Sell the book! Sell the book quick!

As a libertarian, I am deeply conflicted about the now-infamous " Beltway Madam", Ms. Debra Palfrey, but think that she should sell her little black book of clients before the courts stop her from doing so. (ed - little black book my ass - the 10,000 names and phone records weigh 46 pounds)

Begin Self-Involved Explication

My main source of internal conflict is that while I support the right to engage in prostitution as a matter of principle, I abhor trafficking in people and sexual slavery. I don't doubt that Ms. Palfrey and people at her level of the sex industry don't buy and sell people to provide sexual services. However, the fact that they exist helps fuels demand for all types of escort services, especially the more downscale ones. Escort services that compete on price (as most services do in our capitalist society - I am pro-capitalist btw) seem more likely to be run by those who engage in sex trafficking.

End Self-Involved Explication

Now that that's over, I really do think that she has the absolute right to publish the book or sell it since it is her property and I am offended the prosecutor is trying to stop it. Simply doing that and embarassing some people is not the same as blackmail and the prosecution should stop pretending that it is. There is no law against embarassing thousands of people simultaneously.

At this point there has mainly been only small comments of titillation that some people will be embarassed. No one yet has really thought through the implications. After all, Brent Wilkes is going to jail for procuring prostitutes for Congressman Duke Cunnigham and others. There likely will be many other lobbyists in there as well, which will present problems for some of them, and not just of the going to jail variety. I'm talking about their personal life fallout.

Many of the people in the book likely procured sexual services for themselves. However, many of the lobbyists in the book will tell their wives/girlfriends/boyfriends that they simply were procuring the escorts for their clients. Many of the significant others will believe this because people who play at the level where it's plausible to hire an escort for a Congressman know how the game works. The problems will come for those who have cheated on their wives in the past and remained together or those who have had past relationship problems that this further contributes to. I feel bad for them

Finally, the publication of this book may result in some resignations from Congress or other scandals on K Street. We can only hope . . .