Pablo’s (Almost) Back! | Lessons on the War on Drugs from “Narcos”

4. Money makes monsters.

Having said that the show explores the humanity of these narcos, it does not fail to illustrate how monstrous these men and their acts were. One thing to realize is how little we value human life. How much does it cost to put a hit on someone these days? How easy is it to get someone killed?

Now throw in the idea of the massive amounts of money in play. If you’re a cop who stands in the way of the drug operation, how much would it cost them to just get rid of you? And so how much would it cost to pay you off? If you see the unbelievable amounts of money that the narcos were earning, then you come to understand that they could no longer view human life in the same way that we do. In the face of that much money, and of how you had to use people to keep earning it, then your view of the world was changed. And so they could no longer connect with the humanity of others, because the sums of cash blinded them from it.

3. This bit of “politicos vs gangsters” dialogue here.

Via Observer

Pablo Escobar: You’re meeting up with politicians, not gangsters.
Poison (one of Escobar’s henchmen): Aren’t they the same thing, boss?

2. We have to think about our definition of what a “communist” is.

Via Giphy

I think we have a lot to talk about when we talk about the Philippine Left, their history, their important involvement in many crucial steps of advancement in our country. But we also have to think about how a lot of people do not like the Left, do not even like anyone who would rally or speak up against the government (especially the current administration).

There’s a perfect scene when an American character expresses, with much vitriol, her mistrust of a Colombian character for her being a communist. It’s said as if she would spit on the ground when uttering the word. Then you get this perfect comeback: “Communists are fighting against poverty, corruption, injustice, and greed.”

Communists, and a lot of activists whose positions fall in different places on the political spectrum, view the political situation through a systemic lens and they are working towards change just as much as anyone else is.