addendum to the pot post

Although I did once see two policemen beating a man on the sidewalk, it's not entirely unjust to say that the police here will let you get away with murder-- if the price is right. In fact, you've probably heard that bribing the police to get away with minor infractions (inoffensive offenses) is about as common here as the glass-walled-in smoking sections in cafes, where you can watch the smokers smoking in their fog of smokey smoke from the safety of your own unadulterated air. But don't sit too close to the door, or you'll be smacked in the face with a backdraft-ish wave of secondhand smoke every time someone goes in or comes out of one of these pressurized hot boxes of tobacco.

While smoking pot has been decriminalized, it isn't legal. Especially smoking pot while operating a motor vehicle. The other night, a few of Manu's friends were doing just that (shame on them) when they were pulled over by the police. The offenders all consulted their billeteras and negotiated a payoff. Then, it was determined that the corner they were stopped at was too well-lit, and some arrangement was made like, go three blocks down that dark street over there and pull over and give us the money. Well, they'd gone about five blocks when the guy driving remembered he was supposed to be looking for a parking spot. At about the same time, the police car drove up next to them and one of the officers gestured out the window something like, oh, forget it, you dumb dead beats, and drove off. Apparently, they were too high to be bothered with.


Disclaimer: Let it be known that I, Sandy, am hereby in no way promoting this kind of behavior (kids, don't try this at home). It is dangerous. But, then again, so is war.