Did 'Craigslist Killer' Reaction Make Us Less Safe?

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Sex-seeking males now answer all ads

As I have posted elsewhere - and I am sure people may be tired of reading this-- is that by removing the Erotic Services section, this makes Craigslist less safe for the rest of us to use. How? Because the creeps looking to purchase sex will be responding to the other ads trying to see if we actually want to sell sex.

If I am selling a sofa or looking for a date or advertising legit services, I do not need men looking for a blow job responding with sexual innuendo. But now that is what we are back to.

Wanda Round of CA @ May 29, 2009 04:35:39 AM

what a load of BS

Craigslist isn't to blame for women putting their services out there in the erotic section, if its not on CL then it will be in the personal pages of the newspapers, on other websites and through word of mouth. Craigslist is a USER forum, blame the users not the host..

"He had everything going for him and he chose murder. And Craigslist facilitated his meetings with his victims." say he used the penny saver to meet his victims, or the newspaper (have you ever looked at the sports section for the 'massage' parlors? its not CL's fault, its just the latest site in an ever changing internet world

Kellie Luther of CA @ May 28, 2009 15:24:17 PM

edit before posting

"by the attorney generals has actually made their job of keeping the public safe harder"

Bob of ID @ May 28, 2009 09:55:14 AM

Craigslist Killer

Craigslist provided a degree of anonymity for this psychopath.

He had everything going for him and he chose murder. And Craigslist facilitated his meetings with his victims.

And his victims obviously felt safe enough to meet with these strangers alone. With the help of Craigslist these women made themselves very vulnerable. Should we allow this to happen again? Would you want your daughter meeting a stranger, alone, through Craigslist?

Catherine McEntee of NY @ May 28, 2009 08:54:46 AM

People

The American legal system creates criminals to sustain the legal system, not to help our citizens. Some don't make this connection.

Any time there is a dense population, there are more marginal characters available for crime.

Craigslist is a vast ocean of people all over the world. People get ripped off all the time, but generally it works pretty good.

Prostitution was not this man's motive. It was Rape and Murder. He should be hanged in public for this, as all violent people should.

But I don't think prostitution should be illegal. After all it is an agreement between private individuals. Many countries and municipalities manage prostitution successfully.

Prohibition enslaves, and makes criminals of average citizens. Look what the Prohibition on Marijuana has done.

Legalizing and lifting Prohibitions could go a long was to easing crime, relieving the citizenry from prosecution.

The potential tax base is staggering. Billions of dollars could be coming in instead of being spent in a useless effort to change people against their will.

Save the Economy!

Hire a Hooker!

David P. of NC @ May 28, 2009 07:23:40 AM

Extremely accurate article

This whole thing with Craigslist has been a fiasco created by assorted AGs who ought to be ashamed for wasting the taxpayers money this way. They should be voted out of office.

Scott of MN @ May 27, 2009 23:53:01 PM

And while ignorance is bliss...

it's not an admissable defense in a court of law.

Call it what you like - but a rose by any other name would smell as sweet :)

What are you morphing into tonight?

kt of FL @ May 27, 2009 22:44:48 PM

Don't call it prostitution, call it a state of mind

There were people who had no clue online prostitution existed before the Markoff story was in the news. There are different social stratospheres that evolve in crimes like this. People arise from all (various) backgrounds. Each person with their own upbringing. Those that have an understanding of online prostitution and those with different levels of awareness. People want to see the situation as black and white. It's really not that simple. People choose risky behaviors but don't always choose the vehicle (Craigslist) for their behavior. There are many different vehicles for behavior. They morf into new things. So don't call it prostitution, call it a state of mind.

Robert of MN @ May 27, 2009 22:17:58 PM

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Risky Business

Risky Business

Matt Bandyk, a reporter for U.S. News, explores capitalism from where it all begins, with the entrepreneur, whose risk taking and experimentation provide the roots from which the rest of the economy grows. As much courage as it takes to create one's own business, even the entrepreneur needs some help, and this blog will look at news, trends, and practical advice for starting and running a small business.

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