[LAF] Final thoughts on Sex Work debate

[steve ash]

We seem to be on totally different planets on this and I cant see us ever agreeing.

But here are my simplified statements on the matter:

1) My main concern is to remove harm from sex work and to defend non harmful sex work from groups who would impose their views on them and interfere with their lifestyles, regardless of whether those views are moral, political, social or to do with 'rights'. If someone is being harmful they can do what they like as far as I'm concerned. 

2) I do not accept that all sex work is harmful, so is, some isnt, no evidence has been presented for it being entirely harmful. Any harm within an industry can be removed without removing the industry. Mining in its present form is harmful to many practitioners and most have performed it from economic necessity, but this is not a realistic arguement against mining its an arguement against exploited miners. Sex work is no different.
Similarly you do not abolish slavery by attacking slaves. 

3) I do not accept that most pornography degrades women, some does, some doesn't, also BDSM sexuality is based on voluntary degradation which completely different. The opposition has given no examples of how to prevent the degradation of the minority. The answer is to allow women to control the porn they appear in then they wont be degraded, I'm amazed I have to spell it out for you. Actually I'm not even sure what 'degrades' means in this context, you mean 'rape' or something. I can't imagine how nude pictures are in anyway degrading apart from some sick Christian perspective or something.

4) I do not accept that all pornography is patriarchal, some is, some isn't. The only way to get rid of patriarchal porn is to replace it with feminist or non-patriarchal porn. For me I think the problem is you are applying right wing Feminist theories that are outdated, wrong and not supported by the majority of feminists today. 

5) I object to having my statements misrepresented. For instance Joy stated I said 'instrumental use of women was okay' when I said 'instrumental use of women is unacceptable'. I don't remember anyone ever supporting commercial porn either, certainly both myself and Vol oppose commercial porn, we just oppose it in a realistic way. Neither is the issue about peoples rights to consume porn, its about peoples rights to produce non-commercial porn that harms, degrades or makes a patriarchal of no one. 

6) Non-commercial porn and all forms of sex work empowers the women that produce it, when they control and enjoy it. There is no arguement against that, and any attempt to oppose it is unjustified oppression, as it is entirely unrelated to commercial or harmful sex work. Arguements regarding the rights of the harmed vs the rights of the unharmed is spurious as there is no polarisation the two are entwined, theres no conflict of rights here.