As I discussed briefly Friday afternoon, there are some fundamental
“house rules” regarding this discussion – let’s be mature, let’s be
light-hearted, let’s keep the commentary PG, and let’s stay on point in any
response comments. And if possible,
folks—let’s try to be reasonable and use common sense here. ;-) Also,
this is the first post in a two post series.
This post is focusing on strip clubs in general. The later second post is going to
specifically address the Bleu Diamond and Club 44 matter from two weeks ago.
This first post is incredibly long because it addresses a lot of issues
regarding strip clubs, issues surrounding the exposing of a woman’s breast in a
public/open to the public setting, a discussion on breast feeding in public, human
trafficking and sex slavery, money laundering and organized crime, a brief
tutorial on how and why organized crime comes to be, differentiation between
sexual rape and sexual victimization, rapists and rapists subsets, sex as a
weapon, why most men don’t rape and why others don, Alpha males versus Beta
males, the “naughty parts” of the Bible,
rapists versus pimps (and why pimps don’t make good business operators), how
strip clubs can be used as gateways to sexual slavery, sexual slavery as part
of organized crime (and the different male roles), why women turn to stripping,
how strippers become prostitutes, how prostitutes become sex slaves, how strip
clubs maximize their profits while minimizing their liabilities (especially
within the framework of human trafficking), what can and cannot be done about
strip clubs (and who is lying to you about what), what should be done about
strip clubs (and what new regulations should be legislated and why), and
finally a special message to woman about consenting to sex.
I cover a lot in a way that is mature, full of common sense, and I
inject some humor where appropriate to keep the conversation on these serious
and very intertwined topics light-hearted where possible.
Historically, my posts contain a lot of
references so my information can be checked for accuracy. In this case, I have foregone doing so. In
part, because it would add additional length to this already lengthy and much
needed discussion. But in larger part
because there are 9 legislators sitting on City Council and they need to start
doing some of their own research. Far too many City Councilmen are relying upon others—particularly City
attorneys or boards/committees that are created so that Council can avoid
responsibility and accountability for making decisions that go against the
wishes of the greater community. In
requiring City Councilmen to start doing their own research and not relying on
others, they can be (and will be) held to a higher accountability than
before. No more hiding behind attorneys
or boards/committees.
Now some Councilmen will make statements like “I don’t have time to do
my own research” or “I’m too busy with my day job, Council duties, and spending
time with my family to do my own research” – and my response to that excuse is
this. If you cannot fulfill the duties
of being an informed and self-educated member of City Council, then resign, step
down and make room for your successor. In
other words, step up, stop your whining, and do the job that nearly 10,000
taxpaying, electorally-registered city residents selected you to do and are
paying you to do with their hard earned taxes.
And so the above noted discussions begin…
STRIP CLUBS ARE FUNNY THINGS
You know, I’ve really never understood the “need” for topless strip
clubs, especially for men. Guys—think
about it? You’re going to a place to get
charged an entrance fee for the privilege of drinking over-priced watered-down
beer to pay some woman to take off her clothes whom you can’t touch, who isn’t going
to bed with you, and who isn’t going to have sex with you? No offense, but
sounds like marriage? LOL! ;-) :-D (To which some ladies out there are saying,
“hey that’s not funny”; to which some guys are having a ‘lightbulb moment’ and
saying, “Dang, she’s right”; to which strip club owners are saying, “Shhh, shut
up about that—we know how ignorant our customers are, but they don’t”).
And why are they sometimes called "Gentlemen's Clubs"? There is nothing "gentlemanly" about most guys who visit strip clubs. Foaming at the mouth and panting like dogs in anticipation of new meat. Yes. Acting like a gentleman. Uhm, no. Really, who are y'all trying to fool? Just sayin...LOL! ;-)
Also, notice how I say I don't understand the need for strip clubs "especially for men"? That's because if us ladies want so see a hot,
sweaty, topless guy, all we have to do is go to a gym, a beach, watch
unsponsored amateur outdoor sporting events, or basically go to any place where
guys congregate and compete against each other in hot weather. Or we can go to
the local gay bar for their bi-weekly male dance review --- Gay bars, not just
for gay men anymore…LOL! ;-) Or on a really hot day, we hire a lawn care
worker, a gardener, an exterior painter, have some construction done on the
house, or hire a pool boy – whether we have a pool or not. Just sayin…LOL! ;-)
And in none of these cases is tucking a buck expected or required, although in
some cases I’m guessing it’s appreciated. ;-)
(Folks, just keeping it real here.)
Nor have I never understood the really lame argument that some strip
club owners use ---and apparently City of Fort Wayne paid-attorneys and City
Councilmen “buy” hook, line and sinker --- of how strip clubs have a
Constitutional Right to be treated like every other business operation. Ok, dumb@sses, let’s get real. (Not you, my
loyal friends, but those who get paid to lie to the rest of us—ahem, corporate
City of Fort Wayne.) First, yes, a strip club has the right to be treated just
like every other business. I agree
whole-heartedly with that. Matter of fact, let me repeat that: A STRIP CLUB HAS THE RIGHT TO BE TREATED JUST
LIKE EVERY OTHER BUSINESS. To which strip club owners, the area’s politicians, the
City’s attorneys, and members of City Council are scratching their heads and
thinking “OK, where is she going with this?” To which feminists, anti-human
trafficking advocates and the anti-strip club crowd are angrily thinking,
“WTH?!” To which everyone else is
thinking “Get ready, this is gonna be good…LOL!”
GIVE ‘EM WHAT THEY WANT – TREAT STRIP
CLUBS LIKE “EVERY OTHER BUSINESS”
I say give ‘em what they want and treat strip clubs just like every
other business – and I do mean JUST. LIKE. EVERY. OTHER. BUSINESS! That, of course, means –right off the bat -- that
BANNING TOPLESS dancing/serving/entertaining would be required and enforcing a
bikini dress code for female staff (and all so-called “independent
contractors”) with penalties of public indecency/house of ill repute for those
who fail to enforce such dress code.
Folks -- Do you see pole dancing instructors at the YMCA or Boudoir
Noir teaching topless? Uhm, no. Do you see waiters/waitresses at other
establishments that serve alcohol without their tops on? Uhm, no.
Do you see workers at restaurants that serve food working with their
tops off? Uhm, no. Do you see workers at
liquor stores serving their customers without their tops on? Uhm, no. Do you see any other establishment that
provides entertainers at any of the restaurants, bars, taverns, coffee houses,
art galleries, etc. “entertaining” with their tops off? Uhm, no.
Do you see anyone in retail working with their tops off? Uhm, no.
Not even those who sell adult toys and novelties.
Do you see any government worker with their tops off? Uhm, no.
Thank goodness for that one! Imagine
someone like FWPD’s Marty Bender with his top off?? No offense, but no thank
you. (And some of you thought I was going to throw Mayor Henry in that example
didn’t ya? Guess what—I didn’t have to
‘cause you already went there…LOL! In
sincerity, I may not respect the fiscal and social public policies of Mayor
Henry, but I do respect the Office of Mayor, which is why I didn’t go
there.)
I could just go on and on here with example after example --The point
here is that there is no other industry anywhere in the City of Fort Wayne or
the County of Allen or the State of Indiana that requires or that is allowed to
have their workers go topless. And as a society, we are grateful for that---to
a point. (Let me get to the “a point” in a moment.) No offense, but some people shouldn’t be
permitted to run around working with their tops off---and currently, I’m one of
‘em. (Hey, just keeping things real
here.)
SIDEBAR #1 – FOR THE FEMINISTS
AND ANTI-STRIP CLUB CROWD (and worth a read by the general public)
I know I’ve just enraged some of you who believe women should be
allowed to be topless in public when it comes to breast-feeding their infants,
I agree with you. Mothers meeting the
nutritional needs of their innocent babies in the way God and nature intended
should be allowed the right to feed their children in public without penalty.
Even if it means temporarily exposing a breast to do so. Which is why I wrote “…to a point.” But this
also raises a question for you ladies – Why do you “protest” in support of this
right in a public park in front of the Courthouse – where every other supposed
“protest” in this town takes place – on a Saturday morning to afternoon – where
traffic counts from the street department will show is the lowest time of the
week for traffic at that location – instead of protesting in front of or right
beside places that commercialize the exposure of women’s breasts for profit?
