"In these dark days of brokedom, who amongst us hasn’t lingered a bit too long in the Etc. section of the Craigslist job postings? I mean, I do have dainty feet with nicely trimmed toenails, and if I could make my rent just by stepping on some random businessman’s face, well who’s to judge?? Granted, I am not brave enough (or hard up enough) to go through with such an evening’s work (just yet), but the selection of writers featured in the anthology, Hos Hookers, Call Girls, And Rent Boys were not only brave enough to do it, and keep doing it, but were equally brave enough to write about it."

What I find troubling about this review is that at best is soft peddles the true horror nature of the sex trade. At worst is romanticizes, and promotes prostitution as a feminist enterprise.

Of course the sex trade is not a feminist enterprise, it is a decidedly male centered industry in which women are not empowered beyond their use to men as sex objects. That women may get a pay check and that for some very few that paycheck may be quite large simply acts as a mechanism to disguise the fact that most women are sex slaves, or trade sex for paltry small sums of money, often unwillingly, and at ages well under the age of consent.

"I could make my rent just by stepping on some random businessman’s face, well who’s to judge??" Do we really think this is funny stuff? I guess as gallows hummer, but a responsible writer would make a bigger point of such.... and doubly so during economic conditions in which any money made by any means does sound like a reasonable strategy to the young, desperate and naive.

Clerical work is not after all a completely terrible place to be, so long as it leads to finishing an education and moving up through the ranks of corporate America.

The tragedy of the Porn Star is that a life in the lights led to clerical work rather than a life in clerical work leading to a corner office as a captain of industry.

Oh lighten up No Hope.

You know at one point, whores and sex workers were the bane of a feminists existence. We were they pointed their white gloved fingers at as traitors to the cause, poor victims to be saved, etc.

Then someone came along and decided we were heroes taking charge of our own destinies and financial lives.

Well, big surprise. Women in the industry are neither and both. There is a really broad range of women who work in the sex business in all it's facets. And every one has a slightly different reason for being there, for staying there.

I retired a long time ago but I'd go back in a heart beat if I needed to support myself. And I'm grateful that's an option. The work itself is not what wears you down, but the judgments of the society at large that force women to lie and to live outside of basic human services and police protection; society that expects us to be ashamed and punishes us if we're not.

Sex for money, companionship for money, nudity as entertainment - these concepts are as old as the human race. Every animal uses what they were born with to survive and make a life for themselves. Women are no different and how we go about doing that is a broad spectrum.

I've worked in the sex biz and been successful in the corporate world, but I have no desire to be "captain of industry".

Do me a favor, stop trying to make my choices for me, stop looking for tragedy in other's lives so you can feel better about your own, because making someone less, does not make you more.

No Hope missed the target as if, after reading about the art and science of hunting, bemoans the number of dead deer tied to the hoods of F150s coming down the mountain.

As a former dancer, a.k.a. naked man on a bar, I can't tell you the number of times I was asked, “don't you find this humiliating?”

No.

It was far less humiliating than my day job working in an office doing clerical work for the person in the corner office who would never, ever consider giving up the captain's seat to me.

On the contrary, it paid my rent, paid off my student loans and it was a ball or two as well. I have way more good memories from stripping than I do of crawling under desks hooking up computers.

gallows hummer!

"As a former dancer, a.k.a. naked man on a bar, I can’t tell you the number of times I was asked, “don’t you find this humiliating?”"

Oh poor you....

Dancing from your position of privileged as a male is a little different than being a prostitute because (a) you have many other options denied women particularly in less Liberal societies than the US. (b) you are encouraged to view your self as a self sufficient value creator rather than an object to be desired who's value is derived via your aesthetic self an aesthetic over which you have very little control and what control you do have is only accessed primarily threw money. i.e. you have to spend money to make money. (c) you're unlikely to enter prostitution by being kidnapped and sold into sex slavery, the number of slaves today is greater than in any time in history including the highest of the African slave trade, and many if not most of these slaves are sex slaves.

Oh lighten up No Hope.

You know at one point, whores and sex workers were the bane of a feminists existence. We were they pointed their white gloved fingers at as traitors to the cause, poor victims to be saved, etc.

Then someone came along and decided we were heroes taking charge of our own destinies and financial lives.

"Well, big surprise. Women in the industry are neither and both. There is a really broad range of women who work in the sex business in all it’s facets. And every one has a slightly different reason for being there, for staying there.

I retired a long time ago but I’d go back in a heart beat if I needed to support myself. And I’m grateful that’s an option. The work itself is not what wears you down, but the judgments of the society at large that force women to lie and to live outside of basic human services and police protection; society that expects us to be ashamed and punishes us if we’re not."

I support selling prostitution being legal and buying prostitution being illegal. It's a matter of protecting the working conditions of sex workers. As for social judgments. I'm not making a social judgment I'm making as factual judgment. Sex work is dangerous work and to romanticize it is crazy. It's a crazy as romanticize coal mining.

