I detect some reservations about the wisdom (fairness?) of the Michigan case forfeiting a wife's interest in the auto that her husband used to bag a prostitute. Great good comes with a price. I am confident that when you realize the good that flowed from this decision you will realize that it was well worth the small price paid by an innocent person. As a resident of Michigan, perhaps I will be best able to set the record straight. "Johns" who previously only faced AIDS, sundry other STDs, jail, fines, and loss of reputation suddenly faced loss of wheels. Faced with this terror, cruising for sex was just too risky. As word of the new terror spread, "Johns" abandoned the auto in favor of the bicycle (much cheaper to replace). There was a downside. Back injuries were up a whopping 300 percent. Did you ever try to have sex in the back seat of a bicycle? When this reality hit home -- prostitution ended. For several months after the watershed (or was the waterbed?) decision, gaunt, starving hookers staggered across the state line into Ohio and Indiana. They had to seek a new beginning where hopefully they would be able to get back off their feet and regain income and dignity. Michigan now has the only prostitute free state in the nation. We are optimistic that the Department of Agriculture will shortly issue that coveted "Prostitute Free Zone" certification (not to be confused with "free prostitutes zone") which we will proudly display on all of the now empty street corners. Why would the Department of Agriculture be responsible for this certification? We're talking government here, there doesn't have to be a reason.Al McCallum -- admccallum@columnist.com
Thoughts, Ramblings and Observations: http://www.admccallum.com
-- Albert D. McCallum, January 20, 1998
Two lessons from the Perrigo story:- when arrested by the police and taken in for interrogation, don't say a god damned word.
- never seek out or take advice on anything even remotely important from unknown sources.
J. Hinsdale
-- John Hinsdale, September 7, 2001