Ah! I was expecting this thread in February, I was beginning to worry. It's the annual "business is slow" thread!
Every year we have one! :whoo:
Seriously, though, it's the slow season. After Christmas and before spring, business is slow everywhere. The post-Christmas credit card bills, the winter that never ends, the inflated Hydro bill, the cold, tax season, etc.
Personally, I never bought the C-36 argument. Since 2014, I noticed very little difference in the local massage scene. Our fraudsters in command, the Denis Coderre / Anie Samson pieces of shit tag team, went into office in 2013 saying they would close the massage parlors - something that very few people, if any, had asked for - and quietly abandoned the idea less than a year later when a moral panic failed to form. I don't really see where and how C-36 was enforced. There seems to be little interest, in Montreal and elsewhere, to enforce it. Law enforcement has other stuff to do,
what will all those Black guys doing jigs in the street.
Sure, some parlors have closed. But some opened too, and some have moved. I don't have the numbers, but the landscape seems just the same to me: almost anywhere you look, you can find a massage parlor in this city. It's business as usual for me, and it seems to be business as usual too for the MPs I've seen.
Granted, I've been hobbying for about 7 years. I don't consider myself an old timer. Most people who have been doing something for 20 or 30 years seem to think it was better "in the good old days". That's how our brains work, apparently. Music was better back then, the scene was better back then, etc. I don't know objectively. All I know, is I think the scene has been better for me lately because I'm smarter and more experienced and I make less mistakes. There was plenty of shitty providers 7 years ago, and there are still many of them today. The time frame is too short maybe, I fail to see much of a difference.
And I remember reading very good stories here on Merb and yet I don't feel like I see this as much today? What's wrong?
Maybe it's not so much the state of the industry but the state of the board?
Is the board really a good barometer for the state of the industry?
I can't speak for others, but I am more willing to share publicly my so-so encounters than my good ones.
First, people are very careful with their reviews in the massage section. Because of the rules (and don't get me wrong here, this is not me starting an argument for or against those rules) we can't be explicit, and I think a consequence of that is that we keep the good encounters for ourselves - or share them in private with trusted members - but still feel the need to contribute and warn others of bad encounters.
Seriously, when we see guys who have been lurking for 4 years with a post count of 6, all questions and no reviews, do you really want to share your new gem with everyone? Do you?
After a few years on the board, chances are you have a few contacts you're exchanging tips with in private. Us posting less doesn't necessarily mean we hobby less or that our ratio of good/bad encounters changed.
There is also a lot more options available.
Yes. And it's easy for anyone to post an ad on Backpage. The inexperienced and good intentioned, the part-time sex worker, the washed-up one, the con artist, the pimp. It seems easy, because it is. The more people in the business who are not necessarily skilled, the more it raises the risk of a bad experience. As much as I appreciate the fact that women can more easily do this work "independently" and have control over their business, a consequence of the Internet era is that we're flooded with dubious ads from terrible providers.
And you have a very good point here:
Plus when you factor in how much it costs to get some fun it can easily go up to $200. With all these Merb agencies now offering beautiful young slim escorts and it is costing roughly the same price and one will get DFK and DATY I think I will skip MP.
Depends of what you want on any given days, but MPs are often not the cheapest option.
It's easy to imagine our fellow hobbyists as high-rollers, but the reality is probably that most of us are neither rich nor poor and, yes, as you pointed out, with salaries stagnating since I've hit the job market, you don't want to overpay, at least not consistently. And if you want more than just a rub and tug, SPs are best for your wallet.
PM Trudeau and the Liberals have total control of the government and could easily overturn the law. Yet they have not done so and they never even talk about it. I don't think the law will ever be overturned unless the Supreme Court overturns it. Who knows what would replace it.
For some right-wing politicians (Peter MacKay,
gentleman and protector of woman) and morally corrupt populist politicians (Denis "I'm afraid of your dog" Coderre), going after prostitution is a good way to fuel a moral panic, appeal to emotions, to the "
think of the children" and "
not in my backyard" crowd, and get votes. But defending prostitution or even just starting a debate about possible legalization or decriminalization is a can of worms that even center-left politicians prefer not to open because of the risk - real or perceived - of alienating some people for very little benefit. At this point in time, in a city like Montreal inhabited by people of all ages, I think people would be open to legal prostitution more than some politicians think - the same way there is not a moral panic right now about legalizing weed. But status quo is safer, especially since federal politicians have to appeal to all kinds of non-urban people who think Mtl and T.O. are hubs are debauchery. Even if the Liberals or Trudeau himself would be for legalizing sex work entirely, they won't open the can of worms. I 100% agree with you: we will have to wait a couple of years for the Supreme Court to force the government to take a stance - the same way Harper and the Conservatives didn't utter a word about this for 8 years, but had to react when the Supreme Court left them no other choice. Hopefully, by the time it happens again, we have in office politicians who are progressive on this issue.