It seems to me that if you, as a group, were truly serious about your
right to breastfeed in public, you would be at the forefront of protesting
those who make money from the very acts that you are prohibited to do for free
in public. If a mother nursing her child
exposes her breast in public, she can be penalized and fined for indecent
exposure. But if a woman exposes her breasts inside of a building, accessible
to the public, where men have to pay an admission fee to gawk at women that
they have to also pay directly or indirectly to expose their breasts, no one
gets penalized. To which the feminists
groups are now scratching their heads and thinking, “Wow, we owe Gina an
apology for being angry. She’s right.
We’ve totally missed our mark. We should
be protesting in front of or beside strip clubs during their busiest times to
gain our right not to be penalized for exposing our breasts to meet the
natural, nutritional needs of our babies.”
To which strip club owners are now confused about how to react to this
--- Do we laugh? Do we cry? WTF@#%!? My response to the strip club owners is
this – If you want to protect your business interest of having the right to
showcase the breasts of women to men desperate enough to pay, then perhaps you
should have supported these feminists and helped them to gain the right to
breastfeed their babies in public without risk of penalty. Afterall, both you (strip club owners) and
them (feminists groups) want the right to be able to expose breasts without
penalty? Heck, if I was a strip club owner, especially
one hiding behind “Constitutional Rights,” I would have gotten ahead of the
matter and offered the feminists groups my public, financial and/or legal support
when they launched their “low-key,” media promoted, ineffective, unproductive
protest at a public park instead of waiting for them to protest at my business
where their naked, exposed breasts would seriously hinder my business
operations.
Afterall, why should men have to
pay a strip club to see naked breasts inside a building that they have to pay
to get into if they can see the naked breasts of feminist protesters for free
outside!?!? To which strip club owners
are saying, “Hey they can’t protest on our private property. We have private property rights. We’ll call
the police.” To which my response is –
Go ahead and call the police and have them arrest mothers for trespassing, I’m
sure they’d appreciate the media coverage for expressing their CONSTITUTIONAL
RIGHT to free speech for the sake of feeding their children. Afterall, we must think of the children. (And
just where is “Right to Life” on this matter? Shouldn’t they be standing with
and protesting along with and in support of these women for the sake of
children just born or about to be born.
Surely depriving a child of its mother’s nutrition outside of the womb
is just as important as a depriving a child of its mother’s nutrition inside of
the womb, right? And if I’m wrong, then YOU folks have just proven that you are
NOT “pro-life” but are merely “pro-birth.”)
Back to my response to the strip club owners – Hey, guys. Guess what?
Protestors have CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS too – real ones. They have the same right to Freedom of Speech
and Expression as you do. (To which the
City’s lawyers and “legislators” are either smacking their foreheads, cr@pping
their pants and/or saying my name in vain about now.) This means they have the right to launch a
protest on adjacent public properties, such as the public right-of-way access
points flanking the vehicular entrances of your business property. Also, your
private property rights really don’t mean a hill of beans when you operate a
business that is OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. (rubbing temples) Oops?!
But, in fairness to strip club owners, if they did that—supported
womens right to expose their breast in public—then strip club owners also risk
creating unbridled competition by creating opportunities for women to freely
and openly expose their breasts where any man –-desperate or not---could freely
and openly gawk at. Strip club owners,
like any other business, HATE competition. Have you ever wondered why you never
see strip clubs operating next door to a fitness center? Why would guys pays a weekly admission fee to
watch a bunch of hot, sweaty women dance when it’s cheaper (and more
respectable) to go next door to the fitness center to pay dues and watch hot,
sweaty women work out? Worse for strip club owners, especially bottom tier
“budget-friendly” clubs (you know the kind with food specials that offer 2
tacos for $6) – they usually end up hiring sleezy managers/relatives that are
cheap and abusive instead of professional, whom actually know how to manage --
they’d lose control over their dancers.
Imagine a strip club manager mistreating a dancer to the point she gets
fed up and quits. A smart dancer would
join the feminists cause, maybe even put on a lil’ public strip tease as a
fundraiser in support of the cause – doing whatever it takes to lure that
club’s paying customers outside of the club…and in support of a “good
cause.” For the children!! It’s called
“Revenge of the Dancer.” LOL! ;-)
SIDEBAR #2 – TO ANTI-HUMAN
TRAFFICKING ADVOCATES AND THE ANTI-STRIP CLUB CROWD (and worth the continued
read by the general public)
I know that many of you were angry before the above SIDEBAR #1 and are
probably confused as of this SIDEBAR #2.
We, as a community, need to understand that strip clubs are many, many
things. But they are NOT the CAUSE of
human trafficking. And folks, on their
own – they aren’t. But strip clubs blur
the lines between the acceptable and the unacceptable---be it public nudity,
what constitutes entertainment, what constitutes “a lil fun,” what constitutes
an illegal act, etc. For that reason
strip clubs can be --- and often are --- GATEWAYS TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING. When gateways like this pop up – it’s a sign
of a growing underground, illegal, robust/highly-profitable black market that
is rising to the surface to create a legal cover for the illegal
operations.
Now some of you may be wondering why a legal cover needs to be created
by and/or for someone whose running an illegal operation such as sexual
slavery/human trafficking? Afterall,
wouldn’t that draw attention to the very thing you are trying to operate on the
down low and keep quiet? Why risk
exposing your illegal activities to law enforcement, like excise officers
(tasked with making sure your alcohol records are accurate and that you aren’t
serving minors)? Or to law enforcement
officers, like FWPD detectives, who might go undercover as a regular guy, with
regular money, acting like “one of the guys” in the hopes of ensnaring a
stripper-turned-prostitute? Why risk that?
And that is a really great question.
I wondered that too.
BEING RESPECTABILITY WHLE
LAUNDERING MONEY IS VERY “TAXING” – UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZED CRIME
The answer is surprisingly and incredibly simple. Because you can’t look all “mack daddy” with
your gold rings, gold high-end watches and jewelry, expensive multiple homes,
expensive multiple cars, take expensive vacations, etc. without someone ---
from the IRS to the next-door neighbor to your spouse and kids (or in-laws) ---
wondering just how you are able to afford all of that. It’s really hard to be a drug dealer or a
pimp when Lil Johnny or Lil Janie wants you to come to school on “Occupation
Day.” No parent wants their child to say,
“This is my Dad. He’s a pimp. He has the biggest stable of b*tches and hoes
this side of the Mississippi. And you wouldn’t believe who he is friends
with….(dad covers child’s mouth and slowly backs out of the classroom).”
And no parent wants their child to say, “This is my Dad/Mom. He/She is a drug dealer. You should see all the different drugs they
sell to people all over the place. They’ve
got non-addictive, illegal weed and they go highly-addictive, illegal
heroin. You wouldn’t believe whom they’ve
got selling their drugs and whom their customers are. But they have this really cool game of how
they “fool” the cops when someone “accidentally” gets busted --- they make sure
to show the cop the weed and make the cop look for the heroin. Some cops are really good and they find the
heroin, but some cops aren’t as good and they don’t even bother looking for the
heroin. Oh, oh, and do you know how they
get the weed, the heroin, and all the other drugs shipped to them? First, they
pack their drugs into containers you would never suspect like….(parent trying
to cover child’s mouth)…and then they put these containers into semi-trucks
that look like….(parent trying to cover child’s mouth)…or sometimes they pass
the drugs out at….(parent clamping hand over child’s mouth and slowly backs out
of the classroom.)”
See what I mean? It’s awkward
sometimes to be a successful drug-dealing, woman-raping/woman-victimizing
entrepreneur. The more successful you
are, the more money you make, the more money you have to hide.
And if you are a really smart and really successful drug-dealing,
woman-raping/woman-victimizing entrepreneur, then there’s a really good chance
you’ve networked with other successful drug-dealing,
woman-raping/woman-victimizing entrepreneurs.
Before long this informal network has gotten so organized that it inadvertently
creates a business association of sorts. Soon, someone gets the really savvy idea of
formalizing this business association.
That way everyone can dump their illegal black market monies into their
legal business operations and when the legal business operations get
questionably “too profitable” than those excessive monies can get dumped into
this business association. But if all
the excess monies get dumped into some business association, then how’s a successful
drug-dealing, woman-raping/woman-victimizing entrepreneur supposed to use that
money to enjoy the good life? Afterall,
just like any other business operation, what is the point of being in business
if you are either aren’t making profits that you are eventually able to enjoy
OR are making profits that you can never enjoy?
Hmmm, so how do successful drug-dealing, woman-raping/woman-victimizing
entrepreneurs who own legitimate businesses and have formed a legitimate business
association whom they are dues-paying members of? How does one remain a “respectable” business
man while laundering illegitimate money?
(And that my friends is a topic for another day --- sorry, but that
topic strays too far away from the main theme of this post.)
