Papers in New Zealand have swooned this past week over the news that government funding for university courses in prostitution could be considered under official changes aimed at "boosting quality and relevance" in the tertiary sector.
"MPs on Parliament's education and science select committee were told today that although courses in the world's oldest profession might be considered if providers put them forward, they would still have to meet tight criteria to get funding," said the New Zealand Herald.
Not surprisingly, much of the subsequent online commentary could only be described as scholarly in the strictly undergraduate sense, with a tumble of contributors' double-entendres.
One American blogger seemed genuinely - well, sort of - distressed:
How about this scenario - [a] cute high school senior confronts her parents with the old "good news -- bad news" announcement. The good news is that she has made up her mind to go to college after all, and you know what the bad news is. When asked about their daughter and her educational plans, the parents can enthusiastically say that she is studying prostitution.
... I have major questions about professors and their training (you cannot let unqualified people teach), if the courses would be gender exclusive, types of tests and exams to be given and if it would be possible to audit the courses?
Auditing a course in prostitution? Hmm. Now this could be a position - perhaps many positions - worth researching.
