Remarkable how you can roll wine tasting, a peep show and a cosmetologist all in to the same story.

The analogy of the grapes to humans is very good, it coincides with my observation about people.

Things always change but not always to the better. I am convinced it will get worse before the adult club industry will see an upswing. The days of the seemingly endless stream of money are temporarily suspended. First the dancers will starve, soon the clubs will too. Ironically a club in Vegas can make right now maybe even more money than 2 month ago. Girls that danced 2-3 times a week have to go now almost daily to make rent. This means the club will collect twice the house fees for now. Sooner or later some clubs likely will fade away. The market cannot support all current dancers and clubs, so the sideliners will get the hit first.
I do not want to make a prediction on when we will see an upswing. Even if the overall economy improves the adult industry will be trailing for a few months as the customers need to catch up with bills before the play money becomes available again.
I once used the term "discretionary income" with a dancer and I got blank looks. I assume the word "savings" may not be something most dancers think about either -- not until now at least. It will be a rude awakening for many in the next 2-3 month. Looking at your rate of return any supermarket job potentially pays better than dancing at the moment.

This might be a good time to go to a club and adopt a stripper"

First off I am not a psychologist, nor do I play one on TV. So following is based on how I see it.
I think the answer is neither. Of course there is a small group of pedophiles out there but the main motivation is likely different. The reason that this and other dancer outfits spark interest with us is that men desire what they don't have or can't have. The other reason is as one of my favorite philosophers said: There is no substitute for youth. And that outfit does advertise youth like no other.

Your average customer base, well at least the group that spends money on dances, is likely at least twice the age of most strippers. So that you are 24 or 17 is about the same from that customer's point of view.

Part of the attraction of going to a club and having a hot and more or less naked girl "dance" for us is that it is a fantasy world. So we want you to wear a corset, a hot tiny outfit or a school girl outfit because it drastically differs from our home life (in most cases). I am not even sure I have ever seen a real plaid schoolgirl outfit on an actual 17 year old school girl, but plenty of them in clubs and in certain kind of movies.

Unlike most dance outfits the school girl outfit does add another dimension to the above. There is a certain attraction to the naughty forbidden part of sex and as you pointed out real school girls are off limits. If I would be you I would not worry about it. If there is an easy way to raise revenue by a few points, do it. If "blond school girl" is what is in demand you should deliver relentlessly! Don't blame us; we are programmed to like it and will happily pay the associated price tag.

I guess most bouncers are indifferent about the phone rule as phones seem to be as common as lipstick in a stripper's purse. In the 2-3 clubs I occasionally visit the girls also seem to use text messaging during slow days without any reservations or fear of retribution.

In my experience people that earn more spend more. Most people I know have significant credit card debts and car loans. People with good jobs and 6 figure salaries can end up owing more for their cars and cards than the median annual household income. On the other hand, I don't believe many of the people I hang out with worry about that there savings account balance is exceeding the FDIC insured limit.
Loaning money to friends is a bit misleading as it implies repayment which more often than not does not seem to materialize within the agreed timeframe. If someone is in need (usually due to their own acts) I rather give them the $100 for the rent and will be later pleasantly surprised if I get invited for a dinner and get it back. I think about it as a charity gift without receipt.