Would legalising prostitution lead to less rape?

Bottle_of_Smoke

Was thinking abotu this. Have always heard(though never fully convinced) rapists are after power/control.

Think there's a possiblity some rapes are commited by people who have difficulty having sex. Maybe combine this with control issues & they rape someone. Maybe if easy sex was there for them they might do something else for their power trip.

Maybe someone knows of statistics from Holland/Germany which could throw some light on this.





first one to turn this into a debate over whether or not prostitution should be legalised is totally gay

uberwolf

no.

If there is anything TV* has taught me, it's that rape is a crime of power and not sex.

* I have definitely heard this somewhere, said with great authority.

Sleepy

Not in the least. Prostitution has existed since the dawn of man and will continue to do so, legal or not. Google a few relevant words to the profession and you'll see how easy it is to hire a prostitute in this country.

Now, given that it's that easy, and that the punishment for hiring a prostitute is pretty lenient when compared to the punishment for raping someone why on earth do you think that someone is likely to rape someone simply because they're not getting any.

seahorse

Not at all. Prostitutes themselves are raped every day of the week, which to my mind copperfastens the theory that rape is about control and that sex is very much the secondary element in the equation. Sure, the rapist has an orgasm in most cases, but if he's ready to rape a prostitute, who is about the only woman he can absolutly guarantee will have sex with him, it really cannot be primarily about sex. If it were, he'd just pay the fee and avoid the liklihood of a jail sentence.

Marksie

seahorse wrote:

Not at all. Prostitutes themselves are raped every day of the week, which to my mind copperfastens the theory that rape is about control and that sex is very much the secondary element in the equation. Sure, the rapist has an orgasm in most cases, but if he's ready to rape a prostitute, who is about the only woman he can absolutly guarantee will have sex with him, it really cannot be primarily about sex. If it were, he'd just pay the fee and avoid the liklihood of a jail sentence.

I cannot actually remember the exact case, but when i was in forensics a multiple rapist was convicted. The physical severity of his attacks was directly linked to the power/control issue. If the victim acquiesced then it was over in 3 minutes. If however the victim fought back then the degree, duration and severity of the attack increased proportionally (Note: this is being used to illustrate the power/control issue, not how one should respond to being attacked in general).

I think those who know my philosophy will recognise that I believe that cultural and religious repression leading to obsessions/self hatreds that are prime causes of such attacks.
Where cultures have a more liberal approach to sexuality then the rate drops as it can be expressed healthily.
So in fact it is not a liberal attitude to prostitution (i.e. Legalising it) but a liberal and open attitude to sexuality in general which has the affect.

aidan24326

I believe I read somewhere that Nevada has the lowest rate of rape in the US and is also the only state with legalised prostitution. Could be coincidence I suppose but you'd wonder.

Personally I'd be surprised if there was much of a link. As others have said in many cases the rape is about power/control rather than being purely a need for sexual gratification, which is readily available through prostitution anyway regardless of legality. I mean prostitution is illegal in Ireland yet Dublin has a thriving sex industry so it's easy to get even if it is illegal. Clearly the guy who chooses to rape a woman isn't just after a quick shag that could be had with far less hassle and risk involved.