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What's the more ethical profession?

Richard Masters said:
Ok, but why is selling sex immoral?
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This question somehow got buried under all the military stuff, so let us list some reasons why people perceive that selling sex is morally inferior to selling something else whatever:

The two major reasons are:
- respect of legislation: "the law says so, this is illegal"
- religious conviction: "Bible says so, this is sin"

But the actual reason behind or beyond these is the fact that many if not most people in the society live in a sexual relationship where fidelity is strictly expected from the partner. Cheaters / adulterers are considered immoral, and prostitutes are serial cheaters / adulteresses, hence the perception that prostitution is immoral.

This reason would not apply in the particular case when a prostitute serves a single man, who is not subject to any agreements or expectations of fidelity, but we never heard of a prostitute who agrees to serve single men only.

Also this reason would not apply if expectations of exclusive sexual fidelity were no longer linked to pair relationships so strongly as they now are, but that is a futuristic and possibly utopian scenario.
 
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Richard Masters said:
What's the more ethical profession? Becoming a prostitute or becoming a soldier?

ETA: To add some context: an acquaintance thinks that prostitution is an immoral way to make money. I then noted that joining the military is too because both prostitutes and soldiers sell their bodies.
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Isn't that true of almost everyone? Why single out these two professions?
 
Travis said:
-snip- Soldiers, on the other hand, do something that is constructive an necessary.
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So the Serbian soldiers at Sebrenica (sp?) were doing something constructive when they massacred people there?

The red army soldiers in western Russia (Katyn,Charkov, Kalinin, etc) did something constructive when they executed 21 857 polish officers who were allied with the UK and France in 1940?

My point is that not all soldiers are from the US or democracies (not that there isn't bad people in the US army or western armies for that matter) nor do they all fight for the "good" side.
 
Resume said:
Heroes are heroes and it isn't jingoism, nor dogma; people in fact sacrifice for others. That you don't recognize this suggests you are very young or very immature or perhaps both. Spend some time in a VA hospital, among veterans that have lost limbs; talk to them and understand their loss and get back to me.
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Suicide bombers and freedom fighters sacrifice their lives for others. Are they heroes too? What about a prostitute who risks her life to feed her children? Is she a hero too?
 
Travis said:
Yes, both soldiers and prostitutes sell themselves. So do NFL players.

But the NFL provides us with entertainment and prostitutes provide sex. Both of which we could live without. Soldiers, on the other hand, do something that is constructive an necessary.
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NFL players and prostitutes don't kill as many people as soldiers. Someone also noted that wars are not always constructive and necessary.
 
JJM 777 said:
This question somehow got buried under all the military stuff, so let us list some reasons why people perceive that selling sex is morally inferior to selling something else whatever:

The two major reasons are:
- respect of legislation: "the law says so, this is illegal"
- religious conviction: "Bible says so, this is sin"

But the actual reason behind or beyond these is the fact that many if not most people in the society live in a sexual relationship where fidelity is strictly expected from the partner. Cheaters / adulterers are considered immoral, and prostitutes are serial cheaters / adulteresses, hence the perception that prostitution is immoral.

This reason would not apply in the particular case when a prostitute serves a single man, who is not subject to any agreements or expectations of fidelity, but we never heard of a prostitute who agrees to serve single men only.

Also this reason would not apply if expectations of exclusive sexual fidelity were no longer linked to pair relationships so strongly as they now are, but that is a futuristic and possibly utopian scenario.
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One could also say that prostitution (infidelity) is considered harmful because it could result in unwanted pregnancies and the transmission of diseases, but those two objections can, for the most part, be addressed through technology.

Someone who accounts for and attempts to mitigate those negative consequences could be considered a fairly conscientious person.

On the other hand, I can agree that breaking expectations of exclusive fidelity is (or would generally be regarded as) immoral. Thank you for addressing the question without personalizing the issue.
 
Imagine a prostitute that is also a soldier!

That would be so service-like, it makes my head spin.
 
The question can't be answered as there are too many unknowns to account for. Like the reasoning behind why people become both soldiers or prostitutes. Not everyone's the same.

A soldier joins the army because he wants to kill a bunch of brown people he doesn't like very much, and a woman/man becomes a prostitute because their family lives in abject poverty in some third world country and can't afford to eat - which is the moral decision?

A woman becomes a prostitute because she likes the money it brings in, but her entire family are morally,socially and religiously against her actions, and worried about her health & well-being, but she does it anyway and doesn't care about their feelings. A soldier joins the military to protect his homeland,way of life and family/friends from an invading enemy - which is the moral decision?

I don't think there is a more ethical profession, just ethical decisions behind the choosing. Both professions are dangerous and bring suffering and happiness on some level to those involved.
 
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Red3 said:
The question can't be answered as there are too many unknowns to account for. Like the reasoning behind why people become both soldiers or prostitutes. Not everyone's the same.

A soldier joins the army because he wants to kill a bunch of brown people he doesn't like very much, and a woman/man becomes a prostitute because their family lives in abject poverty in some third world country and can't afford to eat - which is the moral decision?

A woman becomes a prostitute because she likes the money it brings in, but her entire family are morally,socially and religiously against her actions, and worried about her health & well-being, but she does it anyway and doesn't care about their feelings. A soldier joins the military to protect his homeland,way of life and family/friends from an invading enemy - which is the moral decision?

I don't think there is a more ethical profession, just more ethical decisions behind the choosing. Both professions are dangerous and bring suffering and happiness on some level to those involved.
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You get it :) . And you made your point more clearly and eloquently than I have.
 
Resume said:
Especially this weekend it seems adolescent to mock those that sacrifice to protect and ensure freedoms.
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All soldiers sacrifice to protect and ensure your freedom?

It seems a lot of people seem to think soldier = US soldier.
 
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Travis said:
Yes, both soldiers and prostitutes sell themselves. So do NFL players.

But the NFL provides us with entertainment and prostitutes provide sex. Both of which we could live without. Soldiers, on the other hand, do something that is constructive an necessary.
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I would say that soldiering is destructive and necessary.
 
Resume said:
Is English your native tongue?
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Is this how you pretend to have an argument? Criticizing people's grammar and English skills?

Many people on this board are from other countries and don't speak English or spell perfectly. Get over it.

I on the other hand am just a clumsy writer prone to spelling mistakes, passive voice and general blabbing. :(:D
 
Prostitution of the street-walking flavor is a social nuisance.

Soldiering - not so much unless they're enemy soldiers.
 
Everyone sells some service for money. That's how we live in this era.

If you want to debate the merits/ethics of prostitution why did'nt you start a thread stating that since that's obviuosly what you're after?
 
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