How Drug Gangs Actually Work | How Crime Works | Insider
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- čas přidán 8. 05. 2024
- Neil Woods spent 14 years as an undercover police officer infiltrating some of the most dangerous organized crime groups in the UK. He speaks to Insider about his experience with drug dealing gangs, and how the drug market works.
Woods is now a board member of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership, an American nonprofit organization seeking to overhaul current punitive drug policies and lessen the incidences of crime and addiction.
Woods is co-author of "Good Cop, Bad War" with JS Rafaeli, and author of "Drug Wars: The Terrifying Inside Story of Britain's Drug Trade."
You can buy Neil's books below.
www.amazon.com/Neil-Woods/e/B...
00:00 - Intro
00:11 - Policing of Drug Gangs
01:36 - The Marketplace
02:47 - The User-Dealer
03:54 - The Bosses
06:10 - Tools of the Trade
06:51 - Going Undercover (The Burger Bar Boys)
09:07 - Corruption
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How Drug Gangs Actually Work | How Crime Works | Insider
This guy is amazing. I have never heard cop be so blatantly honest about how pointless the war on drugs is
i mean most cop are just salary man like you and me, they do their "job" w/o questioning it, go home and pay their rent.
but some, like this one, is passionate about his work. he will bring change.
The Wire is one of the best shows ever syndicated. Created by a former homicide detective and a police reporter, it examines how destructive the war on drugs is in depth.
They learned nothing from their *_two_* opium wars, sadly.
Education and legalisation is the only way
He forgot to mention the actual number of his people running the worlds drugs.
Imagine going in with good intentions and realising all you've done is made it worse. You can tell that weighs heavy on him.
@Ryan Alex as I think most people do if they look at the evidence (Aka the decades of history, the countries that decriminalize like portugal vs ones that make it harder like Sweden)
@Ryan Alex the gangs are doing the war on each other
@@DanishCamp Yes, the state trying to crush the drug market is pointless when this system of criminal action is unsustainable. The clashes would continue to weaken each gang while the demand goes to the proposed legal market.
@@SpeakerWiggin49 and how would it be any different if it was legal?
@@DanishCamp Eventually the gang activity would die out. That is if investment of those tax dollars addresses the addiction issue. Unfortunately even in places with legal weed the dealers are making bank just by selling cheaper crap.
I read his book and was on my edge of my seat for the whole thing. Read it in one go. He goes into detail about some of the cases he worked. Highly recommend.
Okay. So this guy used to blow me and other thugs in the back alley.
We all got arrested after trusting him with the qumm-bag.
Baldie literally gulped it in front of us, then we were raided.
@@tibettenballs4962 wot
@@tibettenballs4962 probably "under covers" with him a few times
@@tibettenballs4962 great wording on that second sentence
@@tibettenballs4962woods the puds
He explained it so well and also shows exactly why the War on Drugs will never stop. It's a beautiful and never-ending supply for private prisons to keep getting inmates and money. The fines and lawyer fees also create industry and on and on.
Private prisons don’t exist in the US.
Sounds like military industrial complex, too.
This was a man who saw a problem, wanted to solve it, figured out the true root of the problem, and is still trying futilely to stop it in spite of everything. The level of dedication and self awareness Neil has put forth really is something to aspire to and I hope he knows this.
You would think if anyone understood what the true purpose of any drug war is, it would be a royal subject of the empire which once waged a war with China over the right to sell opium from the east India company in China.
Sorry. Waged *_TWO_* wars over the right to sell opium.
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
the rightousness of God is available through faith in Jesus Christ.
there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
in Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgivness of sins according to the riches of His grace.
I agree - he is an actual hero. But I don't know about it being a futile effort. The world is starting to make progress in understanding the nature of drug harm, and realising it's the War On Drugs that's truly futile. Portugal has decriminalised illicit use of drugs..
@@kwokalisaur The war on drugs was never a futile attempt - the ones who pushed to most for it got exactly what they wanted: more budget allocated to national security and security/military materielle. The positive way of thinking about this is that, at least, we're all quite a bit more aware of how some parts of most governments operate and how we all need to re-evaluate our collective stance on drugs, drug abuse and drug consumers/abusers. Portugal, amongst others such as the Netherlands, has achieved enormous success in minimizing the fallout of their opiod epidemic. A lot more needs to be done, however. Sex workers were mentioned in the video: they are the most fragile and vulnerable category out there that is also most at risk of being forcibly turned into a drug abuser. They are also one of the most likely categories to not seek assistance from friends, family and social workers. A lot more needs to be done to get people like sex workers back into the "light" (not intended in a religious sense) and reassured that they, too, deserve to be treated as human beings, to be respected and to be given assistance. So long as groups of people are forced to remain so vulnerable, we will never be able to get out of this mess.
In college, my weed dealer was a friend of a friend who had formerly been an electrician selling weed on the side just to friends and stuff, but then he got arrested for it and went to prison for I think two years. After that, he could no longer get a job as an electrician, so he started selling weed full time. The system in action!
Haha yup that’s happens often for sure
Honestly, I’m all on board for legalization.
