What’s wrong with getting high?  You claim that it’s a problem because it’s escapism, but I fail to see why a little escapism is bad.  People practice it in so many ways.  Some people drink, some use pot, some people read books, others watch movies, some play video games and others spend hours at a time hanging out on the internet.  Escapism only becomes a problem if a person isn’t facing reality at all.  So, if a person is playing Wow to the point where they can’t hold down a job and where their relationship with their family deteriorates, that’s not good.

You say that it’s disturbing that we’re a nation of, "if it feels good, do it", but I don’t understand why this is a problem. Should we do things that feel bad?  The only question we should ask is whether it is inherently harmful to other people for someone to exercise this right.  Otherwise, we’re saying it’s ok to feel good by going to church, or by having a PBR at the pub with some friends, but not to kick back and smoke a joint and what is the sense in that?

Social morals are not on the decline.  They are merely changing to reflect the changing society.  Change does not mean decline.  People have been claiming that morals are declining for hundreds, if not thousands of years.  And yet, things have only improved.  When I look at how much progress we’ve made with respect to sexism, homophobia and racism in my life, I can’t believe some people claim that we’re in a decline.  Certainly there’s still a lot of work, but I’m extremely hopeful.

Mmm.  I don’t know if I’d say that it is crap.  Given that we don’t know how old these people are, how many serious relationships they’ve had or how long it was between his break up and when he started dating the LW, I think there’s a chance that he might honestly believe what he said.  Sure, he’s wrong, but if this was the girl he dated all through college and his only serious relationship, he might actually think that way.  Especially if he’s not in love with the LW.  I’ve had friends who honestly thought they were broken in that fashion … it’s one of those silly stages young people often pass through.

But, you’re correct.  They should move on because if he’s not in love with her now, he’s certainly not going to be later and continuing to date him will only increase her mental baggage.

How a person indulges in MJ is a separate issue from its legality.  A person who is smoking pot in an enclosed room with a 12 year old should get in trouble.  Not because they’re smoking pot, but because they are endangering a child.

 Certainly there are detrimental effects for long time users who smoke out on a regular basis.  Just as there are long term negative effects for people who drink a lot on a regular basis or even people who smoke regular cigarettes.  That’s not enough for us to ban them.  Should we ban fast food and cookies because obesity is unhealthy?

I challenge you to find a report where someone smoked too much pot and then went home to beat up or abuse someone while high on exclusively pot.  I’d be mightily surprised if you can find even one incidence of this happening.  The rate of abuse is much higher for people who get drunk.  Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that a child is more likely to be physically abused by someone who is perfectly sober than someone who is high on pot.  That’s just not the way the drug works. 

I don’t think prostitution would disappear if there were more options available to the poor.   But, as you explain above, the poor often go into it because it pays better than other jobs that they are qualified for.  I’m not entirely sure what I would choose were my only choices to be a 9-5 grunt at a physically demanding job or as a prostitute.  And how does a person get to the point where these are their only choices?  Many factors, including a poor education, limited parental involvement, and a lack of opportunities come into play.  I went to a great school and had parents that worked with me to do well.  They earned enough money that I could concentrate on schoolwork rather than working.  We lived in an area where I did not have to worry about violence, nor where success could mean a beat-down.  And so as a young adult I had many more opportunities through no great effort on my part than many other people.

As for socialism, I don’t understand why it’s considered terrible.  "When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a communist." - Dom Helder Camara, Brazilian archbishop

It is my opinion that no pure form of government or economic system can work.  Pure democracy fails.  Pure capitalism fails.  And of course, pure socialism fails.  What type of system do we need?  We need one that is competitive enough to inspire people to work hard and thus be more productive.  But, we also need a system that allows a person to be productive through hard work if they so choose.  Currently for some people, that is not the case.

Personally, I have no problems with what the current administration is trying to do.  The fact that we don’t have universal healthcare is completely absurd and one of the reasons we have some of the worst health care when compared to other first world nations.  This is one aspect where democracy and capitalism just fail.  While I’m not 100% thrilled with the economic choices, I don’t think anyone has a better idea.  Eight years of republican mismanagement had sent our economy in a nose-dive.  The global economy has set up a system that no one understands.  Couple these together, and the decision making becomes quite difficult.  But, I’ve known quite a few people who have benefited from the stimulus money in a way that I think is beneficial.  It certainly helped people stay in school who will be tomorrow’s engineers, physicists and doctors rather than have them drop out and wait tables or whatnot in order to survive.

