Puritan Harper CONS to "fast track" prostitution bill

[Siocnarf]

Objectively, that is not the view of a large number of police departments in Canada an the US, which do in fact run john sweeps, sting operations, etc., to arrest the little guy.

In Canada, at least in Montreal when they do a sweep they are responding to specific complains where prostitution is bothering a neighborhood. They don't usually waste time with that unless it disturbs the peace or there is some exploitation involved.

 

[legmann]

The john sweeps in Canada have focused on street prostitution and are primarily motivated by complaints of residents from neighborhoods where the activity takes place.

Not because of the supposedly "higher" moral purpose of the prostitution laws (which, according to MacKay, is exactly what C-36 is all about), a notion around which there is no social consensus. SPVM, in Montreal, have made it quite clear that it's not something they're interested in pursuing, and there other LE agencies which have similar policies (Victoria, Vancouver, for instance).

And when stings have been used, they have been done in instances where at least one of the following was occurring: underage sex workers, actual trafficking, and coerced prostitution.

As for the States, where both sides of the equation are illegal, prostitution is in the bottom tier in terms of arrests. Not only that, but the rates of arrests related to prostitution have been in decline over the past 20 years; see Figure 8 on page 4, here:

http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/aus9010.pdf

Outside of specific circumstances, there is less and less interest in going after the simple client.

In Canada, at least in Montreal when they do a sweep they are responding to specific complains where prostitution is bothering a neighborhood. They don't usually waste time with that unless it disturbs the peace or there is some exploitation involved.

Some guys need to get their head around this.

 

[Scarey]

Incarceration is big business in the U.S.Do some research, and you'll see more then a few of the Republican cronies in the U.S political system, with strong ties to Harper's Re-election and current government.There may be more then one angle to passing of this law that has never really been noted.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/tories-announce-155-5m-prison-expansion-1.874590

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/...ent_throwing_prison_expansion_money_away.html

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/09/24/the-largest-expansion-of-prison-building-since-the-1930s/

 

[fuji]

In Canada, at least in Montreal when they do a sweep they are responding to specific complains where prostitution is bothering a neighborhood. They don't usually waste time with that unless it disturbs the peace or there is some exploitation involved.

That has varied by jurisdiction. York Regional Police have sometimes aggressively targeted massage parlours, while Toronto Police have generally left them alone.

In any case, if you have any business in the US, you're playing with fire once this law is in effect -- a single conviction, even an arrest, for prostitution can make you inadmissible.

 

[lomotil]

im also mindful of the polls asking about victimization.

Nimby is a major factor, of course. But let's extend this thinking.... If the sex trade is decriminalized, it must also be regulated. Aside from obvious health and safety matters, mundane details such as zoning need to be addressed. Nimby-ism will be rampant. As crazy as mammoliti is, he was right that it would make sense to create a specific zone for sex (note, York region already has). The concentration of sexy time make for a pretty compelling argument for tourism Even without designated zone am we are already known for our adult playgrounds. As others have said, our Yankee friends already come up for fun.

Do we want our city/country to become a sex tourism hotspot? Nimby on a macro scale?

thats one of the significa t social policy discussions that needs to happen along side the basic question of two consenting adults, etc. It's not that one should trump the other, but it's a reality that needs to be thought out and rationally planned for.

a long way of saying....you're very right. People are fine as long as they feel that things are under control.

You mentioned that York region "has" a specific zone for sex. Did you mean "had"?