by Alicia M Prater PhD

Created on: October 04, 2007

The laws keeping individuals from exercising their free will have crossed the line between what is for the protection of society as a whole and what is legislating moral opinion. Even though there are decisions I would not make myself, I believe that others should have the same right to make up their own minds. There is so much money wasted on prosecuting victimless crimes while violent offenders crowd the prison system.

Prostitution has been around for a very long time. It IS called "the world's oldest profession". Since the sexual revolution of the 1960s men and women have more freely expressed physical intimacy. Women now do for free what prostitutes get paid to do. That is what the whole club and bar hookup scene is about. So if a man buys her dinner before hand does that make her a prostitute? Perhaps. But it's a legal loophole and she knows that if he hits her she's protected by law. As of now there is no recourse for abused and mistreated prostitutes. In the worst cases they have pimps who threaten their lives, because they can. If prostitution were legalized then there would be regulation and oversight. There would be fair wages, health care to prevent the spread of STDs, better birth control, and protection for better treatment by both their bosses and their customers. HBO has a series called "Cathouse" that is a reality show, documentary of sorts, about a legal brothel in Nevada. The women there may be morally reprehensible to some, but they are educated about safe sex practices, routinely tested, well paid, have great relationships with their bosses, and have fun at their job. Just because I or you wouldn't be able to do that doesn't mean we should tell anyone else they can't since there is no social threat from it.

There is also the argument about it opening up for men (or women) to cheat on their partners. Anyone who would cheat on their spouse would do it with someone for free or illegally anyway. Making something illegal doesn't alter morals, it simply alters how someone goes about getting what they want or prevents them from doing so. To believe that laws dictate thoughts and morals is to have little faith in free will.

Marijuana should be legalized since it is no more toxic than tobacco or alcohol and it has medicinal applications. The active chemical in Marijuana is a cannabinoid called THC. The human body produces its own cannabinoids that act via cannabinoid receptors to influence pain, inflammation, and memory, among other functions. As of

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