DIFFERENTIATING BETWEEN RAPE AND
VICTIMIZATION
Now by now, some of you are probably wondering why I’ve been using the
phrase “woman-raping/woman-victimizing entrepreneurs”? I know the anti-human trafficking crowd and
the feminists groups would prefer that I use the term “rapists.” And here’s why: Rape is about having the ability to consent
and being denied the right of consent.
Rape isn’t about sex. It’s about
control.
Sex is the weapon of choice. As
a weapon, its cheap, portable, always available, easily accessible, very seldom
malfunctions and for the perpetrator – it’s physically pleasurable. As a weapon, the only problem with sex is
that you generally can’t (and tend not to) want to dispose of the “weapon.”
All perpetrators love money. All
perpetrators love sex. All perpetrators
love control. But not all perpetrators
enjoy raping women. Sometimes—albeit
rare---women are the perpetrators, but it’s rare for women to rape other
women. I’m not saying it never
happens. I’m saying statistically
speaking a woman is a lot more likely to be raped by a male than a female. But not all men enjoy rape.
NOT ALL MEN RAPE
Nor do all men rape. For some men, it’s a moral line they won’t cross
because it separates them from lower animal species. For some men, it’s a line they don’t cross
because NOT crossing that line makes them less of a criminal and more of a
business owner. Some men won’t cross
that line because they are Alpha males who know they can get any woman they
want with enough time, patience and
skills of seduction --- for them, crossing that line is an epic fail and
reflects very poorly on their masculinity.
Then you have the rapists – Creatures who not Alpha males. Matter of fact, these are typically creatures
– and I call them creatures because they are not men, nor are they animals,
they are vile, disgusting _____ unworthy of being referred to as Men. Rapist are usually incompetent in some part
or in the whole of their existence.
WHY RAPISTS RAPE?
Instead of dealing with that incompetence by taking ownership of it and
learning how to improve that area of their existence, they choose to act as
cowards – blaming others for their mistakes, usually someone weaker than them
--- like a woman. Once they find some
vulnerable woman – maybe she’s drunk, maybe she’s alone, maybe she’s too “hot,”
maybe she is too “ugly,” maybe she is acting too “slutty,” maybe she is acting
too “prudish,” maybe she isn’t wearing enough clothes, maybe she is too
“confident”/too “uppity,” maybe she is wearing the wrong shade of the color
blue on the first Tuesday of the last month of the lunar new year, etc.--- a
rapist will blame that woman for their
incompetence, then the rapist will go about punishing that woman for their incompetence, continue
punishing her for their own selfish gratification, and then use the reason for
choosing their victim as the reason to victimize their victim.
“She was looking sooo ‘hot,’ acting sooo ‘slutty,’ wearing too few
clothes, and not just any clothes but the most erotic shade of blue. How could I the rapist control myself? Afterall, it was first Tuesday of the last
month of the lunar new year. Can I help
it if she was alone? Is it my fault she
was too drunk? She shouldn’t have been
drinking. She shouldn’t have been
alone. She shouldn’t have been wearing
that shade of blue. Besides, she was so
drunk and acting so slutty, that she was coming onto me. If anything, I’m the victim. She took advantage of me. I don’t know how my uncontrollable d*ck
popped uncontrollably out of my uncontrollable pants and uncontrollably into
her? I’m just as confused as anyone.
But she wanted it though. Yep, that is the one thing that I absolutely,
most assuredly know and have no confusion about at all. She wanted it. And because she wanted it and
because of everything else, this is all her fault. She should have known
better/She knew what she was doing.” (If there are any rapists reading my post,
first—get the heck off my Facebook wall.
Second, do you realize just how dam STUPID you look.
Putting aside the morality and criminality of your actions for a moment,
if you are going to do the crime, then stop being a coward. At least man up and own your actions. Yes, you’ll likely go to jail faster, but
then again you knew that was a natural consequence to begin with.)
Btw, this is why REAL MEN really don’t like rapists. It’s not necessarily because rapists rape and
victimize women – although for some REAL MEN that is enough by itself --- but
when a male pulls the kind of BS that a rapist’s pulls, it makes REAL MEN look
bad. First, it makes it look as though
no man can get a woman without resorting to rape. Next, it makes everyone look just as incompetent
as the rapist.
RARE RAPISTS SUBSETS
Also, I think it’s important to understand and acknowledge---and folks,
I really lament doing so here---but there are two smaller subsets of rapists
that exist in our community. These are a very small, very rare breed of rapists
that I feel obligated to acknowledge but don’t want to spend a lot of time or
content discussing. The first subset is the foul creature who
murders a woman after raping her. In
most cases, this is to avoid getting caught for the rape. A woman who is raped is disposable, like
trash or yesterday’s news. And then
there is the even rarer subset of murdering rapists—those who get paid to rape
and murder women.
Examples in our town include
Sharon Lapp, the writer of a neighborhood newsletter and host of a weekly cable
call-in show who routinely questioned city government projects, spoke out
against pornography and encouraged others to report illegal dog fighting (1985)
and the wife and daughter of News~Sentinel reporter Dan Osborne (1983), someone
who had the habit of reading neighborhood newsletters for journalistic “scoops”
and networking with those who wrote interesting stories found in neighborhood
newsletters.
The reason we can theorize that these women, especially Sharon Lapp,
were raped and murdered by someone(s) for hire was because of what was done to
them. Or perhaps, more importantly—what
wasn’t done to them. Lapp wasn’t just
raped and viciously murdered. Her body
was put on display in plain view in front of an upstairs window, naked with an
inanimate object used to sodomize her still in place. (Members of Osborne’s family were also found
in plain view in front of windows. His wife, Jane Osborne, was visible through
the front window of the first floor of the family home.) Also, keeping in mind that this horrific
rape-murders/murder-rapes occurred during the infancy of DNA testing, why would
a rapist use an inanimate object to perform sexual assault? Think about it
folks -- In doing so, he deprives himself of the physical pleasure that results
from the rape. And what criminal
purposefully leaves behind the weapon used in any crime? In this case, the
inanimate object used to sodomize Lapp. This
isn’t exactly a case of some gangsta wannabe “leaving the gun and taking the
canoli.” The rapist took the murder
weapon and left the weapon of rape behind.
Literally. And I’m stopping here
because this is getting way off topic from the original theme, but publically
acknowledging these rare subsets of rapists exist was a necessity.
UNDERSTANDING THE BETA MALE –
NOT AN ALPHA BUT ALSO NOT A RAPIST
So I had to distinguish rape from victimization and Alpha males from
rapist and rapist from REAL MEN to have the discussion that is really, REALLY
important to understand from a human trafficking perspective within the strip
club framework. (I’ll get into the need
to discuss the rapists subsets in a moment.) And here’s why. Beta males – guys who aren’t quite Alpha
males but aren’t rapists either --- which is most of the guys out there --- generally
prefer two types of women, the sinner and the saint. Or the classic lady on the streets and a
freak in the sheets syndrome. These are
the kind of guys who love fellatio and whole bunch of other dirty, naughty
sexual deeds and really don’t mind how slutty their lady acts, as long as it’s
in private. Cause hey, no guy wants a
bunch of other guys to know just how freaky he is or isn’t. Generally speaking. With some exceptions. Well… at least until
the children come along. Then a lot of
these guys don’t want the mouth that kisses their children good night to be the
same mouth that….uhm……..”dusts off” the “family jewels.” (Hey, you try keeping this PG…LOL! :-P :-D)
SIDEBAR #3 – IT’S WORTH A GOOGLE
And dear God, if you are one of those people who just had to google
“fellatio,” then do you and your spouse and/or lover a favor and google cunnilingus
as well. That’s C-U-N-N-I-L-I-N-G-U-S.
And to the most religious and spiritual of my friends as well as to you
Bible thumpers, before getting mad and unfriending me for daring to reference
oral sex – please read Songs of Solomon in your Bible, talk to your priest, and
prepared to have your minds blown. And when you do --- you’re welcome! LOL! ;-) :-D
:-D
Ahhhh, yes, Catholic education – teaching students how to read the
bible one chapter at a time, and skipping a few along the way….LOL! “I’m a
Catholic educator. I teach kids how to
read the Bible. I discuss the Old
Testament. I discuss the New Testament. If I don’t discuss it, don’t make ‘em read
it, and don’t test ‘em on it, then they will never learn on their own what the
Bible says they can and can’t do sexually and I’ll avoid all sorts of
uncomfortable, awkward questions from my students. Kids don’t like to read the Bible. They’ll never wonder why THAT chapter was
skipped over.” Folks—This is what you
call an epic classroom fail….LOL! ;-) :-D :-D
Ok, folks, I switched gears to lighten up the mood for some of you….now
getting back to the main theme of this post…
RAPISTS DON’T MAKE GOOD BUSINESS
OPERATORS
Now let’s switch gears for just a moment and use a different side of
our brain to do some math. ;-) If 20% of
the men are Alpha Males and another 20% of the male population are rapists,
then 80% are REAL MEN and 60% are Beta Males.
