“Under a project facilitated by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, about 500 sex workers in Mysore own chip-embedded smart cards, which when presented during transactions help them get discounts at select shops and hotels and earn them loyalty points that can be redeemed for discounts on later purchases. The shopping basket can include provisions, food at restaurants and clothes. But the card serves another purpose. It has the medical record of the sex worker, who has to compulsorily get his or her health check up at a clinic once in three months. The card becomes inactive if the holder fails to do this. The sex workers will be checked for sexually transmitted diseases (STD) and treatment provided if necessary…. KHPT reaches about 1400 female and around 200 male sex workers active in Mysore city and most of them conduct their business during the day. They earn anywhere between Rs200 and Rs1,500 a day. ‘It is not uncommon for us to buy as many as three new saris a month. Looking attractive is essential in our trade,’ Pushpa, a sex worker, said. KHPT officials said that the smart card initiative came from discussion with the sex workers, who identified an incentive of discounts with a health card to be a better alternative than a pure health card.” — DNA India (India)

Bill Gates — the man’s name often conjures up all sorts of hostility. People hate him because Microsoft is a monopoly. People hate him because Microsoft products mostly suck. (Incidentally, PervScan and all of Supervert’s other productions, including web sites, multimedia, and books, are made using Apple computers.) People hate him just because he’s rich. People hate him because he’s powerful. People just hate him.

But if you were ever inclined to hurl imprecations and insults at the man, this story should give you pause. Odds are that he personally had nothing to do with the decision to provide Indian hookers with smart cards. But still, he’s paying for it — he’s paying for hookers to be healthier and happier. Doesn’t that make you feel a little better about paying for the forthcoming bit of bloatware known as Windows Vista? It touts new features that make it possible to “enjoy your pictures and home movies more easily than ever.” Maybe it also comes prepackaged with software that will enable you to locate prostitutes more easily or take clandestine sex videos of your encounters with them. Can’t you just see the advertising campaigns now? Windows Vista — The Operating System for Johns.

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