The fat of the land
Peruvian gang claim to have killed people and drained their fat to sell for use in cosmetics. I heard this on the radio this morning and