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The Fourth Wall
In Depth Feature:
By Greg ByGug Reed
Staff Writer
Several weeks ago, someone
mentioned in class that drug
possession charges involving
marijuana were rising on college
campuses around the U.S. This
sparked my interest. My
experiences with marijuana were
about drugs and college, and as a
side note maybe this newfound
knowledge would help me
understand why drug charges were
on the rise. I first started with a
few questions: How easy is it to
score marijuana? How does a drug
dealer do what he does? What are
the pitfalls of smoking marijuana?
They were basic, and could even
be answered by a quick Google
search, but it was a starting point
to a two-weekend glimpse into the
local marijuana culture.
I sat on my friend’s bed
watching him delicately peel open
a cheap cigar. Earlier that evening
we had opened up a grungy
looking sandwich baggy and
separated the marijuana from its
seeds and stems. It was a very
simple process that I learned within
minutes, but now he needed to
prepare a blunt. He dug his
fingernails in along the seams of
the machine rolled wrapper. My
first question slipped easily into
my mind, as I picked up the
discarded cardboard box used to
hold several more cigars. “Why
Dutch Masters?” I asked my friend.
He replied with an‘almost customer
testimonial rhythm, “They re easier
to re-roll, and they taste decent.” I
sniffed at the air while he continued
to peel open the cigar. The strong
scent of sugary sweet honey and
tobacco clouded the air. He
pressed firmly, so I could hear a
cracking noise from the wrapper.
This noise signifies that he was
properly opening the seal. Then
the wrapper snapped the wrong
way, and in frustration with himself,
my friend let loose a slew of curse
words, but he shook his head to
dispel the mistake. “I can just
smoke a smaller blunt,” he said, as
he cut the wrapper away. He
placed the weed in the wrapper, and
proceeded to do the familiar drug
movie motions of licking the
wrapper shut.
After he smoked most of the
blunt, my friend was sufficiently
prepared to start answering my
questions. We first set down a few
ground rules: 1. He speaks with
anonymity, and is to be only
referred to as Trabajo. 2. Although,
I cannot reveal his prices, Trabajo
has told me that he could
technically get me high for 71 cents.
3. Trabajo would not let me reveal
who his customers are or where
they are located
trafficking of drugs, he replied, “I
get to walk everywhere which
means none of that ‘you crossed
the yellow line’ crap cops pull
when they realize that you’re
listening to rap music. I really dig
the fact that the floors are on top
of each other. As far as I'm
concerned, each floor is a new
neighborhood. Except these
neighborhoods are only an
elevator ride apart.”
When talking about profits,
Trabajo added, “I'll throw you
some nice round numbers. If I buy
some grass for $100, I always get
at least $400 in return. If I feel like
etting my hustle on a bit, it can be
more likely to smoke weed, they are,
but that’s not what I mean. [ mean
that they’re less likely to go to the
police which makes me infinitely
more comfortable approaching
them. That’s the biggest worry I
have when I approach someone -
that they’re going to try to use me
to get rid of a parking ticket.”
comment to be a bit racist, Trabajo
then clarified with, “White folks are
easier 0 rip-off though, SO no
worries.’
= We reviewed the question/
answer session, so Trabajo could
look over the questions and
any potentially
lifetime users of marijuana.
Photo by: Justin Zickar
When asked about his fear of
reprisal from authority, Trabajo
answered, “I don’t know if fear is
the right word to use. Actually, it’s
not the right word. I consider the
police before every transaction, I
consider the police when I’m
smoking, I consider the police
when I’m shitting, I consider the
police all the time, man. It is because
I consider the police so often that I
don’t fear getting caught. I mean,
if I think I might get caught, I don’t
go through with the transaction.
Safety first. Money second.”
I then asked Trabajo how the
college community eased his
upwards of $600. I usually settle
for $400 though. Generally
speaking, the more money I want
to make the more risks I have to
take.”
Trabajo then shared his inside
remarks on how hg finds new
customers, enlightening me by
saying, “From most likely to least
likely to happen: They come
recommended from a current
customer, they’re at a party drunk,
and they’re in the store buying
blunts, or they’re black.”
I replied, “What do you mean
by ‘they’re black?’ Trabajo quickly
said, “I don’t: mean that blacks are
problematic ones. Many questions
that dealt with the specifics of
pricing, or how he charged
different customers different
prices for virtually the same amount
of marijuana were deemed both
highly suspect and hrshifel to
Trabajo’s sales.
During this pick over, I found
Trabajo’s rejections were based on
protecting his business, which
forced an awry realization from me.
product, Trabajo’s practices and
goals were no different from any
small business. He is in this market
to make money, not for some kind
of criminal thrill. He found a way
to make quick cash with relatively
little risk. He maintains a loyal
customer base, which feeds him
more customers and more money.
Even the way he spoke about
people, that under normal
circumstances ~~ would be
considered his friends, was cruelly
economical. Friends were
scrutinized by personality and past
smoking experiences; through this,
Trabajo utilized their traits,
specifically, laziness,
desperateness, and general
intelligence, to charge the person
different prices for the same
amount of marijuana.
I next fonnd myself digging into
another part of the drug culture:
The Buyers. Again through a long
time friend, I found two people who
culture. Unlike Trabajo, I found the
buyers to be much less informed.
They’re knowledge of the
marijuana market was far different,
and comparatively, lacked much of
behind the scenes knowledge that
Trabajo, and presumably other
dealers have.
What I took away from them
were the clear answers to my final
two 2 fundamental questions. How
easy it to score marijuana? And
what are the pitfalls of smoking
marijuana?
This time, I was taken. to a
cramped, insect-infested attic with
a single filth covered window. On
a decrepit desk to my right, there
rested a stem of incense burning a.
stuffy fruity smell. I sat on a bed
doused with toys and rat feces. I
watched my two friends sit on the
floor preparing to smoke weed out
of a bong.
My interview this time would
be less structured, but would
recognize similar ground rules to
the interview with Trabajo. This
time, humorously, they requested
to be referred to as Godzilla and
Smokey. I first centered my
questions on the ease of getting
marijuana. In Godzilla’s case, he
could easily get weed from a host
of different people. He always had
someone on hand, ready to be
called at a moment’s notice.