Powerful ideas from top nonfiction
Try Blinkist to get the key ideas from 7,500+ bestselling nonfiction titles and podcasts. Listen or read in just 15 minutes.
Get started
Blink 3 of 8 - The 5 AM Club
by Robin Sharma
Listen to the Intro
Narconomics summary
Tom Wainwright
How to Run a Drug Cartel
24 mins
Brief summary
Narconomics by Tom Wainwright sheds light on the economics of drug cartels and offers insights into how legalizing drugs might impact the global economy.
Topics
Table of Contents
Narconomics
Summary of 9 key ideas
Audio & text in the Blinkist app
Key idea 1 of 9
The US government’s efforts to attack the supply side of the drug industry are flawed.
It was in 1971 that then-US President Richard Nixon launched the “war on drugs.” Between then and now, drug incarceration rates have shot up exponentially in the United States. But the amount of drugs being produced and consumed globally has not decreased; in fact, there’s more money in the drug market right now than ever before. How is this possible?
Presumably, the US government wanted to tackle the drug problem at its root. As such, drug policy has been designed to attack the drug industry in one area – supply. Take crop dusting in South America, for instance.
South American countries are an important source of many of the drugs that enter the United States. So, the US government entered into agreements with these nations to crack down on the farming of coca leaves by “crop dusting” them – that is, spraying pesticides on crops from low-flying planes to destroy them. This seems like a logical fix, right? After all, it’ll be harder for the drug industry to flourish if it doesn’t have the supply to meet demands.
Unfortunately, things aren’t so simple. This approach has led to what researchers call the balloon effect. The phenomenon gets its name from the way that when one part of a balloon is squeezed, the air inside moves, but the volume of the air itself doesn’t decrease.
Like air inside a balloon, cartels can also move around, in this case from one area of South America to another. When one government cracks down on coca crops, cartels just pack up and move to another country. As a result, the problem keeps moving around, but never really disappears.
That’s not the only issue with the US government’s approach. Their supply-side attack targets farmers, without ever directly confronting cartels or consumption – two aspects without which the drug industry wouldn’t exist.
Cartels can be described as monopsonies, that is, single buyers. Cartels decide how much to pay farmers, who are essentially at their mercy. By targeting impoverished farmers and not the cartels, the US “war on drugs” hardly gets to the real root of the problem.
What’s more, when supplies decrease, consumers become okay with paying more for the same amount. Therefore, yearly revenue generated from drugs will remain the same or grow, even if supply decreases.
Want to see all full key ideas from Narconomics?
Key ideas in Narconomics
More knowledge in less time
Read or listen
Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.
Find your next read
Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.
Shortcasts New
We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.
What is Narconomics about?
Narconomics (2016) gives us a tour of the business side of the $300-billion global narcotics industry. From human resources to PR to franchising and diversification, these blinks show how drug cartels run their operations not unlike highly successful businesses. By exploring the economic phenomena at work behind the world’s drug problem, the author presents new insights into how governments can defeat it.
Narconomics Review
Narconomics (2016) explores the economics of drug cartels and reveals fascinating insights into the global drug trade. Here's why this book is worth reading:
- It provides a striking analysis of drug cartels as businesses, uncovering the surprising parallels with legitimate companies.
- With its top-notch investigative journalism, the book offers a captivating look into the drug world, exposing the intricacies of its operations.
- Through compelling storytelling and thought-provoking research, it challenges conventional thinking and sheds light on the effectiveness of different drug policies.
Best quote from Narconomics
These two conundrums – how to hire staff, and how to make sure they do what they are told – are what occupy drug cartels human-resources managers.
—Tom Wainwright
Who should read Narconomics?
- Students looking for fascinating applications of micro and macroeconomics
- Readers interested in alternative perspectives on social issues
- Anyone curious as to how the narcotics industry really works
Categories with Narconomics
Book summaries like Narconomics
People ❤️ Blinkist
Sven O.
It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.
Thi Viet Quynh N.
Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.
Jonathan A.
Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.
Renee D.
Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.
People also liked these summaries
4.7 Stars
Average ratings on iOS and Google Play
37 Million
Downloads on all platforms
10+ years
Experience igniting personal growth
Narconomics FAQs
What is the main message of Narconomics?
The main message of Narconomics is that understanding the economics of drug cartels can help combat the global drug trade.
How long does it take to read Narconomics?
The reading time for Narconomics varies depending on the reader's speed. However, the Blinkist summary can be read in just 15 minutes.
Is Narconomics a good book? Is it worth reading?
Narconomics is a thought-provoking book that sheds light on the dynamics of the drug trade. It's definitely worth reading for anyone interested in understanding this complex issue.
Who is the author of Narconomics?
The author of Narconomics is Tom Wainwright.
What to read after Narconomics?
If you're wondering what to read next after Narconomics, here are some recommendations we suggest:
- Franchise Your Business by Mark Siebert
- Knowledge by Jennifer Nagel
- Next Move, Best Move by Kimberly Brown
- The Laws of Human Nature by Robert Greene
- Make Today Count by John C. Maxwell
- Money by David McWilliams
- Career Rehab by Kanika Tolver
- Get to the Point! by Joel Schwartzberg
- Supremacy by Parmy Olson
- The Self-Made Billionaire Effect by John Sviokla and Mitch Cohen