Why are there so many open air drug markets in the U.S?

[elgoucho9]

So I've been watching a few documentaries on Youtube and I'm finding this new phenonimon more than a little odd. Being from the UK here we certainly have places law enforcement know what is going on and monitor it, but nothing like some states in the US have these days (Philidelphia, Washington etc.)

Years ago I remember most places in America having quite heavy drugs laws, and even heavier sentance. I feel like the opioid crisis in some states must be some sort of blackops project to depopulated or else why would you ever allow public consumption of street sourced fentanyl/heroin/cocaine/meth. I notice some places in Canada (Vancouver, etc) have the same type approach where the police will sit and do nothing as addicts IV right in front of them.

Despite being anti prohibition I struggle to see that this kind of unregulated approach won't cause problems, especially knowing your country is full of drugs all cut with insanely powerful opiates like fentanyl.

Does anyone else here think it is a logical conclusion to make the government's are allowing this as a method to depopalate?

Be safe out there people, buy testing kits and only consume a tiny amount at first. Better safe than dead.

 

[Pickledlemons]

Really, in the US? I never would have thought that. Then again, perhaps the war on drugs is dying down, politicians and police are realizing it doesn't work, only fills up the prisons and they get apathetic... Idk. I thought that was more a south american thing.

I doubt its to depopulate. Why would governments want that? More people, more taxes. Governments try to keep birth rates up. At least here in Canada, we act like we are so friendly and multicultural but the reality is our birth rate is so low we have no choice but to take in immigrants to keep the economy running.

 

[Burnt Offerings]

There are many places with more-or-less open drug sales, on both coasts of the USA, but the “classic” OA situations exist running in a triangle from Philadelphia, to New York, and down to Baltimore. Encompassing all of Jersey, obviously. Kensington is probably the largest in the United States. I’m not as familiar with the Midwest scene (Detroit, Chicago, Gary, Cleveland etc.) but there may be some there too.

A lot of these places (Baltimore, Camden, Reading PA etc.) used to be economically quite significant but have been hollowed out be deindustrialization etc and the illegal drug trade is the largest “industry” and segment of the local economy, unfortunately. Even if you wanted to incarcerate everyone who participates in the drug trade in one way or another, there isn’t enough space in prison for em. There are understandings between criminal elements who move major weight and law enforcement in these areas, nobody’s gonna admit to it but it’s true, anyone who’s ever witnessed LEO’s alternating strategy of “squeezing” the drug trade by repressing users/dealers and just letting all the drugs be sold to everyone’s hearts content could tell you that, the (completely understandable) cynicism with the “drug war” mutated into a situation where absolutely nobody gives a shit as long as everyone keeps getting paid

 

[Oldskipper]

We've got them in Dublin city centre. Sheriff st, Oliver bond flats are two that come to mind. There's plenty more though. When mobile phones became ubiquitous, street dealing became a dead art. Its come full circle and now lads are back on spots and the customers just arrive. Their making serious money

 

[deficiT]

DC -----> NSADD

 

[xtcgrrrl]

Encompassing all of Jersey, obviously

Because of course. Dirty Jerz, corrupt as ever

 

[elgoucho9]

We've got them in Dublin city centre. Sheriff st, Oliver bond flats are two that come to mind. There's plenty more though. When mobile phones became ubiquitous, street dealing became a dead art. Its come full circle and now lads are back on spots and the customers just arrive. Their making serious money

Interesting. Are there any other such cases in UK/Ireland? I'd previously assumed this was an exclusively US issue.

 

[somnilicious]

There has always been open air drug markets in America going all the way back to the 60's Harlam but when crack came around every small town seemed to have a ghetto neighborhood with open air drive through crack service, at least in Florida. All the dealers would run up to your car and fight it out to see who got to serve you.

Then when the opioid crisis hit it became similar for heroin in Orlando but instead of standing in the streets addicts would line up at a door as many as 20 deep and push money through a slot and a hand would give you your heroin. There were several similar spots.

They wound up raiding one of these places which was a trailer and they found that the dealers had made an escape tunnel going to another trailer.

 

[Jen X]

Cops in Canada barely go against rapist and murders. They don't bother someone shooting up or charge for possession.

 

[Foreigner]

The U.S. is falling apart right now, basically in slow motion collapse. The cities are filling up with homeless from the collapse of the economy. Public services are under funded and can't cope with what's happening.

