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Prostitutes Call for a Ban on GTA
d writes "Gamespot has an article about an association of prostitutes protesting the GTA games. Apparently, the sex workers of the Sex Workers Outreach Project aren't too happy about their ingame counterparts being treated violently in the GTA games. They note that the games are a bad influence on children, and might encourage rape and violent behavior towards prostitutes in real life."
and what is immoral? about selling sex for money? it seems like a rather honest exchange
The phrase "more better" is acceptable English. suck it grammar Nazis
But still, if it comes down to consensual sex versus beating/killing people, I'd think that the sex would be less harmful to children.
...mammary glands and naked women shouldn't be censored but violence should be?
:-)
That sounds like the difference between European and American censorship. If think we (the EU) have it right on this one. In my ideal world we're all exposed to sex, rather than violence
Maybe in more civilized countries, but not in the USA. Here, we take pride in glamorizing violence as it contributes nothing at all to society, while degrading the reason that we are all here. After all, it's yucky. And nobody should ever think of it. EVER.
It's like sex, except I'm having it!
This one makes the most sense. I've heard my share of B.S. "videogames made me do it" stories over the years, but this one has the most legitimate basis of them all. It stands to reason that some frat boy who is majorly into his GTA, either tries to treat a prostitute or a dancer in a similar manner because it is seen and portrayed as a given that you smack a ho. It really does promote the behavior and I could see the point.
I know it all seems silly, prostitutes complaining and drawing parallels from a video game to real violence. But in reality prostitues are pretty much an accepted thing in America (even though many would have you believe otherwise) and after reading a book a while back about the Mustang Ranch in Vegas, I have a whole new outlook on them and their trade. The knee jerk reaction is to laugh it off, but I truly believe this compalint is the most valid yet.
http://teasphere.wordpress.com - A little spot of tea
But look at TV. You can see extreme acts of violence and gore (watch CSI, if only for gore), but most acts of sex are completely removed. Even on CSI, they always have the naughty parts on corpses covered. When I first watched the pilot for Firefly, I was amazed that they had a pseudo-sex-scene. Most likely because in the 23 years I've watched TV, I've never seen anything like that on a network station.
It's like sex, except I'm having it!
> Is this a joke? Sex Workers Outreach Project?!?
No, it's not. And if you read their website, you'd see why it's not. For one thing, they have a goal for the decriminaliztion for the consensual sex industry, among other things (such as laws to help protect prostitutes). What more they outline their motives in a clear way, showing that through reform prostitutes can be helped rather than left to fend for themselves.
It's an intersting debate for where to draw the line between what laws are considered ethical. It's common for playing video games to be ethical, although sometimes they're content is not, but in the end they're legal. Murder is considered unethical, so it's illegal. Prostitiution is a strange one: prostitutes give their consent, so realistically they are not being harmed since they have the option of avoiding the situation if proper precautions are taken. Someone might argue that by consenting they are harming themselves, which is another matter all together, but you can say the same for tobacco.
Their members have a different set of morals, and believe that their freedoms as citizens are being restricted by the morals of others. You don't have to agree with them, but at least they're being logical about it.
Although I do see the humor in the irony in trying to get parents who probably view them as the lowest human lifeform to join their cause against the game. That's just silly.
CowsAnonymous: We're here to help moo.
Yeah, let's all take advice on morality from hookers...
I'd be more suspicious of people who base their morality on hocus-pocus religious mythology.
There's nothing immoral about a consentual agreement between adults.
P.S. Maybe people would be nicer to prostitutes if they were FREE
That totally cracked me up. But seriously, people have got to lighten up. This is a GAME! Are SWAT unions protesting because they're the main target in CounterStrike? Is Germany demanding that the US stop selling Battlefield 2, because it depicts violence directed to German citizens? I would guess the answers would be "no", and "no".
Not to say that these games will ruffle some feathers (I read recently about some indians threatening to sue a game company because of its 1800's shooter), but they're not supposed to be representations of real life. Anyone stupid enough, or sick enough, to believe that and later try to do it in real life, ought to be locked up anyway.
Marcos
right on. and let's not forget that GTA didn't start this - it can all be traced back to the ninja turtle arcade game where you have a chance to whack that whore on the skateboard.
ôó
What's always seemed strange to me is that prostitution is illegal unless you film it.
In other words, I can pay a woman to have sex with me if she is an actor in my porn film. I just can't do it for my own private pleasure, I have to be making something for others to see. Bizarre.
They should make a fighting game where all the characters are religious figures. So you can be Jesus and beat the crap out of Mohammed, or vice versa. Other characters would include Satan, Buddha, Mary, an Orthodox rabbi, Vishnu, God, Santa, the Easter Bunny and Cthulhu. You wouldn't even have to make a profit off the game to get filthy rich- you'd just invest in defense contractors and then when screenshots of Mohammed and Satan tag-teaming the Easter Bunny and Buddha start circulating around the world, World War III starts and your defense stocks go through the roof.