"Sex for money, companionship for money, nudity as entertainment - these concepts are as old as the human race. Every animal uses what they were born with to survive and make a life for themselves. Women are no different and how we go about doing that is a broad spectrum."

Women are not a separate animal, they are humans. There is nothing different about women and men. We are told we are different we are restricted to different social options but we are equally capable. Women don't pursue prostitution because they are female, they pursue it because "the feminine" and the "the masculine" restricts our individual liberty and dignity.

"I’ve worked in the sex biz and been successful in the corporate world, but I have no desire to be “captain of industry”."

And this just happens to be your personal choice. It's funny how your personal choice is part of a data set in which your choice represents the mean. One has to ask are you making a choice, or are you just post rationalizing the choices you have made. The evidence for "human free will," is less than it feels like. We don't choose as much as react and justify.

"Do me a favor, stop trying to make my choices for me, stop looking for tragedy in other’s lives so you can feel better about your own, because making someone less, does not make you more."

That logic cuts both ways.

No Hope -
Men and women are different. They deserve the same respect, options, care and rights, BUT they're physiologically different. They have different capabilites, both physical, mental and emotional.

Funny how you assume that a man does the work out of choice, but a woman out of lack of choice. Maybe you should read the book and see what the men and women who are doing the work think. I'll clue you in. Some did it by choice, others did not.

I'm assuming you never worked in the business, that this is an intellectual disagreement rather than a personal one. Just like with everything else in the world, you shouldn't generalize.

"Men and women are different. They deserve the same respect, options, care and rights, BUT they’re physiologically different.


They have different capabilities, both physical, mental and emotional."

Males and Females have certain limited diffidences. But then Females have a range of physical, mental and emotional differences between themselves as well and these differences are far wider than the differences between the Males and Females. Yet we do not observe all week individuals entering certain occupations and all strong ones others. So whatever the differences between females and males, they do not seem to be the primary determiner of "choice," or outcome.

Gender however does seem to be. i.e. masculinity and femininity. That is what individuals perceived as their role identity and options is the main determiner not their capacity.

Wanna join a hot and heated forum that discusses the truth about these big stars? ____Tallconnect.com____ has lots of open-mind girlsthere! besides, it's hot models, milfs, sexy chick s and handsome young men and chicks mingle club!!LOL.....

I think this issue is not so different from other issues women face. It comes down to choice. And if a woman is able to sit down, take the facts, her personal values, and her health and safety into account and still say, "Yeah, I want to have sex for money," then that's her business and it's no one's place to judge her for that. Obviously that's not always the situation in prostitution. A lot of women are forced into prostitution, or at the very least, coerced into it by older men when they themselves are underrage. (There is an amazing documentary about this called "Very Young Girls." Definitely check it out.) But if someone consciously chooses prostition and is being safe, how is it so different from other types of labor?

At the very least, what's the point in devaluing the experiences of people who have ALREADY delved into the sex industry? They shouldn't be allowed to share their stories in an entertaining light? I don't really understand what you expect here, nohope. Should they be repenting, regretting, and preaching the error of their ways? To what end?

Dear Nohope,
You said,"The tragedy of the Porn Star (that's me, I guess)is that a life in the lights led to clerical work rather than a life in clerical work leading to a corner office as a captain of industry."

Indeed, my candle was "lit at both ends," and it did not "last the night." It did, however, "give a lovely light." The memories of which warm me even as I write. I can't really say the same of my years as a computer jock. They did, however, provide the skills required to write and publish my book, The Devil Made Me Do It.

I will let the people with experience talk about what's positive and negative -- certainly it is much more complex that the people who claim that sex workers are the ultimate feminists or that they are to be shamed out of existence would like anyone to believe.

I agree with nohope that books like this may over-romanticize or glamorize a dangerous industry. But, as with books about prohibition, drugs, gangs, gambling and many other subjects that have little in common, their very taboo nature will naturally make them appeal to some readers. I don't think writers should lie about the realities, but nor do I think readers should accept this as journalism, unless it is written as such.

I agree with No Hope and I have to say that I am becoming increasingly wary of supporting Bust as a magazine. I love getting the weekly blog and reading the mag, but lately it seems like I am yelling out loud about the, well, skankiness (I know, a decidedly "un-feminist term," but if the shoe fits...)of its' writers and readers. I'm a feminist and proud of it, but I refuse to believe that our empowerment includes putting prostitutes and strippers on a pedestal. I know there are gray areas (for example, a lot of us enjoy a bit of Burlesque, yet feel decidely wrong about porn). Let me set the record straight-if you don't think a porn actor is a prostitute, then you really need to look at the facts (namely,that they ARE "fucking for money.").
I'm getting really tired of this, Bust! I love looking into these issues and the fact that there's a dialogue, and having compassion for these people, wanting it to be legalized so they are safe from harm...these are important things to be talking about. Supporting it, considering it, calling it brave, and suggesting sex work as a viable option as long as you have the facts straight and the guts to do it...well, I wouldn't want that for my future daughter, myself, or ANY woman I know, love, or, hell, have never even met. We need to raise the bar!

