Most recent public comments by Sammie Magargee https://nowcomment.com/users/51070 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313965 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313965 Throughout the essay, many of the drug dealers mention that if they were to work in a legal economy, they would "be good" and have "different friends." However, working in a legal economy for them posed issues for them because they could never get the kind of managerial position they had in the drug ring. This makes working in the legal economy a deterrent. They were wise with how they operated their drug dealing business. They are shopkeepers, bookkeepers, accountants, sellers, and essentially business men working in an illegal economy. This is not to say that what they're doing is completely illegal, but the way they have figured out how to avoid arrests and being sly about their operations is that of a savvy business person. Wed, 03 Apr 2019 14:55:58 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313956 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313956 For Benzie who ended up working in a health gym working for white people would not necessarily be an attractive position for him. He went from having some power to having no power at all and serving the people who don't look at him twice or pay him any attention. It would make drug dealing seem like a viable career option because at least he would exert some power over his subordinates. However, when he is the subordinate, it makes him angry and mad at his overall situation. Wed, 03 Apr 2019 18:43:04 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313943 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313943 Many of the arguments we see between the drug dealers and their comrades come from how they view their operations should go down. However, as you mentioned, Stringer cannot talk Avon down from his view of how his "corners" should be run. Unfortunately, Avon is so engrossed in his traditional views of the street, he cannot be talked down. Wed, 03 Apr 2019 14:19:48 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313924 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313924 It is counterintuitive to think that drug dealers don't make money. They raise the price of the drug in order to make a profit, so one would think that they make enough money to sustain themselves and their lifestyle. However, some drug dealers use their supply to get high and end up in the same cycle of using that their buyers are in. They don't have expendable income because when they have the drugs, alcohol, hotels, and parties enticing them, they cannot see the light in front of them. They are not thinking about their future and what they could possibly be spending money on. As mentioned, they have limited options for what they can spend their money on constructively, thus, they see what is in front of them (the heroin, crack, or cocaine). Wed, 03 Apr 2019 21:01:54 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313886 https://nowcomment.com/documents/136072?scroll_to=1313886 I found this part to be particularly interesting when the article mentioned, "It was only once her fully immersed himself in street culture's underground economy as a powerful figure - a dealer - that he was able to stop using crack." I was intrigued by this statement because prior to being a drug dealer, he was using often and then went cold turkey. It makes me wonder if drug dealers see the emotional toils and desperation of their customers and users, that after seeing that, they do not want to use anymore. The dealers can see what it does to people. Throughout The Wire, we don't see Stringer, Avon, or Omar "get high off their own supply" which is a testament to being on the other side of drug dealing. Wed, 03 Apr 2019 14:05:40 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307778 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307778 I think there are many different areas of the country that are diversely populated, I just don't think that there is much attraction for them in small rural towns. Historically, they do not move to small southern cities because of the underlying racism in these towns. People do not want to live in an area where they are going to be discriminated against or do not have people who look like them. In major cities, it is much more comfortable for them to live in these places because they are able to get jobs, housing, and make friends in more ethnically diverse areas. Mon, 25 Mar 2019 21:17:31 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307774 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307774 I understand your points, but I don't necessarily understand why racism is even still prevalent at all and why there is a need to blame someone else for one's own wrongdoings? However, one is human and one doesn't want to blame themselves for making a mistake. Unfortunately, white people still believe that they are of a superior race and that black people are inferior. But I am wondering when that day will change. Mon, 25 Mar 2019 21:10:07 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307772 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307772 I agree. I think there are many more strides we need to take in order to give black people more of a voice. There are still racists and bigots who hate black people in this country and our current president gives them a voice to air such concerns. Obama was not fully able to fight for equality for black people because he would have been talked about as a racist towards white people. However, so many people disagreed with Obama's thoughts and ideals, that they ended up electing someone the total opposite of Obama. This resembles Lincoln's presidency because many southern democrats hated Lincoln because he freed the slaves and after Lincoln, politicians shifted their mindset after Lincoln was killed. Mon, 25 Mar 2019 21:02:23 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307769 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307769 It is ironic when thinking about the War on Drugs and how white rural people are more likely to be punitive than black people. However, black people are more likely to be incarcerated for committing much less heinous crimes. This is an ongoing problem for our country and is evident of modern slavery. We are still treating black people the same way we treated them 200 years ago. We are just filling up our prisons with black people as a way to "enslave" and "control" them. While it may not be blatant slavery or racism, there is a blurred line there between mass incarceration of black people and owning them as slaves. Tue, 26 Mar 2019 02:12:51 -0400 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307764 https://nowcomment.com/documents/134033?scroll_to=1307764 I would like to say that a black man being president was a good thing for this country, but unfortunately, I think it made the racists louder, bigoted, and cruel. While Obama certainly made social and political strides for equality, he was quieted when he was being "overly black" or "giving black people more power than the white man." Unfortunately, I think that this is something that peeved the radical conservatives were not okay with. Hence, the people who did not have as much of a voice, or a voice that didn't have a platform, elected a racist and sexist president. The president, now, hounds people for being of a different race or breed than he and he just reversed all of Obama's post-racial hopes. Thu, 28 Mar 2019 10:41:31 -0400