Escorts: SL Definition

In SL, does a club's "escort" imply "sex for sale"?

I'm looking for public perception of what the term means. I'm not passing judgement.

Background:
"Sex for sale" is banned in SL event advertising. "Escort" is a grey area at the moment with regards to this rule, which LL seems to be erring on the side of non-censorship.

Related link: /invalid_link.html

Why would you post this when you've already stated that it's abuse reportable? I ask that you remove the link in the interests of having an unbiased poll, and I will remove these comments as well.

What a progressive and thought-provoking post, Hiro! You're using the Socratic method to bring attention to the fact that the Lindens are turning a blind eye to sex for sale as long as euphemistic language is used to describe it. Excellent!

~Ulrika~

I don't see anything wrong with posting an employment op for escorts, but you already know my position on the subject.

I've never been an escort and my club experience is sorely limited, so I have no idea if escorts *are* always paid for sex as well. My assumption is that it *usually* implies sex.

But: it's not hurting anyone. I think we could all use a little more sex, virtual or otherwise.

Simple -- the matter which spawned the poll isn't how many people may or may not agree with you. The matter is that what you did was wrong, regardless how you may justify it.

Look, I'm the LAST person in the world to support 'the sex trade' in SL. Ask anyone who knows me.... ask Barnes, as Cris, ask Toast or well... anyone. I dislike it, is bugs me, and well, I just think it degrades the place as a whole.

With that said, what you did in that thread was, purely and simply, wrong.

It isn't about whether or not 10, 20, 50, or 100% of the folks who respond to this poll think as you do, or as I do, or whatever. It is about the reality that, regardless of what we like or dislike or think, doing what you did over there is just not right.

And if you're going to prop up a poll to try and make yourself feel better about doing it, or to in any way have it serve as justification for it, then whomever takes it ought to know what motivated it.

Hence the post.

If women want to sell sex (and unlike in real life this is voluntary) then it's absolutely none of my business.

As there is no compulsion then you can't be objecting on the grounds of being pro-women or anti-slavery. It can only be pro-censorship or that you find it personally distasteful.

A position I consider to be hardly progressive and profoundly anti-women.

Dont ”sex for sale” need posecubs?

That's your interpretation of the data, Ulrika. It's presumptious to think sex for sale is a bad thing (that's another debate), but it can be concretely said that advertisement of it is banned.

Now, what would be interesting is to ask is "Why does Linden Lab bans sex for sale advertising?"

Because it's not in their interest to advertise SL as a sex MMORPG. A lot of people play it that way, and that's fine. They just don't want it in everyone's face.

I can understand them removing a post with vulgar phrasing and wording, but "escort" is, as you said, a gray word, something that houses a lot of different definitions. Banning the use of the word "escort" in an employment op post is ridiculous. Newbies can figure it out if they pursue it.

Only if people prefer it to the laggier, less-dynamic poseball variety, lol!

kidding.

I want to reiterate, this thread is about the perception of the defintion of a word, not about the morality of the actions a word may imply.

I would counter with saying that your comments are contradictory. I would say that the employment forum is very "in your face".

But again, we're back to the definition of "escort", and we'll let the poll speak for that.

Uhh... because prostitution is illegal?


Pixel-sex is a very gray area of the law in terms of "is it prostitution?" Likely LL just doesn't want to be sued on this front in addition to a slew of others.

As for the euphemisms in the Events Browser, Ulrika is absolutely right - I've been cracking jokes about them in-world for some time now. If you don't have the courtesy to mark your XXX event Mature or at least follow the TOS, get off the Events Browser.

Sure, but selling phone sex is legal. (which I'd argue is the closest thing to cybersex / av sex)
It's also regulated, I believe.

Guess the question is which side the laws lie on.

Come on people - this is supposed to be entertainment, right? My neighbor, who I know to be a very nice av is mentioned in the thread cited by Cienna and I must say that if SL is to be all things to all people its a false concern if there is willing and able, if fantastic, support for such an activity in-world, regardless of what it is called.

Truly, if there is a moral or even legal concern regarding TOS shouldn't you be questioning the existence of creators who sell the appendages that make this possible, rather that the "cheerleaders"?

Please see the part where I say that the morality of this is not in question for this thread.

This is a matter of whether or not you perceive one word to mean something else.


No, because that form of cause-effect is illogical and completely subjective.
Following that logic, LL and all residents are responsible for keeping SL alive, that makes the creation of the aforementioned appendages possible. And then you need to hold the entire world economy responsible, since it enabled the creation and existance of companies, including Linden Lab. And then you need to hold all mankind responsible. And then what? Hold god responsible?

No, it's fairly clear. People need to take a personal responsibility for their own actions, not blame it on others. If I were to have a car company and you run over someone, you're at fault, not me for making it possible.

Hiro, PLEASE stop trying to remove my primary source of income from SL!

Does JennyFur know?

more importantly, does Bub?

I'm going to start an escort service called "Hiro's Sleazy Sluts". Catchy name.

Buster

Great! Let me know where I can send the paypal ID so you can send me the profits.

Agree.
Tempest in a teapot this.

To answer Hiro's question... "Escort" in RL or SL *always* means prostitute IMO.

It's just prostitution for the upper classes as opposed to the "street" variety. I think it disingenuous and profoundly unfair to women to have it this way as if its going to hapen anyway the women should be allowed to be in control of their own affairs through licenced brothels, but that's a RL issue anyway.

Can someone enlighten me as to whether prostitution is even illegal in the States? In Canada, as in a lot of other places, prostitution is actually *not* illegal as it would be kind of a constitutional violation to make it so.

"Living off the means" of prostitution (pimping) is illegal, and soliciting (the john asking for it) is as well, but consensual sex for money is not.

.

*Rubs eyes*

*looks again*

Yup, still says SEX!

This entire thread is predicated on an assumption.

Even if that assumption is correct, it's still not sex. Sex occurs when two REAL LIFE HUMAN BODIES engage in sexual relations.

Are you unable to make that distinction Hiro? Do you think when you're killed in Jessie, you've been killed in real life too?

Hiro, I am just... I dunno man... don't you have anything better to do?

sigh

This link provides no information on legality that I can see. It is just a definition of the term.

.

I think you hit the nail on the head here.
This is just one of those areas where the TOS is necessarily kind of disengenuous.

If they tell the truth, then bad things happen to SL, so we all pretend that escorts are just holding hands and chaperoning each other to the prom or something.

Very similar to the whole "guns and shooting issue" IMO.

By the TOS it is illegal to shoot guns anywhere but a very few, and very restricted, list of places, in practice, people shoot pretty much wherever they please and are generally shocked if yo utell them they are not allowed to. Guns are also one of the most popular sale items and one of the main reasons that many folks join second life.

I for one would like to see a teensy bit more honesty in this regard in that it is affecting other parts of the game to have the reality so completely out of sync with the rules. For instance like many folks, I have had to stop building in the sandboxes because they have turned into "mini-Jessies."

People need to have a place to have pixel-sex for money and people need to have places for gunplay. To pretend they don't is going to blow up in our faces eventually IMO.