4 ms·
>and a container port is not an easy thing for smugglers to keep hidden. This is one of those things that sounds obvious at first, but the intuitive answer tur
by notch656a 4y ago
>and a container port is not an easy thing for smugglers to keep hidden.
This is one of those things that sounds obvious at first, but the intuitive answer turns out to be false. They (the containers, not the port) are very easy to hide in plain sight. There are simply massive quantities of them and it would grind trade to a halt to be inspected en masse. Therefore in US at least shipping containers are laughable easy for smugglers to "hide."
In US whole shipping container full of illegal immigrant arrive. It's my understanding only a tiny fraction of container are meaningfully searched, and whole containers of imported material can enter the country illegally. Perhaps Argentina has much more sophisticated and honest customs and border protection than US. But also take into account profit on illegal imports can be very high in Argentina due to arbitrage against crippling taxation/duties. Example below.
https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna3339957 https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna3339957
- kragen 4y agoYou can certainly hide a container, but you can't hide a container port, much less a non-submarine ship in the open ocean, which is what your earlier comment suggested. Argentina definitely does not have customs officials as honest as those in the US, though perhaps they are more sophisticated. Traveling via container is a thing I've contemplated doing myself, if only I had the budget.