Exactly not a lot of people understand the system is corrupt, you’re meant to stay stuck in that vicious cycle
@@rossjobe3787 I’m pretty sure the point is that we’re told the system is supposed to cut down on drug crimes but their anecdote is about how it actually does the opposite. It’s a bad system if getting caught can lead you to commit more crime. Especially when the thing you get caught for is basically harmless.
@@rossjobe3787 but the thing is we know that this way we currently do things doesn’t really stop people from making these decisions and it doesn’t seem to prevent repeat offenses. In fact it often seems to lead to more of them.
Personal accountability isn’t what’s in question here. It’s about how we spend absurd amounts of money to “get drugs off the street” despite the fact that all we’re doing is making the situation worse. You’re stating the obvious point that breaking laws has consequences but that doesn’t refute anything that’s being said here. The system isn’t bad because people generally face consequences for breaking the law and getting caught. It’s bad because it doesn’t do what it’s supposed to do.
this is the best interview iv ever seen. its eye opening.
I've heard his story before. I'm glad he realized how negative policing drugs is. I'm a former herion addict and I personally believe nothing will change with "the war on drugs" until we legalize them and get rid gangs controlling them. We could reduce OD's by doing that but also encourage people towards treatment when they buy
Hardcore drugs like heroin and meth should remain criminal. They ruin lives merely by use and hollow out families and, by extension, societies.
I'm completely for legalization of marijuana, shrooms, LSD, etc., but heroin and meth and similar drugs have no place to be legal to possess, manufacture, or use.
Organized street crime would lower since gangs cant compete against pharm and get ran off cause they cant compete
@@seananderson5334 I'm afraid that in my opinion as far as the uk goes the government has 2 bad options. Either leave things as they are or get involved. 20% of heroin users use the vast majority of the heroin available. I can only speak for myself but it wasn't my intention to turn out how I did.
The lifestyle is so destructive. All that I do know is that what we have now isn't working
I think the problem is if this source of income is taken away from criminals what will they turn to?they won't just call it a day.
The solution’s not to “get rid of gangs,” because someone fills the vacuum. The way we get rid of them by proxy is by diverging from austerity measures and focus on rehabilitating criminals rather than punishing them, so they can leave prison with a stable and legal place in society
He is so calm, yet you can sense that he has some terrible memories. I admire this man.
185 likes no comments dam guys.
Not being a hater. But I think he's just a scholar on the subject so no bad memories. Lol
@@christianpalmer5471 he literally said he was undercover for some time. Dealing with murderers..
@Money Man have you ever been to Kensington in Philadelphia? Really nice neighbors (no sarcasm -- they were)... But oh my was that a potentially life-threatening couple of months I lived there. My nextdoor neighbor was a 93 year old great-grandmother who sold crack and fentanyl from her stoop because her "useless children and grandchildren ain't paying the damn bills". And there were multiple stabbings on her stoop in the 7 months I lived there, most in broad daylight.
This town looks like a playground compared to Kensington.
@@christianpalmer5471 he was undercover in multiple gangs for years of his life. He has plenty of bad memories. Though I imagine you'll figure that out as you watch the video.
His most extraordinary statement must have been “we interrupted the market for a full 2 hours”. Guess the supply will stop when the demand does.
The whole point of the video is that demand will never go away.
@@bastiboyza you need to create a world where more people have quality lives where productive work is more rewarding than any high. good luck.
@@bastiboyza Rehab doesnt address demand from most users, it addresses demand of habitual addicts which make up less than half of the "hard" drug using population (varies from drug to drug as well, obviously).
@@JinKee I don't need your luck
@@lubb213 mandatory rehab
Kudos to this man for seeing the truth of the issue and being brave enough to stand up in direct opposition to his peers. I have no doubt he has caused some upset in the field . I also don't doubt that he has made himself very unpopular, takes courage to speak out in the face of almost absolute opposition.
Thank you for bringing Mr baggings in for this episode - had no idea he knew so much about the drug underworld
50 years ago I sat at a dinner next to the late Lord Edmund-Davies, one of the most senior judges in the UK. For years he’d been advocating ‘legalise the lot and destroy the dealers’ profits’. He told me while there’d be some uptick in users, it wouldn’t be big and the resources freed up to treat addiction due to the fall in drug-related crime and policing costs would be enormous. The politicians wouldn’t listen to him then. They still don’t now.
Spot on.
Police, politicians and local authorities are easily bought and paid for.
Unfortunately they have to much to gain from keeping it going jobs in prisons/police/parole officers/judges/lawyers/social workers/doctors etc etc as well as funding there private ventures, as an ex addict it makes me sick the war has done nothing for the people afflicted by addiction and drug use is always on the rise as are drug deaths
You have to keep in mind the way that the US sanctions countries that don't make laws that they want, which was one (is?) of the hurdles for marijuana legalization outside of the US, particularly in Canada and Mexico. It took many states to do it first before other countries were even comfortable to legalize or decriminalize it.
@Ollie Haynes if you don't think it is affected by trade issues you're kidding yourself
Currently recovering from 4 years of heroin addiction. I would not want to see how much money I've spent on skag in the last 4 years. It would break me to know how much I've given to dealers.
