On the Side of the Road -- The Prostitute

 Genesis 38:14

she took off her widow’s clothes, covered herself with a veil to disguise herself, and then sat down at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. For she saw that, though Shelah had now grown up, she had not been given to him as his wife
Tamar is at the heart of a very messy family story.  At the juncture of this passage Tamar will be confused for a prostitute, but in the end virtue will prevail. 
I am using these Bible verses, one after another, to get me thinking about the road and its meaning in American life. And this morning, the above passage gets me going about the prevalence of prostitution on the side of the road. We can place prostitution in the so-called house of ill-repute. But I think it is far more common to find prostitution and prostitutes on the side of the road. Or at truck stops. You can find prostitutes on urban streets, like here in Dayton on North Marin or East 5th Street. Or on busy streets in LA (Figueroa) , or Seattle (Aurora).

There is a popular theme of "America by the Side of the Road." There are videos of gas stations, restaurants, unique stopping places, entertainment, and so on. Is prostitution a victimless crime?  What about the girls and their lost lives, linked to drugs and violence?  It is hardly about love. What money can buy, and what it cannot.

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