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The drug dealing world is resourceful. I would be shocked to the point of incredulity if the primary obstacle to implementing basic improvements casually mentio
by dsacco 10y ago
The drug dealing world is resourceful. I would be shocked to the point of incredulity if the primary obstacle to implementing basic improvements casually mentioned in HN comments was simply that they didn't have anyone they could consult on the matter.
They're not going to be developing in-house nuclear weaponry, no, but cartels can and do find intelligent, experienced and competent people who can help optimize their supply chains.
I don't think it's a matter of them not realizing there are superior designs; I think it's a matter of superior designs not being worth the extra cost or somehow having an unintended result.
- M_Grey 10y agoResourceful only gets you so far... at some point you need a team of engineers with stable jobs over a long period of time. I'd say the line is roughly between the junky subs we see now, and researching, developing and fielding a stealthy modern sub. It's not impossible, but it's not like finding a chemist who can teach a whole bunch of people who to follow a recipe. You're talking about specialized skills, and people who have those skills and have put them into practice tend to be watched.
- mirimir 10y agoThey've been known to kidnap "consultants" :( One cartel had a large-scale meshnet.
- M_Grey 10y agoYou're not going to find a specialist in "Whole sub designs and manufacture" anymore than you could kidnap one person who would teach you how to build the space shuttle. You'd need to kidnap teams of specialists, which I would assume might draw international attention.
- mirimir 10y agoTrue. I recall reading that they kidnapped people to build their meshnet.
- M_Grey 10y agoThat must have been a terrifying and hopeless situation to be in.
- mirimir 10y agoIndeed :( They were also co-opting local ISPs to identify activist bloggers. All driven by the US drug war.
- M_Grey 10y agoInsane. I don't doubt that legalizing drugs would have relatively short-term impacts as some people who would have otherwise never tried them, try them, and some of those become hooked. How anyone can look at that, and compare it to the insane and eternal war we've chosen instead, and find the war a better choice is baffling to me.
- mirimir 10y agoYes, it's been a disaster for several South and Central American countries :(
- thinkmassive 10y agoOr perhaps the superior designs are better at preventing detection and have yet to be discovered by the opposition.