 Returning to prostitution so the moderators don’t ding me, it’s not a profession that I think many would choose were they given all available options.  For instance, if every single job paid a living wage and one could choose whatever one wanted to do, I don’t think we’d see many prostitutes.  But, I don’t think we’d see many maids, garbage men, miners, etc.  It would be nice if we were to live in a society where more people get to do what they want to do for employment, rather than what they need to do to survive.   Ultimately I think that would lead to a more productive society, which is good for all of us.

My love is not cheapened by other people’s actions….

 But, how is that more debasing than picking up trash?  Cleaning other people’s houses?  Wiping someone else’s bodily fluids up?  I could see how all these jobs could be detrimental to the human spirit.  Yet, we don’t have a problem with someone being a garbage collector…..

And yes, I would agree that prostitution is very similar to a woman marrying a man based on his income.  That’s not a decision I would make, but I wouldn’t go so far as to say it’s a completely stupid decision.  How many people marry for love and end up with a dead-beat loser who couldn’t hold a job to save his life?  In Dear Margo I’ve seen a number of people on this board telling a woman to dump such a person. 

One of the biggest changes would be that a prostitute wouldn’t have to fear going to the police.  Now, a prostitute who does so risks being arrested and having her day’s take confiscated.  Since many of the streetwalkers are desperate for cash, they end up with very little protection. 

Mm, I generally disagree with any law that tries to protect an adult from themselves.  Drug prescriptions definitely fall into a grey area, in that a combination of drugs could be dangerous and this allows a person to be informed about the effects of a number of different drugs taken together.  Driving drunk is risky for others (and there’s never a situation where you can guarantee that no one is around … after all, a drunk person could drive into a house!!). Children fall into an entirely different category as I think we all agree they need to be protected from themselves in order to be able to grow up.

 The reason people don’t become prostitutes now has nothing to do with the legality.  After all, do you know anyone who says that they would become a prostitute but it’s illegal?!?  All that keeping it illegal does is make it hard for people who turn to prostitution to get protection from themselves.  After all, if you’re going to get arrested for your work, how likely are you to go to the police if you’re raped or beaten up?

The best way to keep poor women (and some men) from being prostitutes is to give them opportunities to do other things.  But heaven forbid anyone bring that up, because then you’ll be accused of socialism. 

The only way you’ll get my caffeine is when you pry it from my cold, dead hands.

 Why do people use drugs?  Because they feel good.  It’s the same reason people have sex, climb mountains, run marathons and play video games.  Why should society state that some ways to feel good are acceptable and others aren’t?  In my opinion, the only time society should have a say is when the "feel good" action is inherently dangerous to other people who are not participating in the "feel good" action.  So, while there are some drugs that a person can not use without being a danger to other people, weed is not one of them.

As for "pathetic" people who pay for sex, I have a lot of sympathy for them.  Human beings need touch.  We are also happier (in general) if we are getting sex.  However, there are a number of people out there who can not enter a relationship.  Generally they aren’t charismatic or attractive and probably wouldn’t be the sort of person many of us would be attracted to.  But, they didn’t really ask to be that way.  For instance, one of my friends is approaching his 40th birthday.  He hasn’t had a date since he was 25.  The last time he had sex he wasn’t able to drink legally….  He’s a good guy though a bit boring and with a face only a mother could love.  The fact that he sees his life just extending celibate to his death depresses him completely.  Does he deserve this?  Now, we can acknowledge that paying for a prostitute is not the same as being in a relationship.  But, sometimes people such as my friend need just a little bit to help them not act needy and desperate when out with other people.  Because, if there is anything less attractive than a boring personality and an ugly face, it’s an air of desperation.

I think prostitution should be legal.  It has always seemed strange to me that I can have sex with someone, and I can demand that a person pay me for my time if I work for them, but I can not combine the two.  Granted, I don’t have any interest in it as I’d rather be paid as a physicist.  But, I can certainly see why someone might decide to go down that route and legalization will only make it safer for all involved.