In fairness, I don’t know what statistics are and just made those
numbers up. But the point is that if X%
of the whole of a community is Beta Males, then any given subset of the whole
community --- like an illegal underground network --- is also likely to have X%
of their population as Beta Males too.
In simpler terms, if 80% of the population likes vanilla ice cream, then
80% of women who go to church probably like vanilla ice cream too.
At this point, some of you are questioning what is the point of the
Alpha male versus Beta male versus rapist convo? And what does this have to do with
victimization and strip clubs? And
that’s a great question. And here’s your
answer:
A woman isn’t raped if she willingly gives consent. (mind blown?)
Let’s repeat that – A woman is NOT RAPED if she willingly GIVES
CONSENT.
(Ladies – please see a special note at the very end of this long post
just for you as it concerns consent.)
SEXUAL SLAVERY IN ORGANIZED
CRIME – UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF PIMP
A Beta male doesn’t want to rape women. Neither does an Alpha
male. Only rapists want to rape women
and only a cowardly subset of rapists want to murder women. Rapist might make for good pimps or in a
larger criminal organization, good “enforcers.”
(And I’m going to be honest folks, I’m not really sure what that means—the
“enforcer”?? Again, you can only learn
so much from google.) The purpose of a pimp is control. Think about what P.I.M.P. stands for –
Players In Management Positions. Control of what? Product/services (sex) and the providers of
said product/services (women being used as outlets for sex). Some pimps rape the women they are
prostituting in the beginning to gain dominance and compliance. But after
awhile rape by a pimp becomes ineffective. Thinking about it – he’s selling her
body to some other rapist(s). Repetition
of any action – positive or negative – makes that action ineffective.
If we were to simplify this – You want ice cream. I get you some ice cream. You want some more ice cream. I get you some more ice cream. If you can get ice cream any time you want
and you know that I will be the one to get it for you, sooner or later ice
cream is going to lose its appeal and me getting that ice cream for you means
nothing. Why would you care if I got you
ice cream, if you didn’t want any ice cream to begin with?
Now let’s apply the concept to the pimp/sex
slave dynamic, from the sex slaves perspective – I don’t want to have sex with
you. You tell me to have sex with you
otherwise you are going to rape me. I
don’t want to have sex with you. You
rape me anyways. I don’t want to have
sex with you. You continue to rape me
and lend me out to others who rape me. I
don’t want to have sex with anyone. You
tell me to act like I’m enjoying having sex with stranger otherwise you will
rape me again. At this point, what
difference does it make if I “act” like I’m enjoying some I’m not – you are
going to rape me no matter what. I have
no incentive to “act” like I’m enjoying something I’m not.
But let’s take it a step further.
This time you say, either act like you (the sex slave) enjoy having
sex/put on a good sexual performance/participate in your raping with the
customers (paying rapists) or I kill you.
Maybe that will serve as an incentive?
But what if I (the sex slave) don’t care to live anymore if that is the
only way the raping will end?
Cr@p – now
the sex slave has become a liability. So
what’s a pimp to do? Maybe threatening
the people she cares about or is close to in some way shape or form --- yeah,
that’s a brilliant idea. Let’s threaten
to kill her family and her friends if she doesn’t agree to participate in her
raping. Maybe that will serve as an
incentive. And let’s go rough up a
family member to show her we mean business.
But what if I (the sex slave) realize that the only way to keep my
family and friends safe and to end the raping --- the only way to make all of
this end --- is to get you to kill me or to essentially suicide? Or what if I (the sex slave) turn the tables
and look for a way to kill you (the rapist pimp).
Cr@p, cr@p, cr@p!!!! Now the pimp has “managed” to make the sex
slave an even bigger liability. She’s a
threat to the pimp. And if it’s a larger
criminal enterprise ---say part of a “stable of sex slaves” or is part of an
illegal drug distribution ring --- then she becomes a symbol of defiance among
the other sex slaves as well a threat to the pimp and the whole illegal
operation.
If I’m the pimp, I’m going to cut my liabilities and murder the sex
slave. Making her an example to the
other sex slaves of what happens if you defy the system. And maintaining the stability of the illegal
operations, lest I—the pimp---get killed for failure to perform my “management”
job, especially if my failure leads to the destruction of the whole criminal
enterprise. Someone has to pay for those
lost revenues.
SEXUAL SLAVERY IN ORGANIZED
CRIME – UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF “INVESTOR”
If I’m an “investor” – that is the man who started this highly
profitable illegal/quasi-legal operation, worked hard to expand it, worked hard
to run the legitimate business side of the operation, and worked hard to obtain
the mantle of respectability (evidenced by my being called a “pillar of the
community” in some news story somewhere or being given some trinket in
recognition of my earning a special recently-created community award or earning
some jacket that other respectable “community pillars” get to wear) – I’m going
to be pretty pissed off if any of that is threatened.
Matter of fact, as an “investor” -- I’m going to be absolutely furious. I’m older now, I’m not the young guy full of
p*ss and vinegar who could afford to be a hot head ‘cause they had nothing to
lose. I have a lot to lose. An absolutely wonderful lifestyle, a
beautiful wife and kids, an amazing home (here and elsewhere), lots of cool
cars and loads of neat, neat, neat gadgets and gizmos. Not to mention a good reputation. People actually look up to me with respect
and admiration---and a growing amount of that is real, genuine and authentic,
and I am helping others. Helping others
feels really good and feeds the image of me being this good and outstanding
community pillar. Not to mention that
“contributing” monies to non-profit groups that contribute monies to other
non-profit groups that contribute monies to non-profit groups I control is a
great way to legitimately siphon off excess monies that neither my legitimate
for-profit business nor my business association can legitimately account for. I’m creating jobs, helping out the community,
and living the life I’ve always wanted.
From this vantage point, nobody is getting hurt. Ok, yes, some women may be getting hurt
because they really don’t want to have sex, but is having sex when you really
don’t want to have sex really hurting anyone?
Who doesn’t derive some pleasure from sex even when they really aren’t
in the mood for sex?
Oh, but if this lifestyle of mine (the “investor”) is threatened, then
somebody has got to pay. Should the
woman who doesn’t want to be raped be the one to pay? Or should the jack@ss pimp of mine – who
apparently can’t seduce a woman -- be the one to pay? How many times do I have to tell the pimps – don’t
rape the sex slaves, seduce them. Create an environment that makes the sex
slaves vulnerable, creates some need, and then let sex slaves work to fulfill
that need. Is it really that hard? Its soo difficult to find good pimps these
days.
Now, somebody is going to have to die so my enterprise and lifestyle
isn’t threatened. The sex slave probably
should be killed—afterall, she is becoming a symbol of defiance to the other
sex slaves. Once one woman starts
thinking for herself and figures a way out of her situation, it won’t be long
until the others get the same idea. And
instead of making money, I’ll be losing money and trying to find sex slave
replacements, which takes time. Time is money.
So dammit, I’m losing money.
Twice!
And that is why my incompetent jack@ss of a pimp needs to die as
well. The organization cannot afford to
tolerate that kind of incompetency. There is too much at stake and too much
money to be lost.
But murder for hire is expensive.
And murder for hire times two is twice as expensive. And murder for hire to eliminate a woman for
not wanting to be raped – even more expensive.
Not to mention the extra advertising that one of my companies or one of
the companies associated with the business network is going to have to pay to
make sure local media promotes some diversionary community event.
Cr@p – there isn’t any pre-existing community
events to act as a distraction to cover up the murders for hire. Dammit, that means I (the “investor”) now
have to spend even more money to create a community event --- at least that
money will come back to me, especially if I hold it at one of my venues and
have it catered by one of the restaurants owned by somebody in the business
association (a member of the original underground network) and have the entertainment
provided by someone else in the business association (a member of the original
underground network) or I can have those items---the venue, catering, and
entertainment---provided by legitimate businesses with no underworld connection
and reach out to members of the original underground network for sponsorship of
the event. Heck, maybe they have
problems they need to eliminate too.
Still, there’s some pretty big risks.
Murdering a woman just never sits well with the community.
Neither does murdering a man, unless he comes
from that part of town where most of the other murders take place.
Then his murder is easier to explain.
