I promise your idea isn't as good as you think and you aren't the person that could bring it to fruition anyway.
I guess we'll find out :)
What is the benefit for you personally to do this? Do you see a potential business opportunity or something?
Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
61–70 of 209 posts
Re: Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
#62Earlier quoted context omitted.
We won't. You will sober up and realise illegally going into business with drug cartels to make their fentanyl distribution more efficient was highly misguided, speaking charitably.
Would you want to bet $5?
No, I wouldn't want to be morally culpable for providing even a trifiling motivation for you to become the punchline of a morbid XKCD comic.
Re: Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
#63Earlier quoted context omitted.
I appreciate your comment, but it feels a bit cynical to be more afraid of federal agents than drug cartels. Then again, I don't have much experience with either, so maybe I'm being naive. That was partially why I was asking how to find a lawyer who deals with situations like this.
I'm not saying that federal agents are more dangerous than drug cartels. I'm saying that you're going to end up being arrested before you get the chance to find out.
I see your point. That is certainly a possibility.
Although it would be highly inconvenient to be arrested or get in trouble with the feds, it would make for an interesting story at parties. That's always been something I've struggled with. So... silver lining?
A lot of historical figures I respect have been arrested for standing by their convictions. So I would be in good company.
It also could turn into a good opportunity for publicity.
Plus, it might actually gain me credibility in the eyes of the cartels.
Re: Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
#64Earlier quoted context omitted.
Good advice. I know there have been situations where federal agencies have turned out to be "the bad guys", but I guess I'm optimistic that they are generally smart, well intentioned, and interested in some of the same outcomes that I'm talking about. As to why I'm exploring this, it's just a topic I've been thinking about lately. My daughter is starting college in the fall and they've had a lot of deaths over the la…
Fyi, Fentanyl strips are not full proof. This is because the amount of Fentanyl mixed is so small, there is high likelihood that no Fentanyl is picked up in the tested sample. In other words, high chance of false negatives. Test kits + narcan on hand is the best way to be safe.
That's good to know. I've only done a little initial research around this. I ordered some test strips from a manufacture called MD-Bio (https://mdbio.com). I'll be sure to review all their instructions and safety info.
Out of curiosity, are you saying that a Fentanyl level can be so low that it's undetectable by the test strips, but still high enough to kill someone?
Re: Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
#65Earlier quoted context omitted.
Nope, not a joke. Currently more of a thought experiment that could turn into a startup if it really seems viable. I'm in the US and I would actually be very interested in chatting with the DEA about my idea. If it turns out there is no legal way to move ahead with my idea, I won't pursue it further. As I said, I'm not even sure what kind of lawyer I could contact to get advice about this kind of thing. Saul Goodman?…
If you decide at any point not to go ahead, please make your ideas and research public.
I will be making the ideas public shortly. No research yet. Stay tuned and thanks for the encouragement.
Re: Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
#66My main takeaway here is that if OP can make it to Amazon to work on AWS, hell I can make it to a FAANG too.
Honestly, I think Bezos would have worked his way to the top of the heap of the cartels if he'd been born in a different country.
Re: Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
#67Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's obviously a super complicated and morally fraught issue, but if I could enable a future with fewer fentanyl deaths and less border violence, that seems like it would be good progress. The current war on drugs does not seem to be making much progress. But your point about just publishing the idea is well taken. This would not be a money making venture for me. A big part of the challenge of getting a cartel meetin…
If your idea is truly something that could have such big effects, I'd say the ethical thing to do would be to document and share it widely, so that any individuals from cartels to lawmakers, agencies, drug research centre's etc. could do as they wish with the data. Again, if it's that revolutionary then it's very likely this open sharing will see it taking off. Not to mention that it's morally questionable to keep su…
Agreed. I plan to publish the details shortly. And to be clear, although I refer to it as a "startup", I don't actually want to make any money off of it.
Re: Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
#68Re: Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
#69My main takeaway here is that if OP can make it to Amazon to work on AWS, hell I can make it to a FAANG too.
If you really want to get a job at AWS, I still have some friends there and I'd be happy to help.
In general, I think people overestimate how hard it is to get a job at a big tech company. Their turnover is very high. If you learn the skill they're looking for and understand how to do well in the interviews/hiring process, I'd say your odds are better than 50/50.
Re: Ask HN: How could I safely contact drug cartels?
#70Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not saying that federal agents are more dangerous than drug cartels. I'm saying that you're going to end up being arrested before you get the chance to find out.
I see your point. That is certainly a possibility. Although it would be highly inconvenient to be arrested or get in trouble with the feds, it would make for an interesting story at parties. That's always been something I've struggled with. So... silver lining? A lot of historical figures I respect have been arrested for standing by their convictions. So I would be in good company. It also could turn into a good oppo…
Just some friendly advice man, I seriously doubt your company wants to be associated with any of this, so you may want to take them out of your profile. The west coast is waking up soon, don't wait around to do it.