Well, it depends on where you are. And the level of acceptance versus enforcement. I will get to the politics in just a moment.
I recently attended a bachelor party for a buddy from college. The destination of choice for these east coast kids: Baltimore, Maryland, AKA Charm City. Is there a better place for a bachelor than 'THE BLOCK' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Block_(Baltimore)? They say this is the place where boys travel to become Men.
Located a stone's throw from the inner harbor on East Baltimore Street directly beside the Baltimore City Police Station; the Block is a strip of all strips..lined with strip clubs. Some, such as the Hustler Club are very nice, while others make you feel like you are getting ripped apart by a pack of pumas at night in the amazon jungle. On the block, this area is usually disguised as a basement entry strip club with a permeating smell of rank vagina.
Rule number 1: its always better to go to heaven than hell; so for your average strip club going male (once or twice a year), avoid the clubs leading down a long stairwell. If its free admission, there is a reason for it.
So we went upstairs to the Hustler Club and ordered a couple bottles of Absolut and watched in amazement as the employees climbed a three-story fire pole, only to drop themselves upside down by one leg and stop on a dime before ever hitting the floor. This my friends is quite a skill to acquire. And they somehow manage to perform this gracefully and fulfill their fiduciary duties as true professionals. Two thumbs up and 5 out of 5 Stars.
After a few hours and a nice evening at Larry Flint's establishment, the group decided it would be a good idea to club hop. The first place, right next door, had the oldest and most worn out strippers you could imagine. These girls did not work regular hours or live day by day. They lived minute by minute, fix by fix, dollar by dollar. The pimps either stood near the door or located within shouting distance at the other clubs, just in case an unhappy customer tried to walk out on his tab (not that anything in here could or should cost very much).
Luckily for me, I had grown the thickest beard possible in about 7 weeks, kept my head down attempting to avoid the stinch and getting eye fucked at the same time. Part Mark Ruffalo (as I would say), part Unabomber, part guy from The Hangover (as my buddies would say). The shadier you look, the better you fit in. Black shirt, dark jeans, thick beard, grey newbies, black guess watch.
HBO's hit series The Wire portrays inner city Baltimore in a very chilling light. The show is a fictional tale based on experiences of a journalist and a former Baltimore city cop. The term 'eye fuck' is a very real term. For more information, watch the series or walk down East Baltimore Street and Gay Street at 2 o'clock in the morning.
After finishing out our rounds at heaven and hell, it was time to call it quits around 2am. What better place to eat in the middle of a Red Light District than Subway, made fresh daily. I ordered my club melt sub and proceeded to wait outside for the rest of the crew to finish ordering their late night snack. I was half drunken, half sober after 14 hours of drinking, baseball, and strip clubs and watched the hoppers as they casually sold drugs on the corner in the middle of Gay street, between The Block and the police station. Was this the real life Hamsterdam (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamsterdam)?
After observing for a few more minutes, it was time for most of the establishments to close for the evening. The people emptied onto the street. One police officer was very eager to keep the crowds moving. As I watched cars stop in front of the police station to buy drugs, the officer proceeded to spray pepper spray in the street to keep the foot traffic moving briskly. Mission accomplished. Tear gas grenades would have been slightly more efficient, but he still managed to got his point across. After dealing with pepper spray in my eyes, three of us left to walk back to the hotel where the others joined shortly after. No arrests, no fights, no deaths, and one bachelor accounted for. I would consider that a glowing success.
Rule #2: No loitering. When the officer tells you to move at 2am, get the f*k out of there for obvious reasons.
The interesting question is, how on earth does this kid (probably no more than 16 years old) in a white t-shirt sell drugs on the corner in front of the police station? I assume he was directing traffic to the corners where they could deliver and exchange payment, but it was blatantly obvious. I just thought it was funny that I was the one getting pepper spray in my eyes.
From this experience, I pose a few questions:
What is the service fee for the turf in a high traffic, high volume corridor next to a police station?
Does Baltimore have De facto legalization?
Does the prevalence and high usage rates by residents influence the enforcement policies?
Can you measure the contribution of this black market to the local economy?
At what point does the government decide to collect tax revenues?
It is true the market exists. Whether you support it or not, is not relevant. The dollars that feed wars in Latin America could be used for filling budget gaps in cash strapped cities. Depriving cartels of marijuana revenues have been conservatively estimated at 10 billion. This budget gap would force cartels to find other sources of revenue and deplete gangsters of their precious blood money egos.
