drlove

He has a lot to learn...

Good point. The thing is, it's still relatively early in the game.. too soon to take anything for granted, so better to err on the side of caution. I would hope that police chiefs / forces across Canada would exercise common sense when choosing which aspects of C-36 to enforce, and which to let fall by the wayside. I believe that so far, they've been rational in their enforcement. However, what will happen in the future is anyone's guess.

I think a lot of people here have scurried into their cubby holes and are peeking out, evaluating the changed landscape. It's not a surprise that many have been left feeling dejected and disillusioned. It's only natural, after being stripped of our freedom of expression and choice through no fault of our own. I often wish that the general public at large were more educated about the workings of the industry. If they were, more of them would be up in arms. Let's be clear: the new laws have nothing to do with combating trafficking and exploitation - there are already laws on the books for that. The government is banking on societal ignorance and apathy that will allow them to feed the public their drivel and have it unquestionably accepted. On the surface, for the layman the new laws sound good, considering they accept the party line at face value. But, as we all know, the truth is much more sinister. It's an attempt to legislate morality, which I believe takes away our basic rights and freedoms. Sadly, most people are unaware that this is even occurring. To put things in perspective, imagine for a moment that the Conservatives passed a bill that made engaging in pre-marital sex amongst civilians illegal. There would be an uproar of momentous proportions, with riots across the country. Of course, the opposition would jump at the chance to publicly announce that they will squash such unconstitutional legislation, if only they are elected to form the next government... So, is there really a difference between this hypothetical scenerio, and the one we are currently faced with? Just one - premarital sex is free, and the other is for an exchange.

It would be interesting to see if any actual prostitution arrests were made, and in what context. For all the grandstanding a small group of protesters made, does anyone really care? It's akin to the Conservatives standing on their soap box... Sure, go after those who actually do exploit, but leave consenting adults alone! After all, wasn't Montreal one of the cities that said they weren't keen on enforcing C-36 in the first place?

It's not a turn off at all... What you mentioned is a natural occurrence and should be taken in stride by all involved. I feel any gentleman who finds themselves privileged enough to be in your company would not even give it a second thought, if they noticed at all. It's more about the companionship and being able to spend quality time interacting with someone special that's important - at least to me.

This is a very important topic and worthy of much discussion, especially due to the pervasive stigma surrounding the mentally ill in society today. As I later found out, two of my ex-girlfriends were afflicted with disorders which affected their day to day functioning and ultimately our relationship. It was sad, and still causes me a lot of grief. Both those ladies are wonderful people, yet are faced with uphill struggles on a daily basis through no fault of their own. After all, no one asks to have a mental illness...

Congratulations are in order, sir!

I just came across a poem, which in light of recent events surrounding C-36 seems apt. Therefore, I thought I'd share... very fine laws I have heard that your laws are very fine Very strong and right I'm afraid they don't do much For me. For chaos has a sneaky hand To reach between the rules If you don't believe me, just Go look out the window. Here is the victim's face. I know you don't like to see it. Why not cover it, then With a pillow, for example? All of us fall through the cracks Through the slippery fingers Of your fine and righteous laws You may as well join us Down here laughing. - Suzanne Vega

Perhaps, but we don't need to keep adding fuel to the fire... do we?

try posting in the main forum... you may get more of a response.

Certainly true in all respects. While I believe LE is taking a prudent, sensible approach at this point, it is still early in the game. I wish these types of articles were not written, as they put pressure on LE to enforce C-36, lest they are seen as "not doing their job" by some, as it were. That said, we may still see the occasional bust on the streets, and perhaps even a situation where LE pose as incall escorts to nab would be clients in hotel rooms at one point or another. However, by and large when compared to the States, LE has had more of a 'laissez faire' approach to the sex trade. As such, it is much more likely that C-36 will suffer the same fate as the 'bawdly house' law of old - e.g. technically on the books, but rarely, if ever enforced / acted upon. I often wonder though, if this turns out to be the case - on what grounds then, can C-36 be successfully challenged and overturned?

I can't believe how gullible some Canadians are... it just boggles the mind.

I predict a Conservative minority government with the Liberals as the official opposition.

This also raises the issue of just how and when the new prostitution law will be challenged. Indeed, there is a conundrum: I believe that overall, LE's strategy on policing the sex trade will not change much. I'm sure they realize it would be somewhat pointless and a waste of taxpayer dollars to go after consenting adults. As such, they are focusing on real exploitation, pimping and/or trafficking cases. This is a positive development on two fronts: 1) They're going after the real criminals 2) It gives the effect that C-36 is working, which will appease the conservative base, which hopefully will give them nothing further to complain about in this regard. The only 'downside' to all this is that without anyone being charged aside from real criminals, what case do we have to launch another constitutional challenge and have this unjust law overturned? Perhaps someone could be so kind as to enlighten me on this particular aspect. I remember that before C-36 was passed into law, there was talk that it would be challenged almost immediately. Sadly, that has not transpired.

