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Merchandising or Murder

Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 10 months ago to Philosophy
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Here's how a lucrative business in the Middle East works: About once every six weeks in Asscrackastan, a soldier will pick up about a hundred kilograms of pure heroin, worth six hundred thousand dollars to the seller. Poppies grow like weeds and require less water than wheat. It's worth eight million dollars to the gangs in the USA and it is bought by the kilo and cut for sale. It's worth $40 million on the street. When you consider the stuff grows for free, that's a pretty damn good profit. Now here's my question: Should we be applauding all those ambitious business people or should we be condemning them? And if so, why?

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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Our local supermarket pharmacy discounts drugs heavily. Still, they are a bit higher than Canadian, but worth it for the 1 on 1 relationship, especially when there is a screw up on a crucial med.
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Starting with buying medicines from Canada or Mexico where they are affordable. Just keep it whimsical cialis and viagra are fifty five pesos at 17 pesos to the dollar for full strength dose at my local farmacia. Since that is too much for someone on heart condition medication I've found half a tablet is sufficient and immediate continuation or maintenance is 1/4. That's 100 mg tablets. that's a dollar a dose.

    No complaints

    The metaprolyl and chlorthalidone regimen are one third the five years in the past price in the US.
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I stayed 19 until I was 29, and stayed there until 39 and then gave up because I looked like 59. At my age, I no longer give a F.
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Daughters? Are you kidding? You haven't a chance. When it comes to daughters, especially the youngest the strongest of men become marshmallows.
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Softie is when my adopted youngest daughter wants gothic contact lenses....First I got some practice ones and the other necessary goop and taught her how to use them. Took me two or three hours the first time. Took her about five minutes. I guess I'm hoisted. The deal was double or nothing.
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    No matter how erudite you may be, you are starting to sound like a bigot who will brook no opposition If a person is misguided or not understanding, the fact that they are in the Gulch means that they are taking steps to understand the truth. Shaming them does not do anyone any good. I don't want to turn our mutual discussions into friction, but you are really beginning to piss me off. I've read your every post and I think you're better than that.
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Ok you want Larry King...I give you Larry King.

    Hey out there you can say what you want and no facts or sources are required. Now nice nice....
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Reminds me of an incident in the 50's. I discovered that I had distant relatives in Israel. They were from my Grandma's side of the family. It was just a few years after they created the country and everything was in short supply. I asked them what was it that I could send them in the way of food, clothing, or whatever. In those days I didn't have much cash. The major request was for Levi jeans. Note, the specific brand. I asked if other jeans would do, because I could get them a lot cheaper than Levis. Never got an answer.
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    OK Michael, you are well informed. But ease up on the nasty. You'd make a heluva bad teacher with that attitude, and a big part of the Gulch is that we're here to learn.
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    The black market exists only because of two things: It's cheaper, or you can get something that's otherwise prohibited Illustration: Cigarettes purchased out of country (no taxes or it is just lots cheaper) and of course, drugs.
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Those were quickie sidelines like blue jeans to Russia on the grain ships. Buy for a buck at Good will the more raggedy or as it's known now 'distressed' the better. the return was....remarkable...cash or barter and amazingly the cash was the real thing. the last trip the skipper allowed a small container on deck for ship's crew baggage storage.

    I had 50 army duffle bags stuffed with jeans of any and all sizes. good will shipped most of them to my location where the ship was docked. No idea how much the rest of the crew had.We got one buyer and just off loaded the container onto a flat bed. Other times it was a trade for military accessories which in turn went to some surplus stores and so on. St. Petersburg once Vladivostok twice, mostly Odessa and Sevastopol. When that 'suitcase' style economy died out it was a chapter in history from serfdom to capitalism but it resulted in 100 plus billionaires and not much for the folks on the bottom of the heap. Tzar Serf relationship had survived even fed on the Communists and was still infecting the thinking.

    As far as US customs was concerned don't volunteer anything. One idiot was asked about wood and volunteered he had some wooden cigar boxes. Cuban cigars bought in Dubai. All confiscated. the inspector looked at the guy as if to say "are you really that stupid?" But they are hard on hardwoods from vanishing species. The big deal was the dog searches. explosives weapons, drugs....Pass that it was home free time. In Israel the demand was Bench Made knives everyone asking about them. Ahh the salad days...My rule was if they let us pass it was legal.

    In the 60's I spent six months on merchant ships before going Army....Skipper on that ship would buy motorcycles in Japan. lash them in the cross passageway with suddenly appearing US plates they disappeared in Seattle....our first port of call on the return runs. Back then stuff was cheap in Japan and especially in Hong Kong.

    On those jeans? Why I barely broke even!
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    That's why....Government taxation creates criminal activity and this time to get rid of crime the government taxes are being forced down meaning they aren't going to get what they assumed. Notice those classified as patients versus recreational already are exempt from taxation which it looks like in Washington State is 102%.

    Next time I want an answer I'll just go to google instead of the uninformed.


    Colorado's Recreational Marijuana Prices are Falling ...
    fortune.com/2015/06/22/marijuana-pric...

