Dungeons

I hope the day never comes where I feel I have to go back to working at a dungeon. I think the current climate...the closing of number of successful dungeons and the feeling of oppression...it sucks. On the other hand I feel that things, at least in our small piece of the universe-they all have a reason for being. Call it destiny, fate, kismet, whatever. I believe in basic positive and negative energy.
In the grand scheme of things, everything must have a balance. Yin and Yang. Take nature for example-it is a very delicate balance. One teeny tiny thing gets thrown off and it has a chain reaction. Why do we have global warming? Because we have been abusing the planet and throwing things off balance for decades, causing a chain reaction that could ultimately end in our own destruction. This is not just a theory. Study some basic ecology, if you think global warming doesn't or can't exist. Everything, including us humans, has a role on this planet. Things that don't ultimately fit into the grand scheme of things, they don't survive natural selection. Those that do survive and have survived-they each have a role to fill. I could give more examples, but I don't want to lose my original train of thought.
I'm sure you're wondering at this point what all of this has to do with BDSM and dungeons. I'm getting there. :) So, lets apply these principles to other things.
**I may jump ahead now so I hope you're able to make the connections. I am not the best writer**
Let's say BDSM exists for a reason. Now, I believe people are predisposed to be kinky, and it is a combination of some nature and a lot of nurture. These predilections have existed for longer than D/s and S/m were founded, and thus far kink has failed to be weeded out and eradicated. In fact, it has only grown bigger and stronger. It has survived natural selection, so to speak.
Within the worldwide, universal kink community exists a million subsets. For each niche there exists a community and for each community a niche, and so on. Which brings us to the New York kink community. I am including Professional Domination in the New York kink community.
With regards to Professional Domination in NYC, I believe things were thrown off balance. Money, and basically the business aspect began to take priority over passion and genuine kink. People are free to believe that the New York kink community is being eaten away by intolerance, or politics, or whatever the current theory is, but I believe that fundamentally things have disintegrated because the balance was thrown off. And It probably all started with one teeny tiny little thing. Negativity slowly began to take the place of the positive things of this community.
So if we want the current state of things to change, people need to contribute more positive things to this community. All of these alliances and all of this backbiting only adds to the negativity that has taken over. Some of the love, the passion, and ultimately the "heart" of BDSM needs to be put back into Pro Domination and the community. And in the quest for the all mighty dollar, these things have been forgotten and left behind.

All of this is coming from someone who has only had an awareness of and interest in BDSM for 11-12 years. On top of that, I have only been involved in the lifestyle and community for the past 4.5 years, approximately 3.5 of which have been spent in Professional Domination.

Above all, I am idealist, so I think things will get better. But I also feel that only this is possible if some of the authenticity of BDSM is put back into Professional Femdom. My ideal dungeon would be something like this:

-Female owned and operated. Or owned and operated by genuinely kinky men who have a real understanding of and respect for Females and Female Domination.

-Only genuinely kinky Females, or those with an honest interest and basic understanding of BDSM.
-Applicants should be required to write an essay regarding their experience, their interest in kink, their interest in Professional Domination, a basic summary of who they are as a person, and their goals as a Professional Dominant, etc. (There should be more included but I can't think of it at the moment.)

-There should be a 50/50 split between house and Domme. Domme should keep %100 of all her tips and not even have to report them.

-Domme should get some sort of compensation for any new client she personally brings in or refers to the house.

-There should be a training program that is continually refined and improved upon.

-New equipment is constantly being researched and purchased.

-Extreme safety/health measure are taught and used at all times.

-Constant measures are taken to assure camaraderie among employees, and open communication between employees and employers.

-Interpersonal romantic relationships strongly discouraged.

-No hierarchy amongst those employed.

-All employees encouraged to be a part of and be up to date with the community.

That's all I have for now. BTW, this is not in any way a jab at my previous employers (I consider them friends) or the House. I am extremely grateful for the chance I was given, the experiences I had, and the training I received. Again, these are ideals. And some of the things I listed were things that were already in place at the Dungeon.