Wow, Jodi - "lighten up?"? Ouch.
As a former sex worker myself, I think there *should* be room for someone to question the whitewashing of a very scary business.

The fact that you used the patronizing, minimizing language that has been used against questioning women for so long turned my stomach so much I just canceled my subscription.

I'm not saying your argument was wrong, I agreed with many of your responses, but I also agreed with some points that NoHope made & don't think your being dismissive is 'dialogue'.

Just read the article and all the comments. Wow, I think that the article glorifies the sex industry a little bit but does so to intice readers to read the book. If you wanna take your top off for any sex profession that is your choice, and it comes with a lot of consequences and social stigmas that I hope the book delves into.

I don't think I'll be sitting on any business man's face anytime soon,lol. But I might pick up the book.

hell, jodi, it looks like you were lucky and never got beaten up by a pimp or killed (obviously not killed) by a batshit crazy john, but lots of women do. It's a dangerous job both morally and physically. If you did it by choice, good for you, I admire you like I'd admire a firefighter. But man, if someone questions the lighthearted take on a very dangerous, demoralizing, and sometimes fatal career choice, I don't think it's wise to get defensive and aggressive about it. That person is probably on your side. On OUR side, because the fact is any woman under the "right" circumstances could end up a prostitute, and not all of them will have the chance to turn to desktop publishing or something of that sort.

But at least there is a lot of dialogue about the sex industry arising from this article! Isnt that good?
I think that humour is possibly the best way to enable people to talk about anything. I've done stand up routines with a feminist slant about absolutely revolting things, not to minimise or dismiss, but to use the opportunity to just SAY something.
Women (unfortunately) at the moment do not have a great time in most industries (apart from more typically "female" ones like nursing or childcare). Women who work anywhere from the Law to Catering could produce a book of stories about female experience. The fact that this one is to do with the sex industry gets everyone riled up I think because of our puritan roots- Shh, its about SEX- but at the end of the day, if it raises awareness and brings up dicussion, how can that be a bad thing?

Hmm. I guess I'll weigh in, but rather than try and bury anyone in witty rhetoric or personal anecdote, I'll just list all the jobs I've had, in order of most to least exploitive/humiliating/soul-crushing to me personally:

1. WORST: US Navy
2. substitute teacher
3. graduate student composition instructor
3. public school teacher (in the USA)
4. Wal-Mart donut maker
5. stripper (in the USA)
6. prostitute (in Australia, where it's legal)
7. BEST: public school teaching assistant (in Spain)

Oh, and I have been attacked and hurt at work as a substitute teacher. Can't say the same at any of the other jobs, though in the Navy, I had to be very, very careful not become the target of some very nasty bullying. I'm not saying the sex industry was all rosy, but in comparison to some of the other stuff I've done for a living, it was a picnic.

(Oops, I guess that was the anecdote I promised not to include.)

@Carlita - actually, I had some awful things happen to me when I worked in the business, but not BECAUSE I worked in the business. They happened because I was high or drinking and my judgment was impaired. It was the nature of the drunk that turned me into prey, not the nature of the business. The world is a dangerous place for any woman is wandering around half drunk. I left dancing thinking that was the problem, but things didn't change until I left the drink. Lots of dancers and sex workers of all kinds today are putting themselves through school and supporting families.

first of all, i don't understand how a woman writing about her experiences as a sex worker is "whitewashing a very scary business" or "glorifying" anything. last time i checked, we live in a country where it's ok to write just about whatever the fuck we want, and if you don't want to read about it, that's great! also, no hope responds to steven:

"Oh poor you….

Dancing from your position of privileged as a male is a little different than being a prostitute because (a) you have many other options denied women particularly in less Liberal societies than the US."

can you say this for sure, no hope? i feel as if you have virtually no basis for saying this without being sure of his gender (yes, that's right, gender is different from sex, do you understand that? probably not.) or his race? do you know that steven is not transgendered? do you know that he is white? because if he's not, can you be sure that he has as many options in this society as a white woman who is NOT transgendered?

in fact, can you be sure of anything without have done research? why don't you actually read the book before making such sweeping statements as "Of course the sex trade is not a feminist enterprise". in fact, why don't i share with you a reading list of Very Important Books on this subject.
"Cunt" by Inga Muscio
"Real Live Nude Girl" by Carol Queen
"Whores and Other Feminists" edited by Jill Nagle
Read these, learn something new, and then i will consider your opinion more valid.