It’s just a bad neighborhood where gangs and
drugs run rampant.
But that not as easy of a sell job where a
woman is concerned.
Dam women and their natural
innate intuition to keep ‘em safe.
Also,
murdering this woman doesn’t guarantee that the other sex slaves will become
compliant. The opposite could happen. It may make them more difficult for the
next pimp to handle.
Let’s face it -- His
hands are already going to full because of that incompetent
jack@ss.
Ok, so I (the “investor”) am going to proceed
with murdering the jack@ss and hold off on murdering the woman. Let’s let the other sex slaves know she’s
still alive, but let’s take her out of circulation for now and isolate her
until things can be figured out.
SEX SLAVE TRADE 101 – CREATE
VICTIMS AND MAKE STRIPPING AN OPTION
So how do you get women (prostitutes and sex slaves) --- whom you (as
“Investor” or “P.I.M.P”) as an Alpha male (“Investor”) or Beta male (P.I.M.P.)
may or may not want to have sex with--- to consent to having sex with strangers
and in such a way that you---the Alpha or Beta male---can run a successful and
profitable business in the black market and/or up top in the legitimate
market?
By creating victims or helping to create victims. That is by making women vulnerable or helping
to make women vulnerable. By leveraging
something a woman needs ---usually but not always financial --- to put her in a
position where she is willing to do whatever it takes to get that need
met. Need examples:
Are you a woman with children but can’t make enough from two minimum
wage part-time jobs to put food on the table and afford childcare – stripping
becomes an option.
Are you a woman so addicted to heroin but smart enough not to overdose that you
can’t finance your needs --- stripping becomes an option.
Are you a female college student who can’t make ends meet and don’t want to
give up on school but won’t be able to without working somewhere with flexible
hours and the possibility of really good pay – stripping becomes an
option.
Are you a woman who lost her house and her job in 2008, who hasn’t
caught a break, whose run out of couches to “surf,” and is wandering the
streets of Fort Wayne because there isn’t enough beds for women like you in
local homeless shelters --- stripping becomes an option. (Btw, how was it that in 2014, we had 8 strip
clubs, 1 “swingers club,” and 4 adult toy and novelty stores, but no homeless
shelters open to single women who were without children, without addictions
and/or mental defects, and who weren’t Veterans? And how is it that in 2017, there are still 8
strip clubs, 1 “swingers club,” and 4 adult toy and novelty stores – but only
SEVEN (7) beds available to unsheltered homeless women on an emergency
basis? Up to 5 beds are available at the
Rescue Mission’s Charis House. And up to
2 beds are available at Just Neighbors.
And how is it that NONE of the homeless shelters, especially the ones
for women, want to publically reveal the number of beds they do have available
for women in general? I get protecting
privacy by not revealing names, but there is no privacy being protected in
releasing the number of beds available.
That’s a situation ripe for an audit, but the public can’t audit private
entities. That’s convenient?!)
SEX SLAVE TRADE 201 – GET THE
VICTIMS TO STRIP
And folks, anytime stripping becomes an option, so does prostitution --
especially when revenue women earn from stripping doesn’t provide the means to
solve the problem of unmet needs.
As a community, we have to face certain realities. First, no little girl dreams of growing up to
be a stripper or a hooker. Second, very
few women working at a strip club have other options. On occasion, you will find ladies who are
very proud of their bodies and will dance at a strip club because it gives them
a sense of empowerment. But that is very
rare. Its more common to find women who
have worked at a strip club to get their immediate financial needs met, leave
the strip club to work at a more respectable legitimate job and then
occasionally come back to moonlight at the strip club because the money is
better for them. Women with children
will usually do whatever it takes to give their children a better life. And women, with or without children, will
definitely do whatever it takes to keep a roof over their heads, food on the
table, and make sure the basics needs of primal survival are met.
This is why I said much earlier that that strip clubs are NOT by
themselves the CAUSE of human trafficking.
They are a gateway. Stripping
isn’t the CAUSE of human trafficking.
But it’s often a symptom of it. It’s
a gateway.
WHY USE STRIP CLUBS AS A
GATEWAY?
Honestly, and I don’t know this to be fact or not, but it would seem
that strip clubs, from a purely business perspective, would make the perfect,
most ideal cover for human trafficking operations. Earlier I said that strip clubs blur the line
between what is acceptable and what is not acceptable in our community. But that isn’t the only line that gets
blurred. The number of women coming and
going from these places gets blurred.
You have legitimate workers – the few who enjoy stripping and actively seek
it as a job; the majority who through whatever series of events are victims
seeking to make ends meet and stripping/prostitution is that necessary means to
an ends; and the few who are being trafficked by someone and have been forced
into sexual slavery. And are
trapped. With so many women coming and
going, who can keep track?
And with the way many strip clubs are set up, dancers have to kick back
part of their earnings to the strip club by way of stage rental fees, fees to
the DJ for playing music, splitting monies with the wait staff for any lap
dance fees earned off-stage, splitting monies with the “house” for any lap
dance fees earned in the private VIP rooms, paying a fee to the “House Mom” who
stays in the dressing room to keep men out and keep the dancers from sabotaging
each other’s ability to earn money (limited audience with limited money means
limited earning potential per dancer), fees paid (or sexual favors given) to club
managers for premium stage times/working hours (Friday “pay day” dancers have
better chances of making money over Monday “back to work” dancers; some sleezy
club “managers”/pimps take that fee in sexual favors only), and I’m sure there
are other fees I don’t know about. (Hey,
there is only so much you can learn on google.)
This means if you are a women desperately in need of money and you are
ignorant of all these fees --- then you need to dance more frequently, get a
better shift, and/or find an alternative way of making money.
SEX SLAVE TRADE 202 – FINDING
THE PERFECT STRIPPER TO PIMP
Women not making enough money as strippers are the perfect women to
pimp. These women are already desperate,
very needy and they can’t see any other option but prostitution. So not knowing what else to do -- they might
turn to a co-worker who is making money prostituting and enjoys it.
And I know that just blew the minds of some of you reading this. While no little girl dreams of becoming a
stripper or a prostitute, some women get addicted to the relatively easy
money. Maybe they have (or had) a nice
pimp. Maybe they have a few regular
clients supporting them and are working hard for the money (i.e. are
pimp-free). Maybe they are sex
addicts. And maybe they just have a
truly insatiable sexual appetite marked with a high libido. (Did you just have
to google that? LOL! ;-)) The point here is that for whatever reason,
to these rare women, strip clubs are great for spotting potential new
clients. Basically, these women act as a
pimp—their own pimp. These women are
pretty much liberated and pretty clear of being ensnared by a pimp or by a new
pimp. They already know how to make
money from selling sexual favors, have their own customer base, and usually
have their own form of personal security.
Their needs are met. They aren’t
as vulnerable, except maybe to law enforcement.
Unless, of course, these ladies have brokered a deal with someone in law
enforcement --- maybe the undercover detective or excise officer? Maybe the bail bondsmen? Maybe the
jailer? Maybe the judge? They tend to be confident, know their sh*t and
have their sh*t together. That
combination makes them very hard to control and not worth the time and
aggravation of most pimps. Unfortunately, these women also help to
legitimatize the strip club and make it harder to detect women who don’t want
to be strippers or prostitutes, especially those who have been forced into
sexual slavery.
Some women, once they become prostitutes --- still need the money but
also need to glamorize how they are earning that money, making it better than
what it sounds like or what it really is.
It’s a psychological self-defense mechanism. Basically, these women have convinced themselves
that being a prostitute isn’t so bad under certain conditions and then they set
off trying to convince other ladies the same thing, which is sort of a way to
create “group think” and reinforce the idea of glamor to the original
prostitute. This works great for the
pimp – his prostitutes are essentially recruiting new strippers for him. And guess who will train ‘em too, show ‘em
the ropes? The recruiting
prostitute. And the first “customer”? The pimp.
Purely for “training” purposes, of course. (sarcasm)
Now some strippers don’t turn to co-workers. Maybe they can’t stand their co-workers ---
it is, afterall, a pretty catty dog-eat-dog environment. Maybe they are too ashamed of what they feel
they have to do. Again, no little girl
dreams of growing up to be stripper or a prostitute. And so these women try to
strike it out on their own. They often start
acting as their own pimp by offering services to strip club customers. Maybe
it’s a “quickie” in the private VIP couch or VIP room. Maybe it’s a “special
arrangement” after work.
