Illegal to Legitimate?

[ArcticBlast]

Hey all, thought i'd get all your opinions on this, as i find it fascinating

I got a call from an old friend today. Back when we used to hang out, he had his dirty little hands in a lot of illegal activity. He made a lot of money providing black market goods to other like-minded individuals. A lot.

Now, he owns two legitimate businesses, and he claims that he paid for the first one, in full, with his "dirty money". That business really took off, and he started making even more money (on top of his other 'businesses'). Thats when he started his second one.

I'm not asking for details, of course. I'm just wondering how you all feel about this? How often do you think this happens? I personally think that its great that he's "done something with himself". For a young, highschool dropout to be making 6 digits a year, that's impressive in my book.

Opinions?

Take care,
ArcticBlast

 

[Kayos_]

Interesting. Sounds like he must be a smart guy. That proves a high school diploma is not shit. Good for him. Hope he starts keping it legal now.

 

[treble]

lotsa folks get "sidetracked" from the straight and narrow, some by circumstance some by deviant genes..... I think people going legit happens a lot. I think it depends on how far you are in, sometimes it can be hard to climb out again.....people down there with you won't want you to leave... same with any herd I guess. but its good someone has straightend up if they feel they needed to.

There isn't actually much legit business going on really. If you take out wall street, government, oil and chemical companies, pharma co's. Not any of them are operating in a 100% honest fashion.....doesn't leave much except the little people.....who don't know any better or don't know how to be dishonest in a business way.

treb

 

[ArcticBlast]

So, you think that good old fashioned black market economics might be an ok substitute for, let's say, a business major? Because lets face it, some of the best salesmen and business men in the world are in the drug game.

ArcticBlast

 

[PoppinFresh]

that's really how you want to do it. people for the most part don't want to be drug dealers or living a life of crime constantly looking over your shoulders and freaking out hearing a siren and what not. you take your dirty money and reinvest into something legal and viable so that you can live a life of comfort. i feel OK about it!

Kayos. a HS diploma isn't dirt, it's just EVERYONE has one now. so it's a dime a dozen where as back in 18th century an elementary school drop out could become president.. now you have to be a friggin Ivy league grad and guess what.. we're worse off today than we were then lol. college is great but even now, everyone has a college degree. doesn't mean shit either! it's all about the person.

treble, absolutely... espionage, murder, sabotage, fraud etc etc etc.. legal business is DIRTIER than dirty business by far! lol

arctic, right on. i see these guys on these streets and they're working 18 hour days through all conditions.. but it's mostly because if they don't they'll get shot! i think maybe we need to allow that kind of "incentive" in some places.. DMV comes to mind! lol

 

[ArcticBlast]

that's really how you want to do it. people for the most part don't want to be drug dealers or living a life of crime constantly looking over your shoulders and freaking out hearing a siren and what not. you take your dirty money and reinvest into something legal and viable so that you can live a life of comfort. i feel OK about it!

That sounds faintly familiar to what he was telling me
Supposedly, this was his plan from the get-go.

Great replies guys, keep it up

ArcticBlast

 

[R03]

Hey all, thought i'd get all your opinions on this, as i find it fascinating

I got a call from an old friend today. Back when we used to hang out, he had his dirty little hands in a lot of illegal activity. He made a lot of money providing black market goods to other like-minded individuals. A lot.

Now, he owns two legitimate businesses, and he claims that he paid for the first one, in full, with his "dirty money". That business really took off, and he started making even more money (on top of his other 'businesses'). Thats when he started his second one.

I'm not asking for details, of course. I'm just wondering how you all feel about this? How often do you think this happens? I personally think that its great that he's "done something with himself". For a young, highschool dropout to be making 6 digits a year, that's impressive in my book.

Opinions?

Take care,
ArcticBlast

What you've described there, is the story of many.
Everyone knows it takes money to make money, now especially in the case of being legit.

So what do they do, they make the dirty money, and then go legit. Not many will admit to it, but it's more common than you think.

 

[Ganico]

i see these guys on these streets and they're working 18 hour days through all conditions.. but it's mostly because if they don't they'll get shot! i think maybe we need to allow that kind of "incentive" in some places.. DMV comes to mind! lol

How will they get shot from not hustling for 18 hours straight?

 

[Guest]

Probably because they owe their crack dealer money.

 

[9Lives]

Depends on what you do...if you deal weed. More power to you..should have been legal in the first place!

Robbery, Murder...etc..

Not cool in my book..but if the laws are bogus anyway..go ahead and break em!

