[Mz]

My best understanding: Decriminalization means it is not illegal. Legalization means it is regulated.

Let me see if this helps make it clear:

I used to subscribe to some sort of energy/environmental magazine. Solar power or whatever. And there was a story about a guy in Chicago who wanted to make his own home-grown power and go off the grid in the midst of Chicago. And he called around to see what agency was in charge of this, who he needed to apply to for permits and that sort of thing. And he got told, basically, that this had not yet made anyone's radar and there was no agency in charge of this stuff. There was no where he needed to go in order to get permission.

He hung up the phone and realized as long as he didn't mess up badly and make the radar of the police or others, he could do any damn thing he wanted. So he set about doing what he wanted and went off-grid. It was perfectly "legal" to do so and no one was up in his business about it. It was a new thing and no rules had yet been made for it, basically. So there was nothing stopping him.

Legalizing prostitution would be more akin to, say, the way we have driver's licenses. There would be a process for applying to get your hooker's license and proving you did not have VD or whatever. Decriminalization is more just saying "If a woman (or other person) wants to charge money for sexual services, she is not breaking the law and cannot be charged with a crime for that."

Or so I understand, law not being some strong point of mine.