When he said "one and one". That took me back. That's exactly what I'd say to my dealer. Usually 1 and 3. One crack 3 heroin. That was my usual daily buy. I'd repeat those words countless times.
Some dealers are better than others.i actually asked my main guy to stop serving me because I wanted to quit. And he did. He really did. I almost gave in one day and rung him up for 3 and 3. And he refused. That's £70 he could of got from me but he kept to his word. So I need to respect that
Good recovery man
Respects for having overcomed that
That’s part of step 1 brotha. It might be hard but If u wanna be clean for the rest of your life u gotta work the 12 steps
and here i am 23 years old, lost a job, broke up with girlfriend and lowkey depressed wondering which drug to start using to help me go trought it..
@@charliesheen4277 do not do heroin. Don't even smoke it. That's how I, and most people started. Smoke weed if you need to use something. Whatever happens don't develop a habit from heroin, coke/crack, alcohol and meth. Those are the ones to avoid.
But really, you need to look inwards and find the reason you want to do drugs and distract yourself, that's what I'm currently going through and its not simple and doesn't come easy.
Doing drugs is just borrowing pleasure/happiness, and you soon rack up a big debt.
Thank you for doing a pure informative video without cheesy background music
Really eye opening. He is a powerful voice for his cause. I will definitely look into these ideas more
Even the undercover cop said the drug war is useless
The drug war was never ment to be won but to create government monopolies of various kinds.
Organised crime is also called government.
@@olafwilhelm4684 yeah true. Only real way i could see the drug war won is getting all the big mafias out at once. And once that logistical nightmare is done watch either. A the users sell their stashes at inflated prices and become mini drug lords. Or b the nearest mafias hear of open space and trip over each other to setup shop. Only way to end the drug wars is to cut the demand by educating people, putting them in rehab and getting them out of poverty. True ending poverty wont completely stop the drug trade but it will slow it down to a bored middle and rich class.
@@thewhitewolf58 even if they did get the mafia's and gangs out just look at pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies that caused the opioid epidemic
@@SirGrimothy lol, yeah that’s not even mentioned. The opioid addiction was completely started by the government. In Canada, the doctors were pushing OxyContin for everyone. Then in a big show, after everyone was hooked. They cut them off, heroin was there to fill the gap. And the snowball started. Fentanyl, carofentanyl .
And no money for rehabilitation. See how long it takes for someone who wants to quit to receive any rehab. They want you to quit trying.
I believe it is all part of a plan to get rid of population. All the while making money along the way. People will always need to get high. It’ll never ever stop.
You beat me to it. I was going to say even a cop, a British one at that has openly said the war on drugs does more harm than good. Guess SOAD had a solid point to their lyrics in prison song
Something actually really good from insider, this definitely deserves millions of views.
one of their better pieces they have ever done for sure.
The age of grace aka church age is soon coming to an end. New world order led by obama and pope francis is coming. Jesus christ is coming back for the rapture. Get ready. Dont believe the coming ufo alien abduction narrative
@@daebak7370 Obama is no longer president. Wake up buddy, living under a rock probably you are!!!
Extremely useful and interesting I look forward to hearing from you again
5:50 wow, i really appreciate that honesty and self awareness. A lot of changes need to happen in drug enforcement.
It takes a real man to publicly admit when and where his most grievous errors are and correct them.
Hello Shannon
How are you doing today
@@normanwisdom3126 Quite well, as I hope you are.
@@MomMom4Cubs yes I am my friend am perfectly okay 😇😊🙏
So how is home and everything hope all is going well
I was scrolling down on comments and posts over here then all of a sudden I came across your name and I couldn’t resist such a beautiful name, haven’t they told you, you have such a beautiful and lovely name
I think it must be a heart-shattering moment to realize that all your hard work, your constant fear of violence, your constant contact with the victimized, the extended interaction with some of the worst human beings on this planet over months was, in the end, only worth 2 hours of peace before someone even worse took over. That all your previous work had only made everything worse.
All the years of his life and the immense psychological pressure that this man has sacrificed for his work only to realize it was all pointless is heartbreaking.
He was getting a bit shaky at that point...
I believe the drugs heads are working on officials.
People fear violence? What a waste of energy
I wouldn’t say it’s for nothing. It sucks cause like he said, you put one away others are going to clamber to get their territory. But it still has to be done, there will always be people willing to push contraband cause they’ll see the rewards being worth the risk, and they’ll always be a market for it. But cops still have to work to put them away, cause letting them do whatever is far worse.
@@rickkcir2151, that’s why he’s arguing for the full regulation of all drug markets. You make them not contraband. He’s saying that the pressure of drug policing contributes to and exacerbates the violence.
Fascinating, will read your book because I’ve always agreed that taking control away is the answer. Well done you
having had extensive experiences in this world, he is 100% correct. Online market places have changed the game and are huge.
"We advocate for the full regulation of all the drug markets to take control away from organized crime."
That's a much better way to say you support the legalization of all drugs than I've ever come up with.
