Las Vegas has an image of a free wheeling, anything goes type town. It has activities that are not readily available in much of the rest of the country, such as legal casino gaming, sports/horse betting and twenty-four hour a day sales of alcoholic beverages and the blatant advertising and inference of available sexual activity. For the most part, this is all correct, including availability of casual sex with strangers who meet, fall in lust with one another and decide, "Hey, why not? After all, we are consenting adults and aren't breaking any laws."

For those who's social skills do not lend themselves to enticing another into an erotic interlude, there is an alternative solution, namely prostitution. Strangely enough prostitution is probably one of those things that is available in Las Vegas that is also available in the vacationers' home towns, legal or not. Most of these people would not visit a prostitute while at home but once they get to Las Vegas it just seems to be another activity that is okay to participate in while visiting "Sin City".

First, allow me to point out that prostitution is not "legal" in Nevada. It is a local option. It is only legal in those counties, cities and townships that choose to have it legalized such as in the township of Pahrump in Nye County, approximately sixty miles west of Las Vegas. Further more, prostitution where legal in Nevada is only permitted in brothels - no streetwalkers, no bar girls.

Unfortunately for Las Vegas bound people who would like to avail themselves of the services of prostitutes, the people of Clark County, in which the greater Las Vegas area is located, have decided NOT to make prostitution legal. To put it simply folks, it might exist there but it just ain't legal. Okay, so much for the law. Topics of morality, rights of people to exercise control over their own bodies, subjugation of women, arguments pro and con about the so-called world's oldest profession will not be discussed here.

One more time, prostitution, in any form, is illegal anywhere in Clark County, Nevada, including the Las Vegas area. However, legal or not, people want it and they get it. Sometimes they get more than they have bargained for.

People tend to become overly stimulated from the Las Vegas environment of flashing lights, glitzy hotel/casinos, free or cheap booze that is available twenty-four hours a day, showgirls and cocktail waitresses in skimpy outfits, strip joints, lap dances and all the rest. The tourists' (normally) good common sense can also go on vacation; this can result in the type of behavior that is later questioned by asking one's self, "I can't believe I did that. What could I have been thinking?"

If you plan on engaging in such behavior or have outright decided to use the services of one of the many "working girls" during your Las Vegas vacation, you should be aware of certain things.

A high percentage of prostitutes in Las Vegas are AIDS positive. Sexually transmitted diseases (STD) are also at an all time high among the group. You, as the customer, can not tell by looking at someone if he or she is the "type" to have such a disease. Condoms are not a protection guarantee due to their failure rate, admittedly low, but still something to consider. Personal remedies, such as hot showers, alcohol rubs, washing with hydrogen peroxide, shaking voodoo dolls, invoking the MoJo gods or eating red hot chili peppers before, during and after a sex act will not repeal the biological facts of life.

A friend of mine frequents prostitutes in Nevada. He claims he is safe from STDs because all the girls he hires have doctor's cards and get examined on a monthly basis. This sounds good except for a couple of things. Some STDs do not show up on tests for more than a month but are contagious in less than a month. Even assuming that the girl is clean at the time of the exam, you had better be her next customer. If not, she is only as clean as the people who have gone before you. If you are unlucky you could be taking home a most unpleasant souvenir of your vacation.

The prostitutes with the "heart of gold", like the parts played by Jane Fonda in the films Klute and Jamie Lee Curtis in Trading Places, do not exist. These people are in business to make money. Since what they are doing is illegal anyway, some do not mind using other illegal and dangerous means to get your dollars.

Putting knockout drops (tasteless and odorless) in your drink to loosen up and get in the mood in your room could result in, at the least, the loss of your money and other property; at the worse could result in seriously illness, injury or death. There was a case a few years ago, although not in Las Vegas, where a prostitute used knockout drops to rob a customer. The girls pimp, who evidentially missed his prison sex life, sodomized the unconscious business man before leaving with all of his property.

Some prostitutes have "friends" follow them around who will rob the customer, sometimes in a violent manner. For those of you who think you can take care of yourself, picture this. Here you are, naked, somewhat intoxicated, in a room in a strange city, all of a sudden confronted by a scary looking guy with a weapon. There are not very many people who will feel brave under these conditions.

There are also many scams in the business such as the prostitute's "friend" tells the customer in hushed and confidential tones that, "She is great in the sack but will steal from you if she had the chance. Better let me hold onto your wallet and watch." This sounds pretty obvious, so obvious you would think no one in their right mind would fall for this scam but fall for them they do; intelligence or station in life doesn't seem to protect these people - another example of over stimulation resulting in less than clear thinking.

While you are talking to that "working girl" in the bar, on the street, in the hotel lobby or hallway, or on the phone, she might be "working" but as a police officer. Las Vegas Metro (the police) actively discourage such illegal activity by arresting the prostitutes and their customers. Thinking of fighting that outrageous arrest? Maybe you would like bring your spouse to court so you can demonstrate how you were the innocent victim of police entrapment. The circumstances of almost all arrests of this type are retained on both audio and video tape. I can think of more enjoyable ways to spend my vacation besides getting arrested for solicitation for prostitution. I would not want my next trip to Las Vegas to be for a court appearance.

You might be thinking that I am trying to discourage you from using prostitutes services. This is not the case. I just want you to be aware of what could be consequences of your decision.

Good luck on your next trip to Las Vegas. ...and hey, let's be safe out there.