Thoughts From a Former Craigslist Sex Worker, by Melissa Petro

[uncommon]

From The Huffington Post

"People -- not just prostitutes -- have sex for many reasons. Sometimes, for some of us, one reason is money.

From October 2006 to January 2007 I accepted money in exchange for sexual services I provided to men I met online in what was then called the "erotic services" section of Craigslist.org. No more a "professional" than a person renting a room on the same site is necessarily a professional real estate broker, for me and other women and men like myself, Craigslist at that time provided a simple, familiar forum through which I could do my business with complete anonymity, from the safety and convenience of my own home. At Craigslist.org, I was able to bill myself as exactly what I was at the time: a graduate student, bored and curious, sexually uninhibited, looking to make a little money while having a little fun. I wrote my own ads, screened my own prospective dates, decided on my own what I would and would not do for money, and -- best of all -- I kept every penny I earned, all without the interference of an agency or other ubiquitous "middle man."

Ultimately, while my experience as a "non-pro" was not the "fun" I had come looking for -- I found the lifestyle physically demanding, emotionally taxing and spiritually bankrupting, and so I made a decision to desist some months after I'd gotten started, exiting the industry just as freely as I'd entered -- never have I felt it was the state's obligation -- nor its right, in fact -- to protect me from the decisions I made.

(2 paragraphs cut here, available at original link)

It has been some years since the last time I met a stranger through Craigslist for reasons other than to buy or sell a piece of furniture. I hope to never again make the choice to trade sex for cash even as I risk my current job and social standing to speak out for an individual's right to do so. The simple fact is that people do have sex for money -- many different kinds of people for many different reasons, people as varied as those looking to buy concert tickets, sell a collectible or adopt a pet -- and these people will continue to. Whether the choice to do so is being dignified and protected with its own forum or whether what was once that safe space remains appropriately labeled "censored," that choice, without a court order one way or another, remains up to Newmark."

A prostitute is not a sexual predator.

A prostitute is not automatically a bad person.

A person who engages in sexual activity with a spouse or long term partner in a relationship that is based on financial stability more than mutual love and affection is effectively a prostitute.

Millions of human beings worldwide trade sex daily for the necessities of life.

Most teachers have sex.

This woman is coming out as an advocate for one of the most hated sectors of our society - women who sell sex for money without euphemisms. These women are denigrated, prosecuted, and imprisoned while their customers - suburban dads and businessmen and managers and yes, gasp, even teachers - almost always go unpunished and unknown.

[Johonny]

1. I hope she declared that extra $ on her taxes

one thing I can't stand it's a tax cheat :)

[valerief]

3. Ha! You must hate corporations. nt

[Schema Thing]

2. she admits to not paying taxes!

[seabeyond]

4. so now.... your goal is to create all women as mere prostitutes, whats the deal with this womans

decision to allow strange men to buy her body for a time to be used as they please.

we are all just that after all?

is this about the same when someone cheats on their mate and they want to justify and validate the behavior, they say, .... we are all capable?

or when a man does something he says.... hey, all men do it.

thank you

no

i have not prostituted myself and i am not going to accept that role so another feels more comfortable with their choice.

you dont want me to judge, fine. people can make their own choice

but dont make me into something i am not.

[phleshdef]

5. Why can we pay 2 adults to have sex on camera, but not pay one to have sex without a camera?

Thats what I never understood. I mean, I'm faithfully married and never would pay for sex. But I see nothing wrong with consenting adults that want to engage in that behavior.

[uncommon]

6. kick

[T. Count]

7. Sounds like she will be a good resource for HS girls looking to go into the trade.

Think of the internships that will be made available.

Sarcasm for those with defective sensors.

[seabeyond]

9. actually she can mainstream prostitution and strippin with a yonger age set

elementary school, as a viable option in earning money.

after all, prostitution is a choice all women make, one way or another.

[T. Count]

10. "Make money from home!" nt

[uncommon]

11. I'm sure she is teaching her 5-8 year old students about prostitution and stripping.

You sound like a crazy person.

And to be clear, no one ever said it was a choice ALL women make.

[T. Count]

12. At what age should they be trained if they want to go into the field?

?

[seabeyond]

13. well first... we have to convince society it is nothing more than being a lawyer.... then we have

to have our girls be conditioned that their sexuality is their only worth. maybe buy them a pole dancing doll at 7 and give her thong undies and i am sexy shirt at 5....

i think we are well on our way

[Wednesdays]

20. If they need training, my hunch is they're not cut out for the job.

:shrug:

[seabeyond]

14. i am curious what the conversation will be like, what direction it will go

when someone in the class finally gets the courage to say something to the teacher about this.

you know those silly kids

does she giggle and say, we cant talk about it
tell class, that just another ok life choice
that it is bad and she made a poor choice


who knows.

[uncommon]

15. I think the appropriate response, if that were to happen, would be

to say, "This is not a subject we are discussing in this class. You should ask your parents."

Parents should be the ones educating their children about the world. And this teacher is making no effort to proselytize regarding prostitution to her elementary school art students so it should not even be an issue in the classroom.

If you really think these kids are reading the websites that are running this story thus far, I think you are mistaken.

[seabeyond]

16. one ould hope. but previous decision making ability leaves me wondering. nt

[uncommon]

18. I shoplifted from Wal-Mart a few times when I was 20-21 - does this mean I am a thief for life and

would teach children that stealing is a good thing?

Of course it doesn't.

I know numerous people who have driven after having a few drinks - do you think would teach their kids, or other people's kids, that this was acceptable or preferable behavior?

[seabeyond]

19. again, projecting. you are assuming she thinks prostitutions was a poor choice

that there was anything about her prostitution that equated it to theft.

as far as i have seen, she has absolutely no remorse, or rejection of the choice she made.

if it is a viable option in her opinion, how would she then recant her action to the class. or would she. in a narcissistic manner that she puts out the stuff on internet saying, look at me, regardless of knowing how counterproductive that action is with her job, why would you assume she would make a responsible choice with the class.

i cannot make that assumption.

i cant say she wont, either.

looing at peoples behavior, i find her options interesting and what she would chose. curiousity.

[guruoo]

8. Learned a new word

teledildonics. (from the comments)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/cathouselover/post_803_b_707975_61216242.html

[SidDithers]

17. K&R...nt

Sid