It turns out that one of the new girls pressed the emergency button, thinking she could order drinks that way. I'm forbidden to work outside the brothel. I have to abide by its rules and give it half my pay. Of course, the laws regarding prostitution are not primarily intended to protect me. The fact that we can only work in state-licensed houses keeps the brothel owners in business and protects the neighbors from whores running loose in their streets and backyards.
State regulations benefit everyone but the working girl.
Meanwhile, the brothels pay as much as 70 percent of the county's property taxes. Hence the friendly relations between the bordellos and their neighbors. I had no problem getting directions to the nearby brothel from a cheery housewife watering the plants in her front yard. Try asking the locals on the streets of San Francisco the way to the nearest whorehouse, and you'll quickly see how unusual this is. But let's not forget the connection between that helpful citizen and police surveillance.