When we finally start talking IN A SERIOUS WAY about LEGALIZATION, the only system to take away from organized crime the mountain of money that makes it untouchable, I expect hard clashes, almost a CIVIL WAR … WITH LAWYERS!
Yes, because among the categories that benefit from drug trafficking but aren’t themselves likely to end up in jail, lawyers are certainly in Pole Position.
I have some lawyers in the family, who have always told me about their profession, their clients, their “budgets” and typical price lists, BUT … WATCH OUT … THAT WAS BEFORE the ARRIVAL of COCAINE!
The money a “typical” lawyer earned, even in not particularly wealthy areas, has always been quite respectable … BUT … today I’ve been able to see that something has changed: there’s been a real “genetic mutation” in the category, and the X-Men, the super-powerful mutants, are the defense lawyers of the army of Pushers/Addicts that infests the streets.
I had the chance, thanks to the difficulties of the Italian language, to accompany some pushers to their lawyers for the usual consultations and it was very easy to do the math: A “normal” pusher sees his lawyer on average at least one meeting a month, and for the pleasure of the chat he spends no less than 500 euros … TAX-FREE … (because off the books, obviously).
… And I’m talking about “normal pusher life” … not “emergencies” (like when they catch them red-handed and/or dump them in a CPR) …
To do the math on a “macroscopic” level: The pleasant little town where I live doesn’t reach 30,000 inhabitants and has no fewer than about 15 “real” pushers (I mean full-time ones, the ones who never tried to do anything else) … I’ll leave the sad rest of the calculations to the reader!