The saying is, if you can't stop it, tax it honestly
Funny thing is, because of the dark web and unlimited access, I ended up quitting lots of the drugs I was doing. So much of the high was in the hunt, the thrill, the threat of violence. Weird
@@Anthonydu01630 Provide a link please
@@dmtripreport8542 that is very interesting. So you were/are not actually addicted to the drugs themselves, but rather to the thrill of obtaining them? It's crazy how we humans work sometimes. Do you also enjoy thrilling Activites like bungee or extreme sports and stuff?
@@Dongonzales123 yes he does
Man was about to say “re-up” and stopped himself mid sentence... his street lingo just kicked 😂 cause and effect, indeed.
Lol definitely
Went straight to the comments to find this 😂
Lol yeh I just saw that and left the same comment!!! Actual class
Time stamp?
@@jamessmith7577 5:20
This is a man who has actually grinded on the streets. I mean he uses terms in the video that are commonly used amongst people in that particular profession. You can hear him say it at times in between and correct himself or keep pausing occasionally so as to put together sentences that the common public understand. He also remembered the horrors of being involved. He has my massive respect..for real! I would also suggest watching a series called 'The Wire' as it is totally related to whatever the video wants to portray.
The Wire is great. This man is a hero, drug abuse is a medical issue.
Most fascinating insights I’ve heard in a long while, can’t remember the last time seen something so interesting
5:19
“Reup, uh, re-supply”
He was trying so hard to stay professional, but he lived that life.
Lol I thought I was the only one who caught that. Yeah we knew what you was trying to say big homie
Lol waiting on the re up sux
@@tonythetiger1600 "everybody's dry rn, i'll hit you up soon"
@@Peanutbutter_Funk 10 mins yh? .... lol
Thought tha same thang😂
this guy basically just admitted the war on drugs is a failure
almost everyone who isnt american already knew that
Yup
@@Terranova339 Why single out American? This whole video was all about problems related to the war on drugs in other countries, but you think its just America? Did you not watch the video?
@@Terranova339 You realize this guy is from the UK right? Apparently the English and the Swedes didn't get the memo either
@@miknarf 1. because when THE drug war is kinda an american thing.
and 2. because 50 years later we still havent learned anything.
“Stashing their next ‘re-up’… erm um, tut, resupply of drugs”
Half of him is still there being undercover. Love this guy.
I never understood why the war on drugs was so futile until watching this. Thank you for explaining it.
This guy's book is highly entertaining. He's a very credible writer.
Any suggestions on which book I should start with ?
The age of grace aka church age is soon coming to an end. New world order led by obama and pope francis is coming. Jesus christ is coming back for the rapture. Get ready. Dont believe the coming ufo alien abduction narrative
@@daebak7370 oh cool the title is that long?
@@6kang971 😂 I got lost too
I'm floored by his video performance
The whole time I was watching this I was thinking "This guy should write a book". The second he mentioned his memoir I scrambled over to Amazon and put the book on my wishlist.
@dingle Berry It's a thing on Amazon where you can save items that you like. You can also send the list to your friends so they can know what to get you as a gift.
@dingle Berry no
@@sima4162 please
@@bimg1915 no
@@sima4162 :(
This is precisely what I advocate for. Fantastic sharing.
I like the way he analyzes the drug war from an economics point of view. It's quite a new perspective for me
Talk about credibility, I couldn't agree with his assessment more.
Gangster rap is the biggest exploiter of the Youth. My state was safe 10-15 years ago now we have multiple murders daily we have a population of 7 million with well over 400 murders per year. The UK still can stop it by doing something instead they want to be like Chicago.. now that's sad...
@@bryanbradley6871 really what has one subject got to do with the other or were you saying that coz Robel is black
@@resolecca I didn't even notice....I'm saying that gangster rap destroyed Multiple cities in America. Where it once was safe, than gangster rap hit and hit bad
@@bryanbradley6871 I understand but that’s not even the subject of the conversation
@shadow rwind it definitely helped glamorise that lifestyle.
The guy talked a lot of sense, and fair play to him for the things he said.
Agreed. I imagine he's seen some pretty dark stuff.
...New world order led by obama and pope francis is coming. Jesus christ is coming back for the rapture. Get ready. Dont believe the coming ufo alien abduction narrative
@@daebak7370 🤦♂️😂
@@randomrangoon5476 I wonder who he's screwed over? I wonder if they are now watching?!
Every word this guy speaks is an argument against prohibition, especially when he says that hundreds of people were involved, they smashed a huge drug operation and disrupted the supply for just 2 hours, the only way to 'smash' all gangs is to legalise it, regulate it, tax it, it's the only way to stop these guys and it's what they fear the most
Very nice, good tutorial!
This guy is great and so insightful. His LADBible interview is also great
He made a few excellent points in his last 1 minute summary, last 1 minute of the video. The war on drugs been going on for 50 (+) years. Drugs are more prevalent, more plentiful, cheaper, more ubiquitous , more easily available, etc.
If they performed that war like literal war, ala the PI and Duterte, the results wpuld be drastically different. The way this war is played is favored in the interest of the drug king pins and suppliers.