This is where is can get dangerous for these gals. If they don’t get busted by an undercover
officer, then who knows who or what situation these women will find themselves
in. Will their customer be “nice” and
easy going? Will their customer be
VD-free/STD-free/AIDS-free? Will their
customer pay what he promises? Or will
he beat her up – she is, afterall, now disposable. If she goes to report her “john” beating her
up, who gets arrested? She does for
sure. Maybe the “john” does too? If he
can be found and if anyone actually goes looking for him. Maybe the “john” is actually a pimp – and he’s
taking the “goods” for a test drive.
Maybe the “john” is a serial killer and plans to “pump and dump.”
Some women – especially ones with a demanding pimp and/or ones who are
truly sex slaves in the sex trade – may encourage other strippers to join “the
sisterhood.” Why? Sometimes they are told that they can get out
of the trade if they find a replacement prostitute – which they have to recruit,
train, and make sure the substitute prostitute is an “acceptable”
replacement. Yeah, and how often do you
think that really happens? Sometimes,
the sex slaves themselves will propose such a barter. That works out even better for the pimp—cause
its not his idea. Hence, no criminal
intent. That’s a sweet deal…for the
pimp.
And strip club managers – they may know all of this is going on at
their club. Heck, some of ‘em may even
be getting kick backs in the form of stage rental fees or other creative fees,
like “merchandising” fees. Afterall, who
can keep track of all those dollars floating around the club. For that matter, who can keep track of all
the “drama” created by the strippers – who could possibly keep track and know
whose pimping whom and why?? And that’s
the strip club manager’s “out.”
Afterall, he is not a babysitter and his job isn’t to look after the
well-being of the strippers. His job is
to make sure the strip club is a “cool,” fun, happening place full of paying
customers.
SEX SLAVE TRADE 301 – PROSTITUTION
AND ADVANCED PIMPING
So if I’m a pimp, why not take my “ho” (using meaningless or derogatory
words helps objectify women) to the local strip club. Sure I pay an admission fee and yes she has
to pay all these other fees, but if she blows the right guy, gets the right
hours, etc.---while she is on display (stage, lap dances) I can network there
with those guys who have to pay a woman to get her to take off her
clothes. Maybe I (the pimp) can arrange
a few “private parties” after my “ho” is done “slutting her stuff on
stage.” Maybe even arrange a few
“quickies” in one of those private VIP rooms.
The strip club doesn’t care.
They’re not in the business of caring.
They are in the business of making money and they don’t care where those
“house” fees come from.
MAXIMIZING PROFIT IN A STRIP
CLUB
Matter of fact, savvy strip club owners capitalize on the opportunity
every which way they can. Why serve
alcohol at a strip club? To help everyone—dancers and customers --- lose
inhibitions. Why serve food? To help customers avoid “whiskey d*ck” ---
customers who can’t get aroused somehow have an easier time leaving the strip
club with more money than the customers who can get easily aroused.
From a business perspective, if I’m a strip club owner, the profit
formula looks something like this: lots
of ladies (men need and want variety; pimps need a circuit; “investors” ---
networked “legitimate” business owners need a rotation of women as cover for
their money laundering purposes) – highly attractive ladies are best, but
really anything that has a pair of breasts attached to a heartbeat will do;
PLUS a building (privacy and control);
PLUS various seating arrangements in the club (to offer various levels
of privacy in increasing pricing mechanisms);
PLUS booze, lots of booze (to lower everyone’s inhibitions);
PLUS food (to keep male customers aroused);
PLUS loud music (forcing people to have to lean into each other to hold
conversations, making it really hard for undercover law enforcement to
eavesdrop on any “private parties” being arranged);
PLUS low lighting in the audience and bright lighting on stage (bright
lighting hides body flaws and makes everyone look younger, low lighting in the
audience decreases the ability to see the person next to you---unless you are
nearly on top of each other—and increases privacy; also having one area of the
room light draws everyone’s attention to that part of the room and away from
the dark parts of the room, acting as a well placed distraction);
PLUS ____ ???? I’m sure there are other things needed that I don’t know
about. Again, you can only find out so much information on google.
WHAT CAN AND CANNOT BE DONE
ABOUT STRIP CLUBS
Over the past two weeks, we’ve heard the City attorneys, Councilman
Russ Jehl, and Council Tom Didier try to sell the premise that “there’s nothing
we can do.” Or my fave – strip clubs are
protected by the Constitution. Judges
have rules…(blah, blah, bah). You’d have to watch the City Council meeting
that occurred right after the Bleu Diamond homicide and the “coming out” of
Club 44 or the most recent “Fort Report.”
Folks – these guys are lying to you.
Do you understand. Lying. As in not telling the truth, the whole truth
and nothing but the truth. The benefit
of not telling the truth --- at least from a City Council perspective --- is
that saying “there is nothing I can do” absolves members of Council from trying
to do anything. It also serves to lower
your expectation of holding them accountable.
Afterall, there “isn’t anything they can do.” Oh, please -- there is
plenty to do as it pertains to raising the operating standards of local strip
clubs, cleaning ‘em up, and pursuing industry-wide reformations.
And just how do we know they are lying….or not telling the truth, the
whole truth and nothing but the truth? First,
the City attorneys are talking. Really,
do I need to say more there….LOL! (teasing)
In sincerity, the City attorneys are talking in extreme vagueness. They don’t cite Constitutional sections,
don’t city any state or federal statutes, nor do they cite any federal or state
case law. And there’s a very good reason
for their vagueness. They are lying to
you. Not outright lying. That would be a punishable ethics violation
by the Bar Association. Oops! It’s more
of an “expanded interpretation” of their “expanded understanding” of the ruling
of some case they won’t cite, lest someone correct their far-reaching
interpretation and call ‘em out for their bullshit. Once an attorney gets called out, then they
can no longer use the phrase “to the best of my understanding…” or “it’s my
interpretation that…” Ethics – can’t lie
with ‘em; can’t practice law without ‘em.
LOL! ;-) :-D
The “constitutional” matters being referencing generally do not even deal
with the OPERATION of a strip club. Strip
clubs do have the right to be treated like every other business. And as I said in the beginning, they should
be treated like every other business. Beginning with the banning of topless
dancing and the enforcement of a bikini uniform for the female staff. Just like
every other business in every other industry.
(Ahem, ahem….Councilman Jehl and Councilman Didier…and Councilman
Paddock, Councilman Arp and Councilman Ensley—whom all have strip clubs in
their districts….and Councilman Barranda, Councilman Crawford and Councilman Freistroffer
– whom have strip clubs in 5/6 of their districts…really, there is “nothing”
ANY ONE of you “can do”??)
Most lawsuits involving strip clubs and the Constitution deal with
Freedom of Speech and Expression matters.
Over the years, the interpretations have pretty much remained that same
and can be simplified as follows: Political speech or speech of political value
(i.e. BREAST PROTEST – that is the exposing of breasts in front of a strip club
to protest the inequality of who gets penalized for exposing their breasts –
mothers versus dancers/strippers) is protected; sexually-based speech not
designed to create arousal and/or not intending to create arousal is protected
(i.e. BREAST PROTEST); sexually-based speech designed to create arousal and/or
purposefully intending to create arousal is not protected; and neither is
speech that a reasonable person would find to be vulgar or offensive.
WHAT SHOULD BE DONE ABOUT STRIP
CLUBS
Fort Wayne should treat strip clubs like every other business. Let me emphasize that point again: Treat ‘em JUST. LIKE. EVERY. OTHER.
BUSINESS!! And that starts with
enforcement of pre-existing statutes, ordinances, and regulations. Next, new legislation should be drafted and
local City ordinances passed. Both of
these are discussed as follows:
ENFORCE PRE-EXISTING RULES
Are they registered with the Indiana Secretary of State and is their
registration still active? If not, shut
‘em down. Just like you would any other
business. Are they serving food? Do they have proper permits, food handlers
license, etc? Is everything
up-to-date? Have they had a recent health
inspection? Did they pass? It not, shut ‘em down. Just like you would any other food-related business. Do they have exercise equipment (i.e. dance
poles)? Has the equipment been inspected
for cleanliness? Safety? Did they pass
inspection? If not, shut ‘em down. Just like any other health- and/or
exercise-related business.
Now, some of you entrepreneurial spirits and strip club advocates would
probably—and correctly---counter how strip clubs can get around a lot of these
requirements by not serving food or drink, not serving alcohol, and not
utilizing dance poles. To which I say, go for it! But let’s be honest here – a
bar can survive without topless workers, but can a strip club survive without
serving alcohol? To which strip club owners
are again saying, “Shhh, shut up about that—we know how ignorant our customers
are, but they don’t.”
