Craigslist Intrigues

I don't have much time to write a blog post right now, as I'm really behind on homework. But it has been an awfully long time since my last post, and I felt the need to post SOMETHING.

So, here is an interesting article I found. I'm not very involved in Craigslist, but apparently some people use this version of the Classifieds to post ads for prostitutes. Or, I guess, advertising themselves as prostitutes. Fancy that, someone used the Internet to find sex.

Well, the plot thickened significantly last month when 17 state attorneys general demanded Craigslist drop all its adult ads. It's pretty clearly a political stunt, but it does open up a whole crazy host of questions.

Is Craigslist responsible for everything that is posted on their enormous site? If they are, where does the line of responsibility end? Are newspapers responsible for everything that shows up in their classifieds? Is eBay responsible for everything that is auctioned? Is Google responsible for all the sites its search engines find?

If you spend more than half a minute contemplating the attorneys general self-righteous letter to Craigslist, you might also feel more than a little annoyed at them. The letter written talks about the victims of prostitution, the women and the children. Can't you just see them? Just praying for that day when prostitution is finally eradicated because Craigslist doesn't advertise for it anymore. On that day, there will truly be no more violence against women and children. This letter is what infuriates me about politics - politicians surround themselves with rhetorical bullshit that doesn't actually accomplish anything at all, but gives them something to point at with pompous pride: look at how I have made you safer! As the blogger pointed out, "It's a heckuvalot easier to write a strongly worded letter (followed by a press release) to grab headlines for being tough on prostitution without having to getting your hands dirty by, say, actually being tough on prostitution."

Discuss amongst yourselves. I must return to my homework.