NOTE: This isn't very exciting but...

I was in London for business over the weekend, but managed to visit Soho. I got to shoot this short video of a “Clip Joint” girl. She wasnt very happy and ran away. The police were nearby so I felt safe!!!

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Heres is an explanation of what a clip joint is:

A clip joint is an establishment, usually a strip club or entertainment bar, typically one claiming to offer adult entertainment, in which customers are tricked into paying money and receive poor or no goods or services in return. Typically, clip joints suggest the possibility of sex, charge excessively high prices for watered-down drinks, and then eject customers when they become unwilling or unable to spend more money.

A number of clip joints (or “near beer bars”) still operate in London’s Soho area, alongside legitimate strip bars.

The scam operated by these clubs is very simple: a customer is shown in from the door, typically by a hostess, and quickly offered a drink or the company of another hostess at their table. If they accept either offer, then as soon as they try and leave the bar, they will be presented with an outrageously high bill - often for several hundred pounds - for the drink, service charges, or hostess company. As with any bar bill, immediate payment is demanded on pain of criminal charges (or, occasionally, physical violence).

Although strongly disliked, this scam is in a legal grey area if extortion is not involved, since there is no law against charging high prices and it is the customer’s own fault if they consume goods or services while unaware of how much they cost. It remains technically a confidence trick since customers order in the false confidence that prices will be around the standard market levels.

On my Mac I had to copy the linked file to the desktop (the metafile I'm guessing), clip off the .txt extension, and then double click. 99% of clips out there usually play immediately though. Might want to look at that.

Cool clipette though!

neurosynth,

im sorry mate, I didnt think of you Mac guys!!

For anyone else that cant get the video clip to work, well sorry.

Here is another good article about clip joints http://www.melonfarmers.co.uk/arsssoho.htm

it just amazes me that this shit goes on in 2006. I cant see why the London authorities dont stamp these fuckers out.

I never been conned by these clubs, but i assumed that the sex shows in Amsterdam were like that when I first went there years ago. Of course they are NOT, the shows in Amsterdam are completely legit.

There must be some heavy corruption behind this. These scams could be shut down if local government wanted to.

The authorities are always on their case and there are a lot less than there were in the 80s.
The owners have it all worked out to make it hard for the authorities to prove the law is being broken, especially as they don't serve alcohol. Any time I walk past those places and see guys talking to the door girls, I always mutter that it's a rip off.

Here are some things authorities or local government could do:

* Enact zoning laws that would thin the density of such establishments
* Send in officers undercover and arrest bouncers who use violence or threats
* Saturate the area with street cops, and have them interceed when bouncers bring people outside
* Make regular sweeps checking workers for warrants and/or work permits
* Require such businesses (any mix of personal services and food or drink) to be specially licensed.
* Have significant background checks and don't allow those with criminal records to get licenses
* Require such licensed businesses to receive signed price agreements for "personal services"
* Regulate the food and drink pricing of such licensed businesses.

Is any of this done?

Good list - you could be German (meant as compliment :-)

But should one (the Law in this case) really bother ? I'm not the most politically liberal of people, but in this case I wager to state that most 'victims' are not poor, undefenseless persons, but quite able men who should know better - by reading this forum, for example.

my 2 pence,

Gaston.

So I can mug people as long as they are rich and it's a fair fight?

No, and I did not state so. There is still quite some difference between mugging and using violence and walking into a Soho strip joint, I reckon.

having said that, anyone of you ever played Robin Hood in their younger days ?

my 3 pence (1 for inflation)

Gaston.

London has maybe 3 left of at least a dozen a few years ago.. Paris has a lot more.

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