Outside the Beltway

Hooker Credentials

James Joyner · Wednesday, May 2, 2007 · 4 comments

Matthew Yglesias, responding to a report by Ben Smith on Pamela Martin’s requirements for employees of her DC “escort” service, observes, “Now how’s that for out-of-control credentialism — two years’ college to be a hooker?”

Now, I’m all for credentialism but even I fail to see how a college education contributes the skill set required for work in the oldest profession. Presumably, though, these women actually were doing some actual escorting in addition to their, ahem, more noteworthy duties and Martin figured that wealthy clients would prefer to be seen in the company of women who could hold a conversation. Then again, many college graduates can’t do that and plenty of non-grads can.

By the way, I somehow missed the announcement that Matt had been hired up by the Atlantic Monthly blogging conglomerate. Congrats to him. The Atlantic is, in my view, the best general interest magazine out there and, now that they’re in DC rather than Boston, there can’t be a better place for an opinion journalist to work.

Illustration via Wonk.