And finally -- Do they meet all ADA (disability) requirements for their
customers (i.e. parking spaces, entrance/exit ramps, ADA restrooms, and
wide-enough pathways within the facility for customers to travel unencumbered
from the entrance to the restroom, and tables high enough to give wheelchairs
clearance but low enough for practical use by those who are wheelchair-bound)
and their workers (i.e. dressing/changing rooms for the dancers that can
accommodate wheelchairs—and yes, those in wheelchairs can dance, just ask the
Fort Wayne Ballet, Gymnastics in Motion, etc.---ramp to the dance stage to
accommodate dancers in wheelchairs, and wide-enough
pathways within the facility for wheelchair-bound workers, including dancers,
to travel unencumbered from the entrance to the dressing room--for dancers, to
the kitchen--for cooks, to the bar –for bartenders, to the customers tables
from the kitchen – for the servers, and from all the aforementioned work
stations to the restrooms for all workers). And if they don’t meet all these
requirements, then shut ‘em down. Just
like any other business that fails to meet ADA requirements. (Btw, to some of you strip club owners that
read my posts—ahem, Club 44 and Shangra-La West---don’t be playing the game of
marking ADA parking spaces when your entrance won’t accommodate
wheelchairs. Really?? Cannot believe one of you played that
game…LOL!)
Now some of you are thinking, “Oh, come on…it really can’t be that
simple.” And my response is this – Not
only is it that simple, but surprisingly if all of these measures were taken
within the next 24 hours---a significant number of strip clubs in Fort Wayne
would be caught off-guard and could be shut down, even if only temporarily. Just like every other business.
DRAFT NEW LEGISLATION
But treating strip clubs just like every other business doesn’t end
with the uniform and consistent enforcement of pre-existing rules. New legislation needs to be drafted by City
Council and voted into law creating new ordinances that can be enforced. I would propose the following as a starting
point:
RE-DEFINING STRIP CLUBS: Instead of calling them strip clubs, we
should be calling them Adult Entertainment Venues (AEV). Why?
Because it helps to emphasize the entertainment value and diminishes the
sexual value. To purpose of this is to
usher out the old connotation associated with these sort of venues that this is
“the place you go to” if you are willing to or wanting to pay for sexual
favors. Plus it creates a new
designation that can lead to licensing and licensing fees to underwrite
inspection costs and ensure compliance.
DESIGNATING AND LICENSING AEVs: By redefining these venues, you also create a
way to license them. Why is licensing
important? Because right now, anyone can
operate a strip club out of their home.
Think about it? What is a strip
club? A place people gather to watch
other people disrobe. What’s preventing
the guy next door for inviting people into his home, but then charging a fee
for unlimited non-alcoholic beverages in his basement while women of any age
and any level of attractiveness run around in the basement “exercising” on a
dance pole before or after getting out of a shower? People can’t pay-to-play for sexual favors as
that is prostitution. But there’s nothing
preventing people from pay-to-play to see someone in a state of partial or full
undress. For all we know, this could be
the very reason why the City’s 6th District doesn’t have any strip
clubs?? Really – the highest rate of
homicide (averaged over the past decade) but nearly equal to every other
district in terms of non-homicide crimes.
How is it they don’t have a strip club??
And for City’s pre-existing strip clubs who wanna cry foul here – look,
you aren’t being eliminated and you aren’t being told you can’t operate your
business. You are being told that you
can’t operate your business without a special license or permit. This is required of tattoo parlors, nail
salons, and a whole slew of other businesses.
Long story short – you are being treated just like every other business.
If anything, you should be welcoming this change as it cuts down on any illegal
competition to your business.
And to members of City Council who are balking at this – uhm, why? It’s provides a revenue source to underwrite
inspections and compliance. Personally, I’d set the fee at X number of hours of
time for the different city and county departments to come in and inspect the
premises once a quarter for compliance, so that those different city and county
departments can be reimbursed. This could
be treated like a variation of the liquor license enforcement.
RESTRICT DISTRIBUTIONAL
LOCATIONS OF AEV: Grandfather in the
pre-existing 8 strip clubs. And decide
whether or not to include the one “swingers club.” (Personally, I wouldn’t at this time. Only because “swinger clubs” bring a whole
other level of complexity as they encourage sexual acts on the premises and
operate under the radar as a hotel, with beds, linens and such, but aren’t
regulated as hotels. And they probably
should be.) Make the grandfathering
subject only to the Distributional Locations of AEV and nothing else.
The distribution of AEVs should be limited to one Adult Entertainment
Venue per City Council district.
Maintain all other pre-existing location restrictions as it has to do
with schools, churches, and other AEVs, but also include an additional location
restriction as to hotels, motels or any other place with known overnight
accommodations (like Bed & Breakfasts, permanent and/or temporary). The reason behind this is that (1) the
closer a bed is, the more convenient it is to convert an act of exotic dancing
into a pay-to-play sexual act – longer distances will give women in bad
situations the opportunity to give what they might be about to do a second
chance; and (2) this creates a cushion in the future as it pertains to how City
Council might handle “swingers clubs” in the future.
Currently, AEV’s are not permitted within X feet of each other. Adding hotels to that mix is a way to
preserve that distance if “swingers clubs” get treated like hotels in the
future. Or at least it keeps that option
open.
By grandfathering in the existing 8 strip clubs, you allow them time to
adjust and comply with the new regulations, but if they fail to adjust and
comply – then they get closed until they are in compliance. But once they re-open, then they lose their
grandfather status. That means, that if they get closed down a second time,
they will only be able to re-open if there are no other AEV’s operating within
the geographical boundaries of the City Council District the AEV is located.
And to the City’s pre-existing strip clubs who wanna cry foul here – Look,
you aren’t being eliminated and you aren’t being told you can’t operate your
business. You are being told that if you
choose to not meet the new regulatory standards – standards that reduce your
overall competition and from which you benefit from – and if you choose not to
stay in compliance, that you will be shut down, just like any other
business. And if you choose to avoid
compliance after being shut down and being permitted to re-open, that you may
lose the option you currently have of being able to operate as an AVP, due to
the new licensing limitations – just as any new, non-grandfathered business in
your industry will be. The new licensing
limitations are what reduce your competition and from which you benefit from. If you lose your ability to operate as an
AEV, it is because you have chosen to be in non-compliant.
You still retain all your business holdings, which include the ability
to re-open as a bar, a restaurant or any other number of business
ventures. Just not a business venture
that can attain an AEV designation or licensing until the last AEV in your City Council district – or in another district-- shuts down. This acts as an incentive to ensure the
grandfathered-in strip clubs and all future AEVs become compliant and remain
compliant.
BANNING TOPLESS DANCING: Banning topless dancing aligns current strip
clubs and future AEVs with the current business practices and business standards
of every other local business enterprise – all of whom require their workforce
to wear tops. Again, treating AEVs just
like every other business.
And to the City’s pre-existing strip clubs who wanna cry foul here – Look,
creating and enforcing a bikini dress code for your female staff still provides
pretty of titillation for your paying customers. No one else in the City is currently using
that dress code so your industry still has a unique competitive advantage as an
industry. Plus, please bear in mind that
this proposal could be stricter still --- each of you could be assigned a
certain color of bikini tops, just as local taxi cabs are. Again, treating your industry just like every
other local industry.
MANDATING A MINIMUM AGE FOR
WORKERS: Taverns, bars and other
places that serve alcohol are not permitted to have anyone working on their
premises under the age of 21, except for entertainers. But no other local industry permits their
workers to physically interact with their customers in a way to create arousal
and desire and no other local industry permits lap dances. Being 21 years old is not an unreasonable age
requirement, especially when that age requirement is primarily targeting ladies
who may be performing in the laps of drunks.
And to the City’s pre-existing strip clubs who wanna cry foul here
–Allowing ladies who are a little older, able to drink and gain experience
dealing with drunks before lap dancing is not only reasonable, but responsible
as it pertains to the health and safety of AEV workers. Good corporate neighbors wishing to rise up
to new standards, to higher standards, to classier standards should not have a
problem accepting this small safety-oriented requirement. Those who do have a problem should
re-evaluate whether operating as an AEV is for them. Perhaps, they would be better off operating
as a bar or a restaurant. In the end, no
one is forcing anyone to operate as an AEV.
DANCE POLE INSPECTIONS: Dance poles represent a unique worker safety
issue. They need to be securely attached
at both ends and able to bear a stated amount of weight. (We may need to add Dance Pole
Requirements.) Dance poles can be
dangerous and can create safety problems, especially pertaining to falls. This is why some fire departments across the
nation have begun removing similar poles in their fire houses. This is not a requirement that should be
limited to the Adult Entertainment Venue (AEV), but should also include any
place that offers dance pole lessons, such as the YMCA and Boudoir Noir. If the dance pole doesn’t pass inspection,
then it should be removed.
