10 Life Lessons from The Wire
Greetings friends,
The Wire is arguably one of the best crime dramas…no scratch that. One of the best shows…period. The characters, the plot, and the setting are all top notch. Needless to say, I highly recommend the series for any that have not watched it. Along those lines, allow to me to go ahead and issue a spoiler warning. These lessons are of course a matter of opinion and serve to highlight some of my key takeaways from the show.
(
10. In General – The City
The city is the point of the show. A microcosm of the world and the human condition. Racial tension has always been present and is highlighted in the show along with the changing times. The duration of apathy has only served to create more apathetic woes as the new cancer (drugs, prejudice, politics, corruption, etc.) continues to eat away and block the arteries of civilization. Heroes rise and fall and to paraphrase Harvey Dent from The Dark Knight, “some live long enough to become the villain.
9. Brother Mouzone – Fear an educated man.
Brother Mouzone is an enforcer. It is clear from his articulation that he is well educated. He makes the comment about the power that lies within a library card. The old adage says that with great power comes great responsibility. I feel that we all have a responsibility to educate ourselves, especially in regard to matters we may not be well-versed in. I am a huge advocate of continuous improvement. If you think that you are the smartest person in the room, think again. As Socrates was once credited with saying, “I know that I know nothing.” Since I know nothing, then I strive towards a life of learning.
8. In General – It is never too late to change.
Many characters show signs of improvement throughout the show. Most notably in my opinion Dennis “Cutty” Wise, Jimmy McNulty, and Namond Brice. Cutty is known as an enforcer and is incarcerated when we first meet him. He eventually gets out and finds that a lot has changed. He decides that he himself needs to change and starts a gym in the neighborhood which reaches out to some of the kids that are on the street. Jimmy McNulty is often shown struggling with alcoholism, asshole-ism, and infidelity. He cleans up his act for a while, dips in again, but then starts to show signs of improvement again. He lives his life on a spectrum. Namond is first introduced to us as a corner kid selling drugs for one of the kingpins. He goes from corner kid to outstanding student by the end of the show.
7. Hamsterdam – Case study of a lesser of evils?
Hamsterdam is the brainchild of Howard “Bunny” Colvin. He devised the plan to cordon off parts of the city and legalize most of what would be considered criminal activity. Referencing the city of Amsterdam where the law is much more lax for certain activities. Prostitution and drugs were legalized in these areas. Community outreach was setup in these areas which is a good thing. Crime rates dropped dramatically. This was done in response to trying to improve statistics. I am not saying all of the activity in those areas should be considered for actual legalization. All of the drugs that were legal there would probably not be good to legalize nationally. However, one does have to wonder if compromises or legalization of some of the stuff that was legal in Hamsterdam would be a societal improvement.
6. In General – Family can be an enemy.
All of us probably have that “one” or more member of the family that could be considered an enemy or purveyor of drama. Russell “Stringer” Bell and Avon Barksdale considered themselves family even though they were not blood. By the end, they fell out and were enemies. Bugs parents were completely horrendous people to their children. Joseph “Proposition Joe” Stewart (Prop Joe) had a nephew named Cheese who was constantly a pain in the ass and ultimately ended up being a bullet to the head.
5. In General – Don’t have to be blood to be family.
Before their falling out, Stringer Bell and Avon were tight. A lot of the officers have a comradery that rivals family despite not being blood relation. I would venture to say that a lot of us have friends that are closer to us than our actual family, at least extended family. I’ll take a friend that is family over family that is an enemy any day of the week.
4. Omar – All in the game.
If the city of Baltimore is a gameboard with police officers and drug dealers as game pieces, then Omar would be king. Sometimes his emotions get the best of him, but overall he is one of the toughest players and commonly comes out on top. Even in court when being cross examined, Omar holds himself in kingly stature when the lawyer would try to make of him a jester. One of my favorite exchanges in the show is as follows:
Levy: “You are amoral, are you not? You are feeding off the violence and the despair of the drug trade. You are stealing from those who themselves are stealing the lifeblood from our city. You are a parasite who leaches off the culture of drugs …”
Omar (interrupting): “Just like you, man.”
Levy: “Excuse me?”
Omar: “I got the shotgun, you got the briefcase. It’s all in the game though, right?”
3. Freamon – All the pieces matter.
Lester Freamon is one of my favorite characters in the show. I love his quote, “all the pieces matter.” It is simple, yet profound. You would not want to put a puzzle together only to find that one of the pieces is missing. I love the double-meaning of the quote as well, it goes to show that when you are working up a case that all of the details matter for investigation. I feel that it also goes on to mean that the people or reason that you are working the case for (the victim or victim prevention) matters as well. Another common quote I will paraphrase from the show is, “Don’t go giving a fuck, when it is not your turn to give a fuck.” Often times, those characters continue to go on giving a fuck. Why do they give a fuck? Because of the pieces matter.
2. Butchie – Conscious comes at a cost.
Butchie is a blind barkeep that is one of Omar’s trustworthy inner circle. He says that, “conscious do cost.” And he is not wrong. I love how they tied it in full circle with his character and Omar’s character. Butchie is unfortunately tortured to death at the hands of Marlo’s people. He is able to keep a clear conscious by not snitching on Omar. In turn, Omar looking to keep a clear conscious by avenging Butchie comes gunning for Marlo’s people only to meet his untimely end. In life sometimes it is also true that our conscious comes at a cost.
1. Bubbs – Ain’t no shame in holding on to grief.
Reginald “Bubbles” Cousins speaks out about his lost friend Sherrod and says, “Ain’t no shame in holding on to grief. As long you make room for other things too.” I lost my father in 2012 to a car accident. It has taken me a long time to come to terms, that indeed there is no shame in holding on and likewise there is no shame in letting go. Often times we are told that grief comes in stages. Personally, I do not care for it being called stages myself, as it implies a beginning and an end. In my experience I have found that grief is more of a cycle, or a spectrum. I may be angry one day and want to hold on to that grief and fight it in a cage match. The next day I may want to let go of that grief and allow the waves of acceptance to wash over me. Although our loved ones may leave us, we are left behind and must move on to the best of our ability. Some days are easier than others. I would like to share a song from the anime Demon Slayer that has helped me with grieving recently. Just in case it may be of comfort to anyone else.
Have you watched The Wire? If so, what was your biggest takeaway? If not, are you planning on watching it?
Thank you,
Jake Jeffries
P.S. Coming next month, Top 10 Favorite AmaLee Songs.