@@happygrass5 By "drastically different results" you mean thousands of extrajudicial killings which, according to the head of drug enforcement of the Philippine police himself, have not been effective to stop the drug supply in the country?
@@happygrass5 Places like Malaysia, thailand, and Singapore are already doing that. Murdering people right in the streets over drug crimes. It doesn't help, just makes the gangs more violent because now they have nothing to lose.
@@pieterwouters6677 look I know it is not popular. And I think it brutal. But my family and friends families in different areas around the PI testify to the dramatic drop in drug use, violence, and syndicated crime in their areas. How else do we fight? Hard Drugs are the thing that will kill a person, destrpy his family and childres futures, ransack a community into regression. But what other options do we have? If the snake heads aren't removed, the people will continue to be oppressed.
@@logankimmet3465 I'm pretty sure they're not murdering people in the street in Singapore. Singapore is probably more civilised than wherever you live.
Glad to see a former constable that gets it. Legalize drugs, take power away from these criminals.
I never thought I would consider that a potential solution but... human behavior needs to change when it comes to drug use and that might just be the way to do it.
Yeah but even in california where weeed is legal theres still a big market for illegal weed because its cheaper.
@@grantlong6586 really? I lived in both colorado and Texas and the legal weed in colorado was way cheaper. Is that a California thing?
@@grantlong6586 this chick at the dispensary wanted 60 for an eighth of mids . 😂😂😂
@@charliedickson1443 It's similar to why there's a market for illegal cigarettes or booze in some places; it's primarily a way of avoiding taxes. There's still enough profit in it for some people to do it illegally.
Northampton local here.
Unbelievable that all that had been going on and you never hear of such thing.
Just went out & got this book 13 pages in & I’m hooked very interesting read
Man, what a pair of balls. Imagine been part of a dangerous gang and risk your life every day. This, while you're pretending to be a gangster as well. I mean, what if you have to commit a crime in order to remain in that world. Not to blow your cover and get kill.
with technology, you have no cover not as before anyhow. It's just a matter of time or place before you get targeted. Sometimes I wonder if they are trying to see how far you can go. Kind of sad too. That's how I see some things.
Police commit crimes every day. Do you think they are angels?
@@methree3821 bad idea right there, get ready for some pissed people.
How old are you?
Taking part in that activity does not make you a gangster, joining a gang does.
This guy clearly has a very comprehensive understanding of the drug market, and drug culture in general. Instead of being pig headed and just constantly doing business as usual (and making things worse), we should be taking advice from these types of people who's insights should be heard and acted upon when coming up with ways to handle these ever growing problems. It's pretty telling when someone who dedicated such a large portion of their life to drug enforcement says in his own words that it only serves to make things worse and more violent.
Meanwhile in nations like portugal where drug abuse is not illegal but is treated as a medical issue, addictions and drug crimes have gone down.
No prohibiting: I live in Zurich Switzerland, today the richest city in the world. My moms from here and my dad's an immigrant. In the 80s, Zurich was most addicted city in Europe. Not per capita but in sheer numbers. We had a high murder rate. 30k heroin addicts in a city of then 300k ppl. 1.2k murders. In Switzerland. Almost every dad of my friends was involved in drugs in some way, and it was pure misery in some parts of the city. A huge wealth gap, and on and on. 1.5k his deaths in 84. But then the city started giving away clean needles, removing punishment for having a small amount and for use. Only punishing the big guys. Homeless shelters for the roughly 20k homeless and drug labors where you could go and get your drugs tested for free and alternatives for dealing. The teen dealers got jobs. Their past was erased and their record if they'd get a job. Now with that we have 4050 dollar minimum wage, and all the heroin users switched to weed that is now almost legal and pastors and rabbis gave them. It works but only if the entire city is affected and not only the poor.
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
the rightousness of God is available through faith in Jesus Christ.
there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
in Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgivness of sins according to the riches of His grace.
Powerful stuff. The fact that all these videos end at the same conclusion is proof we’re not doing the right thing
This interview is amazing
Going into this video I was expecting some kind of simple diagram of how a gang is structured, like boss on the top, dealers on the bottom, but what I got was some earth-shattering insights on the war on drugs in general. Absolutely mind blowing.
Read some of the Freakonomics books by Dubner and Levitt for interesting information on how drugs gangs operate. Very interesting and highly amusing. There are even videos on YT of them giving lectures about the subject.
I like how at 5:17 he reverted back to his undercover lingo and said "re-up" then paused and said resupply
I read this comment exactly when he did it lol
I was looking for this comment 🤣
Good catch.
Lol he didn’t slip to undercover words, just back into what his life was for so long
Interesting that "package" and "stash" and "re-up" are the words used in Northampton and in Baltimore.
Fascinating stuff - horrific, but fascinating. A very interesting report by someone who knows more than most about the illegal drug market. He needs to be listened to.
Very insightful interview.
One of the best arguments I’ve heard for decriminalization of all drugs.
Interesting argument
Decriminalized pot didn't work.
@@lisanancollas2330 because the US didn't actually do it. Try again!
I watched this video yesterday and immediately started reading his book afterwards. I'm here rewatching the next day after finishing the book and it's crazy how much I understand what he's talking about. Would highly recommend the book, it's extremely interesting and well written.
What’s the books name?
@@cthuluchtului650 good cop bad war
@@sparky117SAS thank you! I noticed that he talked about the book later in the video😅
@@cthuluchtului650 no worries ^_^
He's done a few podcasts with shaun atwood which are worth a watch (if you haven't already)
It's a humble man with this kind of self reflection. Good for him spotting the BS of all this reckless enforcement.
Haha love the little slip up when he said re-up instead of resupply 🤣 the lingo got him
As a former member of that society, I was a bit sceptical beginning this vid, but I have to say, this guy knows his stuff. Most cops don't really understand the situation, but this guy was spot on,on all aspects of the "trade".
Trash 🚮👆🏻
Idk I don't buy the whole getting jostled around in a bathroom just tryna buy less than a half g of dope and hard lol like get real who would do that
oh look its a professional who has inside experience!!!
I honestly had very little interest in watching this video as i clicked on It by accident and I thought it would be some exceptionalism of the ‘excitement’ of being an undercover cop and all the ‘good’ work he’s done.
I don’t regret sticking on, as his self awareness and authenticity was captivating. I learnt far more than I would’ve imagined.
Thank you very much for publication of this statement, you are completely right, opresion will only increase the force of reactions concerning just the people on friction borderlines. It couldn't any way resolve the problems related with drug abuse.
Well said mate! Shout-out from NY
OMG this mans ending speech almost made me cry!!! YESS! Somebody who actually gets it! The only way to win the drug war is to take control of it ourselves. ive been studying this basically since a teenager. Ive done my work on the streets as an addict turned dealer, and now as a man recovering and trying to make sense of it all.
What absolutely blows my mind is that The USA started this drug war, and the culture of militarized policing that goes with it. But yet they went through a test trial in the 1920’s with the Prohibition of Alcohol, and within 10 years it was a complete and utter failure that only made crime worse, alcohol more potent and dangerous, and provided a taxless market for criminal gangs to grow into empires.
But yet apparently this whole test run wasn’t apparently obvious, so they decided to stubbornly go at it again, but now its been over 50 years and the drugs are still winning.
How much more data do we need? When will enough be enough?? And how many more people must get their lives ruined in the process?
Preach. The US has 4% of the world population, but we have 25% of the incarcerated people worldwide. We must be some badass mofos!
Legalize, monitor purity and potential poisons added, tax it too… once something is banned by the state then the state can no longer control that thing. If you ban something that people want, they’ll find a way to get it, or someone will get creative and make a new drug and a new problem. I honestly think that crack, spice, fen, etc etc is a direct result of prohibition.
No junkie wants to shoot fen, it sucks, everybody wants H, but they can’t get it so now ppl are banging straight fen with cutter instead of shoot H that has some fen in it. Fen fells like crap and it has no legs! People start shooting fen and they need a another shot in 20 mins cuz they’re already down, or even sick… after 20 mins, those same ppl would only need a fresh shot of H every 6 hours. Squares don’t understand this, and many don’t understand that they have been paying for this bullshit war on drugs. Not just with their taxes, but at this, the cost is blood! No person or family is America is untouched by this war, the taxes you pay are literally being used to imprison your family, friends and neighbors.
Laws are NOT based on morality, it’s laws that makes criminals, not morality.
this guy has figured it out, i sooooo agree with him
@@swayback7375 that is exactly it. There is more incentives to import smaller amounts of a more dangerously potent product, because of the way prohibition works. This happened in the 1920’s aswell, Beer making and importing became obsolete, because it was easier to import the same amount of volumes in high proof spirits and moonshine. The government then tried to control the import and distribution of medicinal/solvent grade alcohols, so the gangsters turned to poisonous wood grain alcohols......
every move the authorities make, the crime syndicates have an alternate solution for. Its a never ending battle of attrition where each side has to become more ruthless and efficient. But the police have the handicap of rules, while the criminals don’t.
Its pure madness.
Wait until we have the war on guns. Not all drug dealers are armed. However, every arms dealer is heavily armed. No way that potential future black market could be devastating.
@@brianpj5860 Import? Did you meant make?
Also authorities are biggest gang, they made smaller more potent drug, fentanyl.
Didn't state 'poison nondrinking alcohol' for industry or medicine, but was stolen and 30k people died?
Appreciated the empathy along with the explanation....
This guy's saying the same thing I've heard in tons of other interviews. Pretty much everyone who was on the inside, whether undercover or as the criminal, says that there's no other way then to legalize drugs. Most of them point out that there are 2 markets - drug market and war on drugs market, with neither of them being really interested in ending their respective markets.
Stunning!
"we did it patrick we saved the city" moment when year of good work only halts the drug trade for 2h and ends up making the other drug bosses richer and able to pocket more cops.
You can say that they can cop more cops.
This interview needs to be long format. Could listen for 3 hours +. I bet he has some amazing stories to tell
buy his book
Search his name on CZcams and you'll find what you're looking for.
@@roccobastone1441 dead technology. Watch more videos
He's done a couple podcasts on shaun atwoods channel. Some are cut down into segments but a couple full length ones on there
fascinating. disheartening. food for thought. thank you for sharing.
Absolutely fascinating stuff
I love the beginning here. Underlining message, don’t attempt to legislate what people are going to naturally do. Instead stick those resources into treating (helping) those who experience it and then want to escape.
Yes - Harm reduction and treatment must be increased.
No one whos ever been involved with drugs or the trade thinks keeping it illegal is a solution; its the reason.
2021(G) “Respect and dignity.” Furthermore:
Eh, I think there are two separate issues
A. whether we should as a society try to restrict the consumption of certain drugs
B. the most effective method to do so.
I don't think it's sufficient to class addictive, harmful drugs as something people 'naturally do' and then just leave the market alone. They are essentially exploiting bugs in our hardware - biological vulnerabilities to certain substances. I want as few people as possible to have their lives destroyed by them - regardless of the method.
That being said, if aggressive policing isn't effective, we shouldn't do it. If legalising and taxing would work, then we should legalise and tax. If less harsh sentencing laws would help, we should do that.
Having said that, I do think though there is a flip-side to what he said - supply and demand works both ways. Currently, highly illegal drugs are expensive (in terms of price and risk), largely because of the additional hurdles an illegal industry has to deal with, higher prices tend to decrease consumption.
This doesn't help many people who are already addicted - they know who to call, they will pay the price and they take the risk because they _have_ to. But for the vast bulk of people with stable, law-abiding lives, the risk, inconvenience and cost associated with buying heroin...etc. acts as a significant barrier to doing so.
So you may have a situation where there is a trade-off:
- Drug Legal: Increased consumption in society overall, say 50% versus 5%, but no violent criminal gangs, increased tax revenue, and more accessible harm prevention programs.
-Drug Illegal: Reduced consumption overall, but you create a violent black market and those who do get addicted suffer more for it.
For me, it comes down to the harms of the particular drug - what % of people who are addicted seriously suffer from it? If it's a lot, then the balance of harms shifts towards making it illegal, sure you create a Black Market and all the human misery that comes with that, but that's better than 10% of the population dying in bathtubs from overdoses and another 10% going bankrupt. If it's not that harmful or addictive, like cannabis, then the Black Market creates more suffering then the increased legal consumption would.
Needs a link to his book in the write up - bought it anyway. Such a quality video - the man's got balls of steel, but such empathy and understanding too. Awe inspiring fella.
I respect this guy. Informative content. Current media discourse is trying to shut down social media, but without social media we would not have these types of various viewpoints, completely valid and worthwhile.
I thought it's going to be a click bait but this guy explains so intriguing details that I'd like to hear a few hours interview.
The way he said re-up so naturally was quite convincing that his rep was good
major respect for this guy. i don't think i've ever seen an inside source break down the inefficacy of the "war on drugs" so concisely.
That was quite the eye opener.
Watching this even 11 months later he is so fastening to listen to
This is amazing. He brings up so many good points, especially the one about user dealers basically not having a choice alot of the time.
Absolutely 100% spot on this man, and maybe more people like him and David Nutt the world needs. Regulations and legal control of these markets. Destroy the stigma surrounding drugs, destroy the criminal empires and move forward as a human race and stop wasting lives, money and resources on this pointless and unwinnable war.
Why not the opposite and greater authoritarianism, policing with extreme prejudice and capital punishment for minor infringement?
@@JR-mr1tw because its not only an immoral violation of peoples rights it also doesnt work very well.
@randomguy8196 i think she means the stigma around users which i agree with. Drugs as much as I'm for peoples right to use them I think should be presented in a factual manner depending on the drug some are very dangerous if used improperly, some aren't, most are in the middle.
@@JR-mr1tw I hope you're kidding...or eight years old and don't know any better.
Just legalize everything, cause if it's illegal, there will be a black market huh huh. Murder needs to be legal so the market can control it, legalize it all, it's an "unwinnable" war anyways.
Fascinating. I never thought about how drug arrests create opportunity for others.
In essence, there's never going to be a shortage of drug dealers because the prices will just go up as there are fewer, which in turn causes more to join.
Great stuff.
excellent. sincere. serious. thanks for sharing.
"We congratulate Drugs for winning the War on Drugs."
Neil Woods is also A Big Bill Hicks fan :)
I love this guy. We need more like him. Sensible, tough and working to make society better rather than just policing.
Now I have changed my opinion about war on drugs. Thank you
This was eye opening and terrifying
I like how you can tell a little bit of his undercover persona comes out without him trying because it became so natural for his job. He just corrects himself and moves on
damn I noticed that too. he had to keep reminding himself to translate as well
This interview was NOT what I expected and tbh I clicked it accidentally. 5 mins later I've bought both books on Audible 😭
The “war on drugs” is not just a bad idea, but it’s truly a disastrous problem that is in desperate need of radical changes because it’s just making things worse and helping no one. It’s refreshing to hear this from a former member of law enforcement.
It won't end anytime soon. The "war on drugs" much like the "war on terror" employs far too many people and is responsible for tens of billions in federal subsidies (along with seized assets) flooding all levels of law enforcement to fight wars they know can never be won and have only made the problem worse.
