Comments on: The Writers of The Wire: Not as Cool as I Thought http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/ A pop culture blog by Mormons but not about Mormonism Sat, 26 May 2012 14:16:17 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Brian G http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48774 Thu, 20 Mar 2008 22:35:53 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48774 Supergenius,

Don’t do the crime, if you can’t do the time.

Seriously, what is the ethically correct sentence for playing a part in enslaving an entire populace to drugs? Don’t we have to assume that your typical drug-dealer has probably introduced at least one person to a lifetime of drug addiction, and/or sold drugs that have led to an overdose, and/or indirectly contributed to violent crimes committed to get money for drugs.

]]> By: Brian G http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48773 Thu, 20 Mar 2008 22:24:45 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48773 Well, maybe I’m crazy, I said that from the beginning.

Maybe I’m overstating the case on Season 3, but it’s hard to see it as an unqualified argument for legalization.

]]> By: Brian V http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48772 Thu, 20 Mar 2008 21:02:34 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48772 That’s not really how I read Homicide or Season 3 of The Wire at all, which probably explains our differing views on the article.

]]> By: Brian Gibson http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48771 Thu, 20 Mar 2008 17:31:02 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48771 Brian V.,

I was referring not to research actors do for a role, but to the research actors do to back up their political opinions.

It’s precisely my familiarity with the work of these writers that makes this statement confusing. I agree with you that Hamsterdam was portrayed as a failed effort in Season 3 that ultimately led to the death of Bubbles sidekick, Johnny Weeks. A particular point was made of how harmful Hamsterdam was to young kids who were drawn into the mess because they were no longer employed as look-outs in drug operations. The entire plot line was a warning about the unforeseen consequences of decriminalization of drugs, if you ask me.

Simon’s book “Homicide” is a paean to hardworking detectives, and an exploration of how drug-dealing has led to an explosion of murders and made them much harder to solve. Because drug-dealing and most inner city murders are inextricable, and because Simon seems to have a great deal of respect for police work, it’s hard for me to reconcile this statement with his earlier work. I imagine acquitting drug-offenders is probably an offensive idea to most cops.

]]> By: Brian V http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48770 Thu, 20 Mar 2008 10:29:38 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48770 While I’m also a huge fan of The Wire, I thought the portrayal of “Amsterdam” (or was it Hamsterdam? Can’t remember…) in season 3 was a little too optimistic.

Really? I must not be remembering season 3 very well because I remember Hamsterdam being kind of a nasty place. I remember the attitude of those with the most invested in the idea coming away with something of a “Not a bad idea, but not well executed” view of the experiment.

]]> By: Brian V http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48769 Thu, 20 Mar 2008 10:27:21 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48769 Be that as it may, they do admit that the seat of a TV writer is not the best place from which to argue public policy.

And sure, they’re maybe a small cut above the typical activist actor, although I’m sure many actors do their research as well.

Actors doing research for a role vs. this being the life’s work of a David Simon or Ed Burns is not even remotely the same thing, but that’s a small point.

However, if you’re as versed in the previously published works of these men as you say, how can you be honestly surprised at what they suggest? It’s not as if they haven’t repeatedly made similar (or even the same) suggestions in their previous works.

]]> By: Clark http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48768 Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:40:34 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48768 Except many judges will charge you with contempt of court if you try to inform people about jury nullification near court houses.

]]> By: Scudworth http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48767 Wed, 19 Mar 2008 16:49:06 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48767 And, to add to SG’s analysis, jury nullification is the one form of legally sanctioned civil disobedience in this country.

]]> By: Scudworth http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48766 Wed, 19 Mar 2008 16:37:23 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48766 I think they had to propose something a bit over the top (and, as they admit, ultimately useless) in order to direct traffic toward their larger point: the drug war is a failed policy that has “demoniz[ed] our most desperate citizens, isolat[ed] and incarcerat[ed] them and otherwise den[ied] them a role in the American collective. All to no purpose. The prison population doubles and doubles again; the drugs remain.”

]]> By: Supergenius http://kulturblog.com/2008/03/18/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48765 Wed, 19 Mar 2008 16:16:42 +0000 http://www.kulturblog.com/2008/03/the-writers-of-the-wire-not-as-cool-as-i-thought/#comment-48765 Setting guilty people free without regard to evidence is better, in my mind, than putting innocent people behind bars without evidence or even putting guilty people in jail when the evidence is clear, when sentencing guidelines are clearly unethically severe.

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