Strip Clubs

September 02, 2007

Drunk politician in strip club 'normal bloke', say Aussies

SYDNEY (AFP) - The vast majority of Australians believe a drunken visit to a strip club by the man tipped to be their next prime minister simply proves he is "a normal bloke," an opinion poll showed Monday.

A remarkable 85 percent of voters, both men and women, saw opposition leader Kevin Rudd's escapade in a New York nightclub in those terms, according to a poll for the Herald Sun newspaper.

The Labor Party leader had predicted he would suffer in opinion polls after admitting visiting the racy Scores nightclub in New York during a trip to the United Nations four years ago -- and being too drunk to remember much about it.

But the Galaxy poll taken over the weekend showed that voters were almost universally forgiving of what Rudd has called a "foolish mistake".

Galaxy Research pollster David Briggs said the result suggested voters had been able to separate the nightclub incident from issues of substance.

"Kevin Rudd's visit to a strip club in New York four years ago is unlikely to burst his bubble," he said.

Just 10 percent of the 1,004 voters voters polled believed the incident was an indication that Rudd had poor morals.

Overall, the poll showed Rudd's centre-left Labor Party with 57 percent of the vote against 43 percent for Prime Minister John Howard's conservative Liberal-National coalition.

Those figures would translate into a landslide win for Labor and the end of 11 years in power for Howard if repeated in elections due by the end of the year.

Briggs said a recent interest-rate rise which forced up mortgage repayments weighed more heavily on voters than the strip club visit.

"The poll suggests that voters have been able to distinguish between issues of substance and non-issues, with the government taking a hit on its economic credentials," he said.

Posted by ronnie at 07:55 AM | Comments (0)

January 05, 2007

Norway determined to tax strip shows

OSLO (Reuters) - Strip shows may officially count as art in Norway, but the finance minister still wants them taxed.

Tickets to art shows are exempt from value-added tax in Norway -- and an appeal court ruled late last year that striptease fell within the category.

Finance Minister Kristin Halvorsen said in a statement on Friday that she would refrain from a further appeal, but would instead set about amending the law to bring in the revenues.

Posted by ronnie at 05:00 PM | Comments (0)

February 28, 2006

Strip Club Operator Runs for School Board

ST. LOUIS - The president and director of a Colorado-based adult entertainment company is running for the school board of a suburban St. Louis district, and already many residents are giving the candidacy a thumbs down.

"I wouldn't want that kind of guy running a school board," Jeremy Parks, 21, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "If he's that great of a guy, with good morals, he wouldn't be running strip clubs."

Micheal Ocello is president and director of VCG Holding Corp., based in Lakewood, Colo., a company that says on its Web site that its clubs feature "premium quality female performers" with "highest standards" for "appearance, attitude, demeanor, dress and personality."

The Web site says the company owns and operates a dozen adult entertainment nightclubs, featuring exotic dancers, in St. Louis, Denver, Indianapolis, Phoenix, Louisville, Ky., and Sauget, Ill.

Ocello, 46, a husband and father of three, hopes to win one of two seats on the Mehlville School Board in south St. Louis County.

He said he knew the race would be tough, but is tiring of the strip club questions, and finds remarks about the business offensive. He was once a male dancer himself.

Today, he enjoys playing with his grandchildren, riding motorcycles with his wife, watching old movies with his daughter and boating on the Mississippi River with his family.

The others candidates, including two incumbents, are a Union Pacific worker, a pressroom supervisor, a salesman, a retired teacher and a church fundraiser.

Several candidates said it will be rough for a man in adult entertainment to win the hearts of suburban, conservative district residents.

"I don't want to say anything negative about anybody," said Tom Diehl, a nonprofit fundraising consultant. "I imagine it might be tough for some voters to get beyond that issue."

Privately, at least one candidate asked Ocello what he's doing, Ocello said.

"I knew going into it I would receive a lot of scrutiny," Ocello said. "I think it's important enough to go through with it."

Several district residents told the Post-Dispatch a strip club executive would never get their vote.

But those who know Ocello speak highly of him.

Barbara Geno, executive director of Clayton Child Center, said Ocello has been a strong board member for 10 years at her school, and has "very high morals and ethics."

The candidates say they hope the race sticks to the issues.