Koolblue13 Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 http://www.ohio.com/news/world/brazil-drug-dealers-say-no-to-crack-in-rio-1.328038 RIO DE JANEIRO: Business was brisk in the Mandela shantytown on a recent night. In the glow of a weak light bulb, customers pawed through packets of powdered cocaine and marijuana priced at $5, $10, $25. Teenage boys with semiautomatic weapons took in money and made change while flirting with girls in belly-baring tops lounging nearby. Next to them, a gaggle of kids jumped on a trampoline, oblivious to the guns and drug-running that are part of everyday life in this and hundreds of other slums, known as favelas, across this metropolitan area of 12 million people. Conspicuously absent from the scene was crack, the most addictive and destructive drug in the triad that fuels Rio’s narcotics trade. Once crack was introduced here about six years ago, Mandela and the surrounding complex of shantytowns became Rio’s main outdoor drug market, a “cracolandia,” or crackland, where users bought the rocks, smoked and lingered until the next hit. Hordes of addicts lived in cardboard shacks and filthy blankets, scrambling for cash and a fix. “Crack has been nothing but a disgrace for Rio. It’s time to stop,” said the drug boss in charge. He is Mandela’s second-in-command — a stocky man wearing a Lacoste shirt, heavy gold jewelry and a backpack bulging with $100,000 in drugs and cash. At 37, he’s an elder in Rio’s most established faction, the Comando Vermelho, or Red Command. He’s wanted by police, and didn’t want his name published. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaceman Spiff Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Crack is a disgrace, but coke and weed sold by kids toting AK's is completely fine. Awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebluefood Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Let it be known: Marion Barry has lower standards than Brazilian drug pushers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renegade7 Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Wow, I remember reading that article in the washington post a couple weeks back and wondered if anyone else actually saw it to care. Think I may just post that on facebook. I know it may sounds crazy to some, but drug dealers are people, too. It would be interesting to see if some US dealers are starting to look at crack the same way now. The crack epidemic almost sent the black community back to the stone age, but it's definitely calmed down now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koolblue13 Posted September 14, 2012 Author Share Posted September 14, 2012 Wow, I remember reading that article in the washington post a couple weeks back and wondered if anyone else actually saw it to care. Think I may just post that on facebook. I know it may sounds crazy to some, but drug dealers are people, too. It would be interesting to see if some US dealers are starting to look at crack the same way now. The crack epidemic almost sent the black community back to the stone age, but it's definitely calmed down now... I posted it on FB too and got 2 random comments. I got 50 about breaking my french press. I thought this was kind of a big deal personally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrypticVillain Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 I posted it on FB too and got 2 random comments. I got 50 about breaking my french press. I thought this was kind of a big deal personally. I hate that man. You post something serious, nobody wants to talk. You talk about the Redskins or something else random and nobody wants to shut up.... But seriously man, crack is no joke. If you never seen anybody you know personally deal with it, you just don't know how bad it really is. That is the main reason I never sold drugs. Yeah I knew it was against the law and whatnot, but to knowingly give somebody something that you know will mess their life up, it wasn't for me. And you would think e-pills, weed, etc, would be okay, but those are gateway drugs for real. Most of the people I have known to do crack started of with weed and wanted to get "higher". I know some people think they can handle weed and they probably can, but what happens when they can't. Anyways, I don't want to hijack the thread, but this subject hits too close to home. You all wouldn't believe the things I have see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dallsux Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Let it be known: Marion Barry has lower standards than Brazilian drug pushers. :doh: You went there. :doh: ---------- Post added September-14th-2012 at 08:18 PM ---------- It is weird that even the drug dealers are seeing it's devastating affects & are trying to turn from it. I want to say it's a good thing, & while it is, it's also...I don't know, it makes my head feel funny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RGmonster3 Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 crack is wack. free the weed. that is all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoony Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 There is no honor among thieves at the end of the day. We look for it though, we want desperately to see it. Hell, Quentin tarantino has mad a living off that very theme. That bad guys are good, or at least capable of it. The real world is different though. If there is a