PROOF OF DANCE POLE INSURANCE: Any business that uses dance poles as part of
their programming or for entertainment purposes should be required to have
liability insurance that specifically covers dance poles and that insurance
should be publically on record.
RESTRICTING THE USE OF LED SIGNS
OR ANY OTHER STYLE OF ANIMATED EXTERIOR SIGNS: First, the placement of these signs and their
general brightness should be based on the general safety of the public. It’s not good public policy nor is it appropriate
to blind drivers with LED lighting. That’s
something that really needs to be reviewed across the board and applied to all
local industries.
While content cannot be restricted, the timing of when content is
showed can be. (Towns in Southern
Indiana are doing this, so why can’t Fort Wayne?)
Content advertising food, hours of operation, and food & beverage
specials or promoting employment opportunities should not be restricted in any
way, even if the employment opportunities are for exotic dancers. However,
no pictures of exotic dancers or their silhouettes should be on display until
the appropriate evening hours, as described below.
Content promoting the nature of the sexual nature of the business
should not be displayed until after neighboring business operations at, near
and/or around Glenbrook Mall have closed for the day or 9 pm, whichever comes
later. This includes the stage names of
the dancers. This same content should
cease by or before the time Glenbrook Mall opens for daily operations.
Under no circumstances should the real, legal and/or commonly known name
of the dancers are to be promoted and/or published on outside billboards, LED
signs, or other animated signs. Stage names, however, may be used. This is not
a limitation of Constitutionally protected freedom of speech and expression; it
is a right to safety and privacy matter.
Failing to protect their identity could pose special risks to dancers,
such as making them easier targets for would-be stalkers and guys who don’t
know how to take no for an answer. Protecting dancers is good for business and
raises industry standards.
Under no circumstances should photos, images, or other individual
likenesses of the dancers to be promoted and/or published on outside
billboards, LED signs, or other animated signs. Stage names, however, may be
used. This is not a limitation of Constitutionally protected freedom of speech
and expression; it is a right to safety and privacy matter. Failing to protect their identity could pose
special risks to dancers, such as making them easier targets for would-be
stalkers and guys who don’t know how to take no for an answer. Protecting dancers is good for business and
raises industry standards.
DANCER REGISTRATION AND HEALTH
EXAMS: Like any number of medical
professionals, an exotic dancer should be required to undergo a physical health
exam, including blood work up for hepatitis and sexually transmitted diseases. Just
like nurses, dancers work in close contact with the public where the exchange
of bodily fluid, primarily sweat, can occur. Unlike nurses, however, dancers
don’t have the luxury of wearing gloves to keep them safe from fluid
transmissions through skin contact. The
only real alternative would be requiring dancers to wear body suits, and I don’t
think anyone would advocate for that—except maybe if the dancer has, indeed,
contracted something and still wants to work as a dancer and the club is
willing to allow that to happen. I’d
propose the exam be conducted by the Fort Wayne – Allen County Health Department,
who would be required to keep the dancers true identity confidential per HIPAA
requirements.
Dancers would be required to register as exotic dancers with the Health
Department, so that the Health Department could keep a database of local
dancers in efforts to help prevent and monitor local human trafficking
situations. All information, except for
stage names and place of dance employment, would be required to remain confidential. In exchange, exotic dancers would essentially
retain a licensing of sorts by registering their stage names. Duplicative names at different clubs would
make human trafficking harder to monitor, so only one dancer per stage name per
dancer’s lifetime should be permitted.
Once a dancer retires, so does the stage name, which can be reactivated
and used by another dancer only after the original dancer dies and only if that
dancer’s estate agrees to the name transfer.
The dancer’s estate will set the value on the name to be transferred and
has to be compensated for use and ownership of the stage name before it can be
transferred. This creates a property right
for the dancer while eliminating entertainers who dance on a circuit from
switching up names and also prevents clubs from using one stage name for
multiple women. Also, clubs do not have
the right to create stage names and have no ownership interest available to
them in any dancer’s stage name. This allows
the dancer to keep her stage name but dance at different clubs as she chooses.
This requirement is similar to and inspired by those required of Registered Nurses.
Only registered dancers would be permitted to entertain at licensed
AEVs.
CERTIFIED MANAGEMENT: AEVs provide unique services to the community
and are part of a unique industry.
However, the industry is plagued with an increasing number of human
trafficking incidents. To clean up the
local industry and to create a higher, more professional standard in the local
industry, AEV managers are required to take an online Human Trafficking course and present proof of completion. A certified manager must be on duty at all
hours the AEV is open for business. This
is similar to requirements in other fields, such as City Utilities and
automotive technicians. An AEV will not
be eligible for licensing without at least one pre-certified manager on staff
at the time of licensing. AEVs are
encouraged to educate non-dance staff about signs of Human Trafficking. Certification
is available to any AEV worker, but is not mandatory of anyone AEV worker
except for on-duty management.
CERTIFIED FIRST AID ATTENDANT: AEVs with dance poles are required to have a
Certified First Aid attendant on duty at all times. Dance poles come with a certain risk level
and that risk level mandates a certain level of on-site care in case of a fall
or other injury. AEVs without dance
poles are only required to have a Certified First Aid Attendant on duty during
peak performance times when the number of dancers and dance routines increases
to accommodate an increased number of customers. This standard is subject to a case-by-case
review to establish appropriate numbers per AEVs without dance poles. Having a
certified first aid attendant is a standard operating procedure in many local
industries. Training and certification
to be provided by the local Red Cross.
PUBLICALLY POSTED STANDARDIZED PATRON
CODE OF CONDUCT: Many businesses
have signs in plain sight that list what behaviors are expected. For example, a doctor’s office might have a
sign that says “Payment due at the time services are rendered.” Or an auto repair shop may have a sign that
says “Thank you for standing behind the yellow line.” The point is that many businesses provide
their customers with a list of do’s and don’ts. AEVs should do the same as it
sets the tone for what behaviors are or are not acceptable and makes enforcement
by AEV staff as well as law enforcement easier.
One standard code of conduct should specifically address what touching
by the customers is permissible as it pertains to dancers and the wait
staff. Kissing, fondling and groping
should be obvious forms of touching that should be prohibited and cause the
offender to be removed from the premises without any refund and not re-admitted
for the rest of that day. Grabbing the
tops of dancers or tugging on their g-strings should be another behavior that causes
an offending customer to be removed from the premises without any refund and
not re-admitted for the rest of the day.
PUBLICALLY POSTED STANDARDIZED DANCER
CODE OF CONDUCT: Having similar
signage and similar rules regulating how dancers are allowed to touch paying
customers addresses many problems before they can begin. It also establishes acceptable and
unacceptable behavior and makes enforcement by AEV staff as well as law
enforcement easier.
OTHER REFORM STANDARDS: Most of the above provision came off the top
of my head, so I am sure there are other standards that could be utilized in
the Adult Entertainment Venue environment. Please feel free to add your ideas
in the comments section of my Facebook wall.
PENALTIES: Any violation of the above standards should
result in a fine and/or other penalty. Penalties
– TBA.
A SPECIAL MESSAGE
TO LADIES REGARDING CONSENT *
Earlier in this post, I discussed how a woman isn’t raped if she
willingly gives consent. That’s not my
personal feeling, but rather a perspective and legal standard taken by many
Courts when it comes to the prosecution of rape charges against a perpetrator: Did the rape victim give consent? This is an important concept to understand so
you can help better protect yourselves in a situation such as this.
In my view, NO means NO means NO.
And I mean that deep down to my core.
I don’t care how “slutty” you are acting. As far as I am concerned, you can be a
professional prostitute by your own choice, a sexual addict, or just enjoy the
company of men and enjoy having sex, lots and lots of sex --- If you are in a running
around buck naked in a room of 100 men and you voluntarily, willingly and
enthusiastically have sex with 99 of them, that doesn’t give Mr. 100 an
automatic YES, especially if you say NO.
Sure it will be a blow to his ego, but that’s his problem – not yours. If you don’t want to have sex with someone,
just say NO. You don’t have to give a
reason. You don’t need to have a reason.
All you need is NO.
But if you say NO, then you’d better mean it. Don’t be saying NO and then play some sort of
game.
That sends mixed signals, confuses things for everyone, and hurts your
credibility.
YES is consent. NO is not
consent.
YES is consensual sex.
NO is no sex, or alternatively…it’s rape.
