside other professional performers in front of a camera, to inspire sexual arousal in a viewing audience (this is comparable to how a comedic actor performs alongside other comedic actors in front of a camera to inspire laughter in a viewing audience).
A prostitute sells sexual favors directly to customers (this would, again replacing the sexual aspect, be more comparable to how a therapist works than how an actor works).
It's a completely different set-up. There are of course situations where the line can be blurred somewhat, and there are people who work in both professions, but the two professions are quite different on the whole.

Regardless of what your opinion is of either profession, it is unfair to say that they are the same thing.

this is neither love nor dating
i would say the distinction is obvious but is it obvious in a legal sense?

Well, I guess we can compare it to some other issue.
Ultimate Fighting is legal. Is it legal to sell a guy a severe beating?
And then comes the question of sex vs violence. Which I always find it odd how many people are pro violence and anti sex.

Both involve paying people to have sex. I see no real difference other than one is being filmed and one isn't.

I should note, though, that this is a semi-joke thread.

Being a prostitute doesn't involve paying people to have sex. Neither does being an erotic film actor.
Both involve getting paid to have sex, but one involves getting paid to have sex with a customer (a regular person, who pays for the intimate experience), while the other involves being paid to perform with another professional in front of a film crew (which is very often not particularly intimate at all, but on the other hand a more controlled environment). It's a very different experience for everyone involved. They both involve sex, yes, but driving a taxi and stunt driving in movies both involve getting paid to drive a car. That doesn't mean they are the same thing.

Fair point. This was only meant as a joke thread in the first place

Sex workers are people too. They do hard work (no pun intended). Some of them can probably be considered artists (expressing themselves openly) and therapists (helping people who have issues). Even though I'm not a fan nor a customer (it's not my thing personally), I do think their professions deserve a bit more respect than being trivialized in this manner.
I guess what I'm trying to say is I've heard funnier jokes. What else have you got?

Having sex is an art now?

As for what else I've got: "I was talking to my Nan the other day when I suddenly realised that everyone in the Indian was looking at me weird."

How would you define art?
I would define art as any form of creative work aimed at an audience and intended primarily as an expression of the self and/or to inspire emotion.
Sexual arousal, I would categorize as an emotion. Film, I would categorize as creative work aimed at an audience. Sex, I would call a very personal expression of the self.
So yes, I would consider porn art, even though it's not in general a genre I am personally a fan of.

Interesting.

Well, Google tells me that art is defined as the products of human creativity; works of art collectively; "an art exhibition"; "a fine collection of art", which is rather ambiguous TBH. Under that definition, my iPhone is art too because a human created it. But yes, it'd also accommodate film.

That's exactly why I narrowed down my definition, because the aforementioned dictionary definition fails to be specific enough exclude tools and such. And even after narrowing it down as much as I could, it couldn't logically exclude porn.

And, by extension, pornographic film.