Forgetting the elephant in the room
[QUOTE=InDelaware;6065358]Spot on. Between the Great Recession and a great website (*cough* backpage *cough*) it was a great time to be in the hobby. Agree that I'm not looking forward to anything like that economy, but if it happens, I'll definitely be more actively searching![/QUOTE]I will agree that economic times and backpage helped, neither were the key drivers. Anyone who understands the oxy epidemic understands that in 2008 it was reaching its peak. Who had normal high functioning adults who would have never in a million years become addicts over night. Solely because a doctor they trusted told them a medication was safe. Doctors were prescribing oxy left and right to the point they might as well of given a free PEZ dispenser with each script. Around that time 2008-2011, doctors were waking up to the seriousness of oxy and started cutting thier patients off. High school athletic girls with bright futures, college graduates, and normal everyday people began to feel what withdrawal really was. This turning to street pharmaceuticals to get them feeling healthy again. Personal insurance doesn't pay for street drugs. Being an escort will.
So you're right. Economic, backpage. But let's not forget, a lot of those girls were there thanks to your friendly neighborhood physicians.
We can say COVID killed it. But let's be honest here. Read back through the forum from 2015 up to COVID and you'll see it was already in decline. Why? Because Uncle Sam was getting better at fighting back at the oxy epidemic. They learned how to get the girls the help they needed to get clean. And once they got clean, they went back to as normal of a life as they could. Because at the end of the day, and I hate to say this, it's one thing to serve food or sell insurance to some guys that hobby. It's a completely different think to get to the highest level of intimacy with someone you'd never do otherwise without the pain of withdrawal.