It's not that they don't want to enforce the war on drugs anymore. It's that the system is collapsing and they don't have the resources to perform more than basic functions. The writing is on the wall that the time of the U.S. being the primary world power is ending. Not sure why more people don't see it.

 

[Pickledlemons]

Cops in Canada barely go against rapist and murders. They don't bother someone shooting up or charge for possession.

Well in BC its decriminalized now. You can even have it in the car, though I don't think you can be high while driving. I've kind of been waiting to get pulled over and when the officer asks if I have anything on me I'll say 'just a gram of meth and heroin sir, may I go?'

 

[elgoucho9]

The U.S. is falling apart right now, basically in slow motion collapse. The cities are filling up with homeless from the collapse of the economy. Public services are under funded and can't cope with what's happening.

It's not that they don't want to enforce the war on drugs anymore. It's that the system is collapsing and they don't have the resources to perform more than basic functions. The writing is on the wall that the time of the U.S. being the primary world power is ending. Not sure why more people don't see it.

I struggle to see they wouldn't have the resources for this if they wanted to address the matter. I mean come on they sent $80 billion to Ukraine.

Agreed the days of the US being the world's super power are indeed limited.

 

[deficiT]

Having lived in Baltimore, I can see in most parts of the city there are dealers hanging about on the street and corners, I was approached at least a few times by dealers when I was sober. Also copped a bunch as well at one point. My main heroin stint between 2018-2020 I really only had one dealer but he would just meet in the neighborhoods in the city to do business, he was from the county and had a whip. Best dealer I've ever had.

Pretty much just sell weed, crack (or ready rock as it's sometimes called), and capsules filled w/ fentanyl/whatever tf. You can find powder coke but most people just smoke.

Meth has also become bigger in Baltimore, but meth is definitely bigger in DC and all of the surrounding countryside and states. Especially western Maryland and west Virginia.

I can't speak for any other cities, but yes there are a few places where it's more of an open air feeling, but I never really copped in those places cause they're sketchy I'd imagine.

 

[Cheshire_Kat]

This is serious hyperbole, especially in ration to the subject. Overall opioid use has been on the decline as well a crack. These places have always been there. Since fentanyl and xylazine large #'s of former addicts have been dropping out of the scene. Most of those you see on the streets are the down and out homeless that would be on the streets anyways but gravitate to these garbage drug dealing areas.... IMHO. As drugs were always easily available.

Yes, there have been open air markets in Chicago at last going back to the 1960's. I think there are less of them now, in fact. The scene seems to be moving towards roving street dealers instead of relatively fixed sites.

 

[xtcgrrrl]

If I’m in Newark, Paterson or Camden I absolutely know specific sites to go in order to cop. Name your poison, I can get it for you (except fent-free heroin, probably.)

 

[Foreigner]

I struggle to see they wouldn't have the resources for this if they wanted to address the matter. I mean come on they sent $80 billion to Ukraine.

Agreed the days of the US being the world's super power are indeed limited.

Ukraine is not just about war. It is the hub of a major transfer of wealth in the western world. There is an entirely different agenda at work there that we are scarcely aware of.

The US has ignored infrastructure for decades while massive amounts of public money are transferred to private hands. You only have to look at the tax code to understand this.

Middle class people can no longer afford homes in the United States. The cost of an education is obscene. And even if you do have an education, the race to the bottom means that you won't get paid what you should be paid. People with middle-class jobs can't afford a home. Without the foundational resources of a normal life, the economy starts collapsing. This is neoliberalism and a free market at work. Private interests are concentrating wealth on a global level now, superseding that of entire nations. The US wanted a free market and now they have it. A whole generation of people are about to become economic slaves, paying all of their income to landlords. Hell, let's just call them Lords and not landlords.

And when you become homeless, you are basically not a person anymore in society. So of course you'll turn to drugs. What is there that's left to enjoy anymore? The police can't stop it, nobody can. In the major cities now, it's basically just moving piles of shit around from one point to another. The shit is never actually dealt with. All of the latrines are full, there is nowhere to move the shit anymore. That's why open-air drug markets are ignored.