 

[PoppinFresh]

How will they get shot from not hustling for 18 hours straight?

LOL it happens! not everything in that game is bang bang. people have their territories and respect. for example, when i was 15/16, a friend and i went lookin for weed on prospect ave, although i didn't smoke at the time cuz of my asthma. i didn't think at that time i could smoke anything because cigarettes made me violently sick with bronchitis and shit. anyway, we came across a puerto rican cat who ran out. he could have just said no but instead he took us around the corner to another dealer, NOT affiliated with his crew. i wish i could remember his name. this is the first time i've forgotten it. he was a cool dude. it was late at night/early morning. YES, I RAN THE STREETS OF THE BRONX LATE NIGHT AS A TEEN. see, some of us do survive these streets. LOL.

on the flip side of things, a few years ago, i was coming from the store, late night again, and i saw two guys, most likely teens, run down the middle of the street (same prospect ave but different section), turn up the block (no cross streets for you cops LOL) and BANG BANG BANG.... like 10 shots real fast.. i immediately thought it was fire crackers ignoring the cold weather of winter and turned my head to witness the muzzle flashes. the kids were shooting up the block. the weird thing of it is that it didn't even bother me. i didn't scatter or run. i just kept walking like nothing happened. shit my heart wasn't even beating fast. now i look back on it i think.. MUTHA****A YOU SHOULD HAVE SCATTERED!

but anyway, it happens but that street life shit aint all what it is in those movies where everyone dies and someone ends up on top. most of the time, THE TRUTH, it's pretty ****in boring, gets old and tired real fast, and most of them end up locked up, not because they're stupid, but mostly because they just stop giving a **** so they get reckless.

 

[yohomz]

Unfortunately, the world revolves around money. Those who have it use it to make more. Why not make enough dirty money to turn it legit? As long as you aren't killing people...

 

[BadKarma]

It was good enough for the Kennedy Family who made their mony during Proabition selling Whisky.

 

[Guest]

prohibition and narcotics have always been the economic equalizer......
just matter how far your willing to risk and if you except the fact that on your way to trying to get some capital .to invest in other occupations .....trades and skills learned living under the economic thresh hold, can bear witness to some of the greatest men are country has ever known,,........some times the only true path for some is to walk threw the flames of hell to find the gates of heaven!!!!!

im all for medical use but it will be a sad day when the legalize mj as .its plant that has fed many hungry mouths and housed many that could not afford other wise and bought pampers when you cant buy pampers with foodstamps or ebt card`........be a very sad day

 

[Kizzattack]

the weird thing of it is that it didn't even bother me. i didn't scatter or run. i just kept walking like nothing happened. shit my heart wasn't even beating fast. now i look back on it i think.. MUTHA****A YOU SHOULD HAVE SCATTERED!

I have had that. Before, I was walking through a dodgy part of town at night freezing cold and soaking wet from the rain with 2 friends.
My 2 friends knew I couldn't run and they looked behind and saw a group of about 13 dodgy looking people, so they ran and left me.
The next thing I knew one of them had left the rest of the group and ran after me and called me over to him.
I thought he needed help or something and by the sounds of him he was just acting like he did. Anyway he just started chatting to me and we were just talking about random stuff and all of a sudden he started punching me in the face, mid conversation.
I was 15 at the time and this guy was about 6"2 and was around 20 years old (he asked me if I know a couple of people that were in the same year as him and they were 20/21 years old) and he was punching me in the face. Now normally, if someones punching you in the face you either punch them back or run, but I just burst out laughing He ran off around the corner and got the rest of them, I casually walked off and they were just stood there looking pretty puzzled. I was pretty puzzled too, I figured in a situation like that I'd automatically either lay into the guy with all I had or get out of there.

 

[PoppinFresh]

I have had that. Before, I was walking through a dodgy part of town at night freezing cold and soaking wet from the rain with 2 friends.
My 2 friends knew I couldn't run and they looked behind and saw a group of about 13 dodgy looking people, so they ran and left me.
The next thing I knew one of them had left the rest of the group and ran after me and called me over to him.
I thought he needed help or something and by the sounds of him he was just acting like he did. Anyway he just started chatting to me and we were just talking about random stuff and all of a sudden he started punching me in the face, mid conversation.
I was 15 at the time and this guy was about 6"2 and was around 20 years old (he asked me if I know a couple of people that were in the same year as him and they were 20/21 years old) and he was punching me in the face. Now normally, if someones punching you in the face you either punch them back or run, but I just burst out laughing He ran off around the corner and got the rest of them, I casually walked off and they were just stood there looking pretty puzzled. I was pretty puzzled too, I figured in a situation like that I'd automatically either lay into the guy with all I had or get out of there.