demand for crack in Rio, someone will move in to fill the void. By even the most conservative estimates 5% of the general population are sociopaths. Probably a tad higher in the Brazilian criminal class... And all it ultimately takes is one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dallsux Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 There is no honor among thieves at the end of the day. We look for it though, we want desperately to see it. Hell, Quentin tarantino has mad a living off that very theme. That bad guys are good, or at least capable of it. The real world is different though. If there is a demand for crack in Rio, someone will move in to fill the void. By even the most conservative estimates 5% of the general population are sociopaths. Probably a tad higher in the Brazilian criminal class... And all it ultimately takes is one Ya know, you have a wonderful knack of coming in the room, flipping the cereal bowl into our laps, kicking the dog & stealing a box of ball point pens on your way out. In all seriousness tho, you're right. It would be the stuff of fairy tales & movie scripts to believe that the drug rings in Rio (or anywhere, for that matter) would dry up of crack because the dealers suddenly got a change of heart & wanted to make a positive difference. Eventually, even if someone does do that, it's like you said, someone else will just fill that void. Supply & demand. Once it was supplied, the demand is there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoony Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 I would never kick a dog. A cat though... *disclaimer* No cats we harmed in the evolution of this post Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dallsux Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 I would never kick a dog. A cat though... *disclaimer* No cats we harmed in the evolution of this post Fair enough. BTW, can I have my ball point pens back now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Going Commando Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 I heard an interview on NPR of a central Florida artist named Al Black. He was a central figure in the Highwaymen movement, one of the last great movements of 20th century America. They painted oil landscapes of Florida swamps and mangroves that are really spectacular. The movement began in Fort Pierce as a way for a group of poor black artists in the 50s and 60s to get out of the citrus plantations. They couldn't have their paintings in the galleries because they were segregated, so to make money, they had traveling salesmen load them into the trunks of their cars and drive up and down Florida's Highway 1 and sell them door to door. They'd paint fast, usually multiple paintings at once outdoors in a tent, so they could crank them out and make money. Al Black was the greatest salesman for the group, an amazingly charismatic hustler who could "sell a mosquito a jacket in the summertime." He became a pretty important artist for the movement in his own right too. Anyway, the reason I bring it up is because the best line from the interview came from Black talking about his drug problems and how they led to his incarceration in the 90's. He said, "you can have foot trouble, back trouble, neck trouble, all kinds of trouble, but you ain't had no kind of trouble until you had some crack cocaine trouble." It was this great, authentically bluesy moment from a true character discussing the destructive power of crack. Someone could make an Oscar bait movie out of his life. I've never known anyone first hand who was addicted to crack (so far as I know). But I had friends who did. They talked about how their friends would do anything for crack, suck **** for it, whatever. It turns you into an animal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsmarydu Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 "New Jack City" is one of my very fave movies. It takes a village...or a community to stop everything they don't want there. Kick it out. Keep callin' the cops when you see suspicious stuff. I live in a very Latino area, and ICE is a huge presence. There is no doubt about illegal gang activity, and we've made enough noise that law enforcement sees the need to be here. However, I did feel bad for one of the "day laborers" trying to get work...he was standing in the rain, on crutches. Sometimes, you gotta see both sides. edit..."we" have never made the noise. It was other neighborhood members. I didn't even call the cops when my car got broken into, had my stereo and Duke hat( from the school)stolen, next day see drunk dude walking down the road with my hat on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bird_1972 Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 I posted it on FB too and got 2 random comments. I got 50 about breaking my french press. I thought this was kind of a big deal personally. You broke your French press? Damn! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveFromYellowstone Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 I know a few people personally whos lives are run by crack. Their day consists of finding things to sell or ripping people off for crack money. Nothing else matters. It's hard for a non-drug user to understand. Smoking crack to them is like eating, something necessary to live. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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