The foundation of society is collapsing so it's not like drug addicts have a system waiting to help them anymore. They have no future because even people who are in a much better position than them have no future. The fiduciary responsibility of the government and society has shifted almost completely to generating wealth for private aristocrats. Public services are disappearing at an alarming rate because all the wealth is being sequestered by a small global minority. And the media has people so distracted with a bunch of bullshit that people don't realize who the real enemy is. So down we go.

 

[somnilicious]

Ukraine is not just about war. It is the hub of a major transfer of wealth in the western world. There is an entirely different agenda at work there that we are scarcely aware of.

The US has ignored infrastructure for decades while massive amounts of public money are transferred to private hands. You only have to look at the tax code to understand this.

Middle class people can no longer afford homes in the United States. The cost of an education is obscene. And even if you do have an education, the race to the bottom means that you won't get paid what you should be paid. People with middle-class jobs can't afford a home. Without the foundational resources of a normal life, the economy starts collapsing. This is neoliberalism and a free market at work. Private interests are concentrating wealth on a global level now, superseding that of entire nations. The US wanted a free market and now they have it. A whole generation of people are about to become economic slaves, paying all of their income to landlords. Hell, let's just call them Lords and not landlords.

And when you become homeless, you are basically not a person anymore in society. So of course you'll turn to drugs. What is there that's left to enjoy anymore? The police can't stop it, nobody can. In the major cities now, it's basically just moving piles of shit around from one point to another. The shit is never actually dealt with. All of the latrines are full, there is nowhere to move the shit anymore. That's why open-air drug markets are ignored.

The foundation of society is collapsing so it's not like drug addicts have a system waiting to help them anymore. They have no future because even people who are in a much better position than them have no future. The fiduciary responsibility of the government and society has shifted almost completely to generating wealth for private aristocrats. Public services are disappearing at an alarming rate because all the wealth is being sequestered by a small global minority. And the media has people so distracted with a bunch of bullshit that people don't realize who the real enemy is. So down we go.

There's more resources then one would think. In Orlando they have free detox, free rehab, then methadone or Subutex can be gotten for free and they put all the addicts who show a desire to do well and stay clean in apartments that were free for a year or even more.

In Daytona there are several places to stay for less than $500 a month
but there are homeless addicts everywhere. In my experience most people that are homeless just want to use drugs and be left alone to their own devices which unfortunately there wasn't many cheap drug using flop houses, though those did exist in a state of gross disrepair as well.

 

[deficiT]

There's more resources then one would think. In Orlando they have free detox, free rehab, then methadone or Subutex can be gotten for free and they put all the addicts who show a desire to do well and stay clean in apartments that were free for a year or even more.

In Daytona there are several places to stay for less than $500 a month
but there are homeless addicts everywhere. In my experience most people that are homeless just want to use drugs and be left alone to their own devices which unfortunately there wasn't many cheap drug using flop houses, though those did exist in a state of gross disrepair as well.

I think the best bet for someone who is homeless with no real income, as long as they live in a fair enough state, would be to get on Medicaid. Go through a detox program or rehab and they will usually set you up with a halfway house afterwards if so desired. Use that time to find a job, maybe find a roommate, and get yourself into some shelter.

I know a lot of people that have gotten back on their feet like that, including me (tentatively)

 

[Hannah Capps]

The U.S. is falling apart right now, basically in slow motion collapse. The cities are filling up with homeless from the collapse of the economy. Public services are under funded and can't cope with what's happening.

It's not that they don't want to enforce the war on drugs anymore. It's that the system is collapsing and they don't have the resources to perform more than basic functions. The writing is on the wall that the time of the U.S. being the primary world power is ending. Not sure why more people don't see it.

I see it. Sad. It is indeed like a slow-motion train wreck.

 

[Jen X]

In Canada middle class with no drug issues are becoming homeless. In 8 years our country has been destroyed.
The government does nothing for addicts outside of methadone suboxone and morphine. No rehab space for months then tossed out on the street. Why get clean to end up homeless? I wouldn't. The average 1 bedroom apartment is 2500$ and good luck getting that when competing with people making 200k a year. Most want an income of 3x the rent, craziness
If I didn't buy before the prices jump I would probably be homeless.
I live off insurance money from an accident (that I pay tax on every year) and have MS. Even with good credit I would be turned down for an apartment
The west is falling and our leaders are protecting the rich.
Another protest is happening September 8th including jews Muslims and Christians working together, like what Canada used to be.