If inner city and suburban youth cannot make money selling drugs, they will be forced to get an education to become successful. Perhaps, they will then look up to the teenagers that are inspired to become pharmacists, engineers, financial professionals, and real business owners.
I recently attended a bachelor party for a buddy from college. The destination of choice for these east coast kids: Baltimore, Maryland, AKA Charm City. Is there a better place for a bachelor than 'THE BLOCK' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Block_(Baltimore)
Located a stone's throw from the inner harbor on East Baltimore Street directly beside the Baltimore City Police Station; the Block is a strip of all strips..lined with strip clubs. Some, such as the Hustler Club are very nice, while others make you feel like you are getting ripped apart by a pack of pumas at night in the amazon jungle. On the block, this area is usually disguised as a basement entry strip club with a permeating smell of rank vagina.
Rule number 1: its always better to go to heaven than hell; so for your average strip club going male (once or twice a year), avoid the clubs leading down a long stairwell. If its free admission, there is a reason for it.
So we went upstairs to the Hustler Club and ordered a couple bottles of Absolut and watched in amazement as the employees climbed a three-story fire pole, only to drop themselves upside down by one leg and stop on a dime before ever hitting the floor. This my friends is quite a skill to acquire. And they somehow manage to perform this gracefully and fulfill their fiduciary duties as true professionals. Two thumbs up and 5 out of 5 Stars.
After a few hours and a nice evening at Larry Flint's establishment, the group decided it would be a good idea to club hop. The first place, right next door, had the oldest and most worn out strippers you could imagine. These girls did not work regular hours or live day by day. They lived minute by minute, fix by fix, dollar by dollar. The pimps either stood near the door or located within shouting distance at the other clubs, just in case an unhappy customer tried to walk out on his tab (not that anything in here could or should cost very much).
HBO's hit series The Wire portrays inner city Baltimore in a very chilling light. The show is a fictional tale based on experiences of a journalist and a former Baltimore city cop. The term 'eye fuck' is a very real term. For more information, watch the series or walk down East Baltimore Street and Gay Street at 2 o'clock in the morning.
After finishing out our rounds at heaven and hell, it was time to call it quits around 2am. What better place to eat in the middle of a Red Light District than Subway, made fresh daily. I ordered my club melt sub and proceeded to wait outside for the rest of the crew to finish ordering their late night snack. I was half drunken, half sober after 14 hours of drinking, baseball, and strip clubs and watched the hoppers as they casually sold drugs on the corner in the middle of Gay street, between The Block and the police station. Was this the real life Hamsterdam (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamsterdam)?
After observing for a few more minutes, it was time for most of the establishments to close for the evening. The people emptied onto the street. One police officer was very eager to keep the crowds moving. As I watched cars stop in front of the police station to buy drugs, the officer proceeded to spray pepper spray in the street to keep the foot traffic moving briskly. Mission accomplished. Tear gas grenades would have been slightly more efficient, but he still managed to got his point across. After dealing with pepper spray in my eyes, three of us left to walk back to the hotel where the others joined shortly after. No arrests, no fights, no deaths, and one bachelor accounted for. I would consider that a glowing success.
Rule #2: No loitering. When the officer tells you to move at 2am, get the f*k out of there for obvious reasons.
The interesting question is, how on earth does this kid (probably no more than 16 years old) in a white t-shirt sell drugs on the corner in front of the police station? I assume he was directing traffic to the corners where they could deliver and exchange payment, but it was blatantly obvious. I just thought it was funny that I was the one getting pepper spray in my eyes.
From this experience, I pose a few questions:
What is the service fee for the turf in a high traffic, high volume corridor next to a police station?
Does Baltimore have De facto legalization?
Does the prevalence and high usage rates by residents influence the enforcement policies?
Can you measure the contribution of this black market to the local economy?
At what point does the government decide to collect tax revenues?
It is true the market exists. Whether you support it or not, is not relevant. The dollars that feed wars in Latin America could be used for filling budget gaps in cash strapped cities. Depriving cartels of marijuana revenues have been conservatively estimated at 10 billion. This budget gap would force cartels to find other sources of revenue and deplete gangsters of their precious blood money egos.
If inner city and suburban youth cannot make money selling drugs, they will be forced to get an education to become successful. Perhaps, they will then look up to the teenagers that are inspired to become pharmacists, engineers, financial professionals, and real business owners.