That is good news... it seems as though no one is really interested in going after consenting adults. Tht being the case, perhaps it is doomed to follow in the footsteps of the old bawdy house law... Technically on the books, but rarely if ever enforced. This is pure speculation on my part, but if no one is charged, it would make it difficult to launch a constitutional challenge against it.

Now with C-36, I have read some posts by members who prefer contact by telephone only, as it eliminates the 'paper trail' of e-mails and texts'. However, the general consensus seems to be that setting up appointments can continue as per usual, with no real concerns. As many astute members have pointed out, the time and effort needed to trace correspondence between consenting adults would be a deterrent for LE in general.

What about enforcement on the east coast? I haven't heard anything about their stance yet.

It's always darkest before the dawn...

Good question... a lot of ladies still prefer text and e-mail over an old fashioned phone call. Which is the safest option?

I've noticed recently that some reputable ladies who advertise that "money exchanged is for time only", or something to that effect, also have a very explicit service menu listed on their site. That said, if such a lady were the subject of a sting and her client were caught, wouldn't the police have grounds to suspect that prostitution was taking place? Would the client be more likely to be charged in such an instance?

Ok, good advice. (btw... this was the one and only time I've stopped by there unannounced)

I think you're right... upon reflection, this is likely what's happening. For me, the worst part is not knowing for sure... As I said, I tried to keep up communication on my end by way of texts and voicemail messages. I even stopped by her apartment today, but she wasn't home. If I'm not getting a response from her anytime soon, do you think it's reasonable for me to try to catch her after work or after class so I can see her in person and talk to her? Maybe even calling her parents to express my concern about her well being? The reason I ask is that when I ran it by a friend, he said "don't... she may accuse you of stalking her". I feel that's a bit far fetched; after all, I'm just looking for some answers/insight as to how she is. I would have been happy with a one sentence text just to acknowledge me, but I haven't even gotten that. At this point, anything would be preferable to dead silence.

I don't think that's it... I mean up until she went silent a week ago, we talked all the time, she always told me how much she loved me, missed me, we were having unprotected sex, making plans for the future etc.. That's why this turn of events seemed so sudden and unexpected. I'm sure her disorder(s) had something to do with it, but still... this is quite a change from what I'm used to. I have to say, I don't get it. :(

Yes, that's exactly it! I'd like to expand on that a bit... I think I mentioned in one of my previous posts something to the effect of, 'when something happens that reminds you of the past, you may start to believe that you're still living in it.' There was a lady I dated (briefly) a number of years ago. Anyway, we really hit it off, and things were great up until the time I realized she was also dating 10 other guys as well! lol. Anyway, I'd forgotten all about it until this new relationship happened. So, when my present GF disappeared after a few dates, my subconscious automatically (and also wrongly) assumed a similar scenario. Of course, that turned out not to be the case. In any event, I feel I've gotten to know her enough to realize that she's not doing this intentionally, and as you stated - 'the behavior is to some degree out of her control'. Therefore, I'm going to stick it out and see what happens, for better or worse. Thanks again!

Wow, this is an excellent post, Mighty Pen. I think you're absolutely correct here... The first time she went AWOL was at the beginning of the relationship, and I'm ashamed to say that I jumped to conclusions and almost ended it then without knowing the full story. Since then, I've gotten to know her a bit, but at the same time she seemed to have fallen for me. She tells me she loves me, and we have fantastic times when we're together which is great. I certainly don't want to lose that aspect of it, and I realize that she's facing some difficult challenges at the moment, and I totally get that. That's why I gave her all the space she needed/asked for. The puzzling part for me is having her go from hot to cold in an instant. One minute she's sending me texts telling me how much she loves/misses me, and the next she's disappeared off the face of the planet, or so it seems. For me, it makes it very difficult to discern exactly what's going on with her when there's absolutely no communication forthcoming from her side. As a result, I end up feeling frustrated and unsure as to what direction I should take, that's all. I have friends who've said everything from 'give her some more time/space' to 'end the relationship and run like hell'. I know it's probably difficult for her to open up when she's (presumably) in crisis, but at the same time, I wish she could confide in me so we could talk about what's really going on in order to get it out into the open so we can deal with it.