Forward Auctions -- Alive and Well at the Bunny Ranch

While I'm not sure what, if any, forward auction platform they're using to auction off Natalie Dylon's virginity, I personally find it a sad commentary on our times that someone feels compelled to sell their body to fund their graduate education. According to the above-linked article in The Telegraph, "A student who is auctioning her virginity to pay for a masters degree in Family and Marriage therapy has seen bidding hit £2.5million ($3.7m) ... Natalie Dylan, 22, claims her offer of a one-night stand has persuaded 10,000 men to bid for sex with her." No word yet on what the RFI or bidder agreement looks like but I suspect that this is one quick way to max out the P-Card. Even though the libertarian in me could give two figs about the legality of prostitution, the volume of interest in this type of personal procurement exercise -- 10,000 men! -- really says quite a bit about what we value as a society. Still, how we choose to allocate our household and business capital is a deeply personal thing, and to each his own. Personally, I'd rather spend $3.7 million on giving to more than just one person who needs to go to graduate school even if all I got out of it was a scholarship in my name.

- Jason Busch