D.C. Madam Found Dead In Apparent Suicide

I normally agree with John Stossel's opinions on societal aspects of culture and politics, but I disagree with his take on prostitution being a "victimless crime". Prostitution not only degrades women, it destroys families, it's immoral, it speaks to the poverty crisis in our country, it lowers self-esteem, it confuses young women's take on power, control and their bodies, it's addictive, it opens the doors to other vices such as drug abuse and drug trafficking and lastly as seen in the case of the DC Madam, it can dehumanize you to the point of depression, or even worse, suicide:

The madam, Deborah Jeane Palfrey, was recently convicted on federal charges stemming from operating a prostitution service in the Washington, D.C. area with a number of high-profile clients. She was scheduled to be sentenced July 24.

Palfrey told ABC News last year she would never return to prison, after serving time in the 1990s for other prostitution-related charges. "I sure as heck am not going to be going to federal prison for one day, let alone, you know, four to eight years."

Palfrey's 76-year-old mother, Blanche, found her daughter's body in a shed to the side of her home, according to police. Palfrey had hung herself with nylon rope from a beam in the shed's ceiling, the police said.