- Christopher Smith, Publisher
Legacy, Prohibition, Gangsters, Violence, Avocados
Here in the LA area we’re all coming down from our little weekend hoo-ha, where we added a 2nd Lombardi Trophy to our 2 Stanley Cups, 7 World Series Trophies, and 17 NBA Championships. It’s good to be kings!
That’s quite a legacy for the City of Angels, going back to 1949, although it was the Minneapolis Lakers who won that first NBA trophy.
THE SCOOP
1949 was a massive year in world history but in LA, our LEGACY industry put James Cagney in a little GANGSTER picture called White Heat. Cagney wasn’t a PROHIBITION-busting bootlegger, he played a hyper-VIOLENT psychopath named Cody Jarrett who gets killed at the end, shouting “Made it Ma! Top of the World.”
Legacy.
Prohibition.
Gangsters.
Violence.
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse when Government tries to Prohibit something that people want.
I’ll say it again, The Legacy of Prohibition is Gangsters and Violence.
And when some of the gangsters are inevitably psychos – Top of the World Ma - the violence spills all over the place.
Which is how I interpreted this story from Friday’s news (remember: two days before the Super Bowl):
THE DEEP DIVE
“Exploding gang violence, gun battles, bombs dropped from drones, the forced displacement of thousands of people — none of it has dampened the U.S. appetite for avocados from Mexico’s western state of Michoacán. But a threatening phone call made to an [American] avocado inspector … could change that.”
“U.S. authorities informed Mexico US would temporarily suspend avocado shipments until the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) could investigate the threat …” and guarantee the safety of Americans.
And you’re wondering how this all ties together?
Production of avocadoes in Michoacan “…has lifted thousands out of poverty but also fed the coffers of organized crime, which often charges a tax on every kilo sold…”
"[Michoacan] has become the battleground for a bitter fight for control between the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, and … the United Cartels. Criminal groups are … seeking to control the avocado market outright as a means to finance their operations.”
Cartels have already disrupted Michoacan’s lime industry, which raised prices 90% since 2020.
But avocadoes are BIG BUCKS:
“Nearly a million tons of avocado, valued at around $2.4 billion, are exported to the U.S. annually, virtually all of it from Michoacán… giving the industry the nickname the “green gold.”
THE LOOPBACK
And the US suspended imports on February 12th, the eve of the biggest avocado day of the year: The Super Bowl.
Did we get hurt? Hardly.
But the people of Michoacan? “Exploding gang violence, gun battles, bombs dropped from drones, the forced displacement of thousands …” prove that the only LEGACY of PROHIBITION is GANGSTERS and VIOLENCE.
END PROHIBITION NOW!
###
Image source: