At some time in the future, near or distant, at least a few of you are going to have to explain why you brought in a bunch of prostitutes for your colleagues and/or clients. Given. The circumstances will vary, as will the types of girls hired (Peter likes brunettes, Jim wants someone who will call him Judy, the guys on the commodities desk like to attend rodeos) but it's likely that you'll all have to provide a rationale for the impetus behind this particular perk of the job, and why, in the eyes of the law, it should be seen as no big deal. And when that happens, I think you should all consider taking a page from David Brooks' playa-book.

DHB, which specialized in making body armor used by the military in Iraq and Afghanistan, paid for more than $6 million in personal expenses on behalf of Mr. Brooks, covering items as expensive as luxury cars and as prosaic as party invitations, Ms. Schlegel testified. Also included were university textbooks for his daughter, pornographic videos for his son, plastic surgery for his wife, a burial plot for his mother, prostitutes for his employees, and, for him, a $100,000 American-flag belt buckle encrusted with rubies, sapphires and diamonds. [Brooks'] also defended the hiring of prostitutes for employees and board members, arguing in court papers that it represented a legitimate business expense “if Mr. Brooks thought such services could motivate his employees and make them more productive.”

At Military Contractor’s Trial, a $100,000 Buckle [NYT]