Legalize it? NEVER EVER!!!!

Decriminalization is more like it. The last thing you want is legislators imposing their will on the hobby. When and if it does become legal, you will see so much red tape that it will become impossible to hobby. The girls are only going to be able to work only in certain districts, pay all sorts of ridiculous fees and taxes. Only certain pimps or madams who grease legislators palms will get liscenses to open brothels and will be charging upwards of $1000 per hour. Of which the provider will only see a small fraction.

I can understand rounding up the streetwalkers but when business is conducted in private that is a whole other subject.

....although not necessarily a new one....

Legalization brings with it reduced risk (from both the client and LE perspectives), potential for institutional style benefits and support programs, and a possibly more established position within the community.  It also brings increased regulation and oversight to include everything from fees to inspections to licensing and taxation.  This could become particularly interesting for ladies who travel.  I don't know that I'd expect to see much in the way of change in cost to the client (this seems to me to be a very market driven business), but I would expect to see shifts in the required investment (both time and dollars) on the provider side of the chain.  Steven Levitt (the guy who wrote Freakonomics) wrote an interesting paper on the subject....worth a read if you're honestly interested in the concept....