These programs feed into a vicious cycle where money is pumped in, making the problem worse, which results in even more money being pumped in. Law enforcement and the many companies that supply them reap the profit while everyone else pays the price.
Neil is so great. More of him would be good.
Wholly agree with the man at the end. After hearing countless stories like this one you start to realize how “chasing the bad guy” really isn’t the solution to the problem.
Regulation is.
And USA found this out 100 years ago, with alcohol. But they also found it grew government to combat never ending cycle
@@atmosrepair I don't know if that's accurate, as alcohol was legal prior to prohibition. The increase of the government footprint was considerable during prohibition due to the necessity to enforce the law. (Volstead act) That led to massive amounts of corruption and heavy handedness in the police forces at the time, and was at least partially the reason that we have the police as they exist today.
@@atmosrepair The criminal element of prohibition era US is very exaggerated, the benefits outweighed the negative and the only reason it was abolished was because of the tax dollars that government was missing out on
This whole thing just shows why we need to decriminalize drug use, and possible even make drugs legal to an extent. Criminalizing drugs created criminals who were far worse than a simple drug user
Social experiment for lack of a better term
created drug industry.
Prohibition never works. You'd have thought they would have figured this out by now....
Agreed, the government's that have already taken the decriminalization position are consistently proving how places with no tolerance are basically stubbornly choosing to remain in a kind of "Dark Ages". with no forward progress in these multi decade long wars on their own citizens... sad
No legalizing. I live in Zurich Switzerland, today the richest city in the world. My moms from here and my dad's an immigrant. In the 80s, Zurich was most addicted city in Europe. Not per capita but in sheer numbers. We had a high murder rate. 30k heroin addicts in a city of then 300k ppl. 1.2k murders. In Switzerland. Almost every dad of my friends was involved in drugs in some way, and it was pure misery in some parts of the city. A huge wealth gap, and on and on. 1.5k his deaths in 84. But then the city started giving away clean needles, removing punishment for having a small amount and for use. Only punishing the big guys. Homeless shelters for the roughly 20k homeless and drug labors where you could go and get your drugs tested for free and alternatives for dealing. The teen dealers got jobs. Their past was erased and their record if they'd get a job. Now with that we have 4050 dollar minimum wage, and all the heroin users switched to weed that is now almost legal and pastors and rabbis gave them. It works but only if the entire city is affected and not only the poor.
It’s people like him who have to pay the price for the disastrous drug laws our politicians keep coming up with. Listen to this man.
Everyone's paying the price. Millions of tax payer's money spend on nothing.
Saw this video 2 days ago. Bought his book same day. Finished it just now and re watched the video. Highly highly (8no pun intended) recommend the book for a fascinating insight into the drugs gang scene and how the war on drugs will never end
“Those people were in a pattern of behavior that was out of their control because of what had happened to them.” My mans woke af. That’s deep and spot on
And he used that to understand them. That's empathy, people. Not saying "ohhh I'm so sorry." Empathy is an intellectual exercise as much as an emotional one.
@@bradr9581 woke is Leftist narcisissm not empathy, empathy is right wing
@@looweegee252 Empathy is neither right wing nor left wing it’s human. However in general I’d wager those with higher levels of empathy would tend more towards center/left of the political spectrum
@@joshuakielty I didn't decide what reality is, right wing freedom loving individuals are empathetic and Leftist tyrannical narcissistic people aren't. I didn't decide that to be true. It just is.
Not all narcissists are Leftists but all Leftists are narcissists.
Leftist means far left Nazi/Commie, it doesn't mean liberal.
@@looweegee252 I dont know why people keep saying "left nazis"; nazis could not be more right wing lmao
This is, and I'm using my words carefully, the most interesting story I heard in years. Thank you very much for sharing
His audiobooks are an eye opener, some available on CZcams
THANK YOU BUSINESS INSIDER!!! this will save lives. It's a senseless war that must stop. Legalizing all drugs is the answer, and I admire those who dare to say it.
Its true but im a user so not sure if I can answer
I grew up with a heroine addicted step brother, I've seen first hand how some of that world can be. I am actually quite pleased to see a copper acknowledge that his line of work is what directly put people like my stepbrother in more and more danger.
It's just a shame it cost my step brother his life.
I was a crack/cocaine user for 30 years. I’ve seen some crazy stuff. I used to go to the worst neighborhood and in NYC to get drugs.
@@yankees29 well done for being clean now
@@nickjones7737 thanks. I’m married now and have a good life.
Police didn't put your stepbrother in danger, he himself did.
That's like putting your house on fire and blaming fire fighters when you die from the fire.
@@ogge9296 mine did, of course he did. But the difference for me is knowing a lunatic and someone who can be directed. A flutter of hand, a subtlety.. thats what we're arguing is life and death&. Can you not see how that isn't about killing someone to save how someone feels?
I'm so glad about what he said in conclusion. He understands more than most how important it is to change the laws and the entire operation of such markets
Extraordinary man.
Powerful and eye opening. Making things people want creates criminal organization and that creates violence.