    Jun 22, 2015 - The price for 1/8th of an ounce of recreational pot fell some 40% in ... After about 18 months of legal recreational marijuana sales in Colorado, the market keeps ... The Colorado Department of Revenue reported $4.39 million in taxes ... in a move meant to further squeeze out the state's black market for the ...
    Colorado Cuts Marijuana Tax, Targets Black Market, While ...
    www.forbes.com/.../colorado-cuts-mari......
    Jun 10, 2015 - Colorado Cuts Marijuana Tax, Targets Black Market, While Oregon Eyes 20% Tax ... tax holiday on September 16, 2015, from the 10% state sales tax. Gov. ... into law, noting that this should lower the price of legal cannabis.
    Taxing Marijuana: The Washington and Colorado Experience
    taxfoundation.org/.../taxing-marijuan......
    by J Henchman - ‎Related articles
    Aug 25, 2014 - Colorado collects tax revenue from marijuana sales through a 15 percent excise ... market rate; a 10 percent state tax on retail marijuana sales; a state sales tax of ... taxes; and local marijuana taxes such as a 3.5 percent tax in Denver. ... [14] By comparison, Washington taxes cigarettes at about 104 percent ...
    Marijuana Costs In The US: How Black Market, Retail And ...
    www.ibtimes.com/marijuana-costs-us-ho......
    Jul 8, 2014 - A step above the black market stuff is medical cannabis, which is ... The price of street, medical and retail marijuana in Colorado and Washington. ... in 2012, the after-tax retail price for a gram of pot will be about $17, or $482 per ounce. .... Agustín Carstens said governments should plan for "a potentially ...
    [PDF]market size and demand for marijuana in - Colorado.gov
    https://www.colorado.gov/.../Market%2......
    by MK Light - ‎2014 - ‎Cited by 8 - ‎Related articles
    Mar 25, 2014 - vendors and individuals who represent the black market. ... Using the latest retail marijuana tax statistics from the Department of Revenue, we ... now use actual price and quantity data from the regulated market to compare the ... several state and local governments have either de-criminalized marijuana ...
    Recreational pot: $53 million in tax revenue to Colorado
    money.cnn.com/2015/02/12/news/.../col...
    Feb 12, 2015 - But medical weed is taxed at a much lower rate -- just 2.9%, which makes it more appealing. ... It may not be a lot in comparison to the state GDP but I bet their happy to ... taxes (and low medical MJ prices) keep the black market thriving. ... Everything our government has told us about cannabis use is a lie.
    [PDF]Marijuana Taxes, Pricing, and the Black Market
    sam-vt.org/wp-content/.../12/MJ_Taxes...
    A major argument for the legalization of marijuana has been tax income. High taxes can be ... Both Colorado and Washington have implemented marijuana taxes at state and local ... heavy use by adults, but high prices also encourage black market sales. Two ... the current gray market servicing minors. As a side effect, ...
    This Is What Legalizing Marijuana Did to the Black Market in ...
    reason.com/archives/2014/10/30/the-li...
    Oct 30, 2014 - ... $60 for an eighth of an ounce after taxes, compared to something like $40 for ... "The black-market prices are definitely lower than recreational prices," says ... But patients are exempt from most of the taxes on marijuana, and ... thrive in parts of Colorado where local governments have banned pot stores.
    Colorado Will Lower Marijuana Tax Rate | The Weed Blog
    www.theweedblog.com/colorado-will-low...
    Jun 8, 2015 - The price of legal recreational marijuana in a state will largely determine the extend of the effect on the marijuana black market in that state.
    Price War Heats Up Between Legal Marijuana and the Black ...
    time.com/money/2965578/marijuana-pric...
    Jul 8, 2014 - Can legal marijuana compete on price with the black market? Colorado, which legalized recreational marijuana in January, is a the best ... started out selling marijuana for around $450 an ounce, including tax. ... Gauging how these prices compare to the black market is difficult: Street prices vary widely; ...
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    that is not the answer to the question. If you don't know say so. I'm not looking for excuses. You know about hens teeth?
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    All too true. However, Political Correctness prevents politicians from saying that right out loud. The country is so screwed up that it is actually confusing to try to categorize the various evils extant.
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Not a contraction such as IT IS but a possessive and singular as is the subject of the sentence.

    Some possesive forms use no apostrophe as the word itself makes it understood. It is theirs. Now you have a pendantic grammarian. I don't use post 1980 PC.
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    No the government wants more money and sees a cash cow. ergo sum prices go up. A black market arises and for some is quite profitable. I've run cigarettes twice. North Carolilna to a change over smuggler in Maryland or Delaware and no sales tax Oregon to heavily taxed Washington. No big truck loads but enough to pay the fuel and eating bill going one way or the other. say 500 or so cartons with a $5 to $10 profit margin. Also mailed using USPO by the case the Filipino brand Marlboros from Diego Garcia to the the lower 48 or brought them back on the ship I crewed . Rum from Puerto Rico $48 a bottle retail back then in Washington State $5 a bottle in Puerto Rico - No customs checks between San Juan and Texas. Barralitos. So sue me. Washington quit importing it having bought cheaper than I could get it plus shipping. I made my nut at $25 a bottle. Straight business deal. Of course....I paid tax on the income....I deducted it from what the government owed me in reneged retriement benefits.
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  • Posted by johnpe1 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    and the black market in Washington State, and many
    other States ... they get the rain out there! -- j
    .
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    So one person's line to not cross is ok to violate but anothers is not. Sales to juveniles in Oregon has been a fact of life and in some cases made by teaching staff at the schools.

    The easy metaphor or is that meth-aphoric is remember the USA is a nation that truly treats it's dogs better than it's children and in some parts of the country a 12 year old is AKA next years new mommy. I don't think those 'hoods bother with drugging them first I believe it's peer pressure and parents who probably got there first. Well? Cannon Fodder production is important and so is a steady suipply of Baby Factories.
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 10 months ago in reply to this comment.
    And Oregon I mean New Amsterdam West could use the jobs and a new industry. Producing for the black market in Colorado might be just the thing.
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