mannnnnn some ****in friends.. you should beat their asses.. no matter how long ago tthat was.. go find em and beat em down LOL. and, how hard was he hittin u that u laughed it off. i know when i hit someone, blood flows. i ain't about some love taps in a fight. and i know i aint never been hit soft enough to be laughin at it either lol. i'd like to fight that guy HAHAHAHAHA. be good for my ego lol.

but yeah i got stories like that. here's a slayer lol. i remember i had last bit of change and bought a cookie from the corner store after school.. u know the macadamia nut.. DELICIOUS.. and a quarter water (25 cent juice lol). this older dude steps up knowing i got a cookie from the little bag and asked if i could take it back and get a chocolate chip. i figure the store owner wouldn't take it back and i aint want any trouble over a damn cookie. this dude been known to cause trouble. anyway, store dude gave me a chocolate chip. im like damn. you know this sumbitch also had the nerve to ask him to heat up this damn cookie! i aint even know they'd heat up the cookie. next thing i know i get a warm cookie and we walk out the store. he asks for the cookie now and takes half, thanks me and walks off. all he wanted was half a chocolate chip cookie. what's funnier now that i recall, he was always cool with me after that. never bothered me again. i saw him in front the school every once in a while and gave the customary head nod while he stole a couple bucks from one of the other kids. funny shit now the school ended up gettin him arrested. haven't seen him since.

maybe this should be a new thread LOL! gettin WAAAAY off topic lol

 

[Kizzattack]

mannnnnn some ****in friends.. you should beat their asses.. no matter how long ago tthat was.. go find em and beat em down LOL. and, how hard was he hittin u that u laughed it off. i know when i hit someone, blood flows. i ain't about some love taps in a fight. and i know i aint never been hit soft enough to be laughin at it either lol. i'd like to fight that guy HAHAHAHAHA. be good for my ego lol.

I'd love to go and kick their asses. One of them moved away with his whore of a girlfriend. They decided they would start being racist and every time a black/Asian person went near them they would give them a mouthfull of insults and it was only men they would do it to because most men won't hit a girl, and if the person they were shouting at did anything they would spit at them and chase them and if they caught they they would beat the hell out of them, on a few occasions they smashed people in the head with beer bottles . Once I heard of them doing that I just stayed away from them.
If I had the motivation I would get the punch bag and weights out again and buff up, then find them and tell/show them what I think of them.

I have a feeling I laughed at that guy because he was stood there trying to be Mr Hard man, starting a fight with someone who was 5 years younger than him with about 12 people as backup incase I decided to fight back, he just looked so pathetic. His face was full of effort as well and he really did put a lot of his might into those punches. If he was on his own I would have retaliated. People that try to ruin other peoples night out for no reason really pisses me off though. Some people would be scared to come out of their house if that happened to them even if they didn't get hurt, and it's just not fair. I think, if someones out looking for a fight they should go to a boxing club. Most people that do it though know that they would get their ass kicked going anywhere where the people have experience fighting though so they just do it to strangers.

 

[ArcticBlast]

Those are fantastic stories, but what does that have to do with the thread??

ArcticBlast

 

[Kizzattack]

Those are fantastic stories, but what does that have to do with the thread??

ArcticBlast

Absolutly nothing. I will give my opinion on your thread now though.


I think that although your friend paid for the business in 'dirty' money, but is now running a legitimate business is a good thing. I doubt it happens too much. Most people who get involved in crime find it difficult to escape because there is so much money to be made illegally, and it becomes almost an addiction for them.
Although your friend started out on a bad path I think that making the step of investing the dodgy money into a good honest business and setting himself on the straight and narrow is a positive thing and possibly quite a difficult thing for them to do and as long as they stay on the straight and narrow they should be very succesful and live a quality life instead of locked up, which ultimatly would have been the alternative (although I don't know the specifics so this may not have been the case)
Just my imput..

 

[NOKUY]

Jay-Z (the rapper) went from zero to worth 500 million dollars in 10 years.

He'll tell ya straight up that he was able to get into the rap game by money he made slangin' cocaine.

no one would sign him so he used his "dirty money" to start rockafella records....the rest is history.

even tho we cant talk about it specifically, I know there are some people on this here website makin sum pretty damn good dirty money off of weed.