Pogo The Clown wrote: ↑Tue Sep 24, 2019 10:36 am
mafiastudent wrote: ↑Mon Sep 23, 2019 10:01 pm
I don't mean to butt myself into your conversation with Maxie, but how exactly is the mafia hurting normal citizens? To paraphrase Maxie from many of his posts...if you buy drugs, that's your choice (and not necessarily sold by mafia), if you take out a loan from a loanshark, it's your choice, etc.
Drugs do hurt "normal citizens". If a drug addict can't support themselves or their families that becomes a burden on society. Same for abused or neglected children of drug addicts. If a junkie has to resort to robbery to support their habit that hurts society. If an addict commits an act of violence that affects society., etc.
As for everything else the mob has stolen billions from the citizenry. From all the inflated prices in construction, garbage, trucking, garment center, airports, docks and all the various legitimate industries that were subject to labor racketeering over the decades. All the unions they have pilfered for the last century. The Gambinos alone have stolen hundreds of millions of dollars with their credit card and cramming scams. The mob has caused good knows how much financial harm through their stock scams, mortgage fraud, healthcare fraud, run of the mill extortion of legitimate businesses, etc.
Pogo
Pogo,
I would love to argue this point, but alas, I have nothing to base my argument on without research (including reading the suggested book by Dack).
And I'm not saying that what you posted is wrong. Obviously, it's not. However, if a finger is to be pointed at the mafia there are other organizations not classified as "organized crime" that also deserve recognition for pilfering from the citizenry. The mafia isn't the end of be all responsible for inflated prices in any of those industries you mentioned.
And the mafia also isn't responsible for making a drug addict a drug addict with all the trickle-down effects you mentioned. It's akin to saying Jeffrey Dahmer's parents or any serial killer's parents are responsible for them murdering innocent people. I'm not saying drug addiction doesn't affect society the way you stated. However, to blame it on the mafia isn't fair. They might not even be the ones at the top of the drug trade anyway. And to put it in a mafia land perspective, blaming drug addiction on the mafia is like Anthony Comello's lawyer blaming the internet for him killing Cali. Or people blaming his parents for Cali's murder.
In fact, to take a point further (and maybe I'm going off the deep end here) but why not blame drug addiction on doctors who prescribe pain medication for people suffering from chronic pain? Or blame doctors for making drug addicts out of mothers who gave birth by cesarean section because they got a taste of Vicodin after giving birth and wanted to keep that good feeling going? Or move it to "legal" drugs like caffeine or nicotine, alcohol, and on and on. The cycle of the blame can be endless for any type of "drug" or anything for that matter.
When does it end? And why should the mafia continue to get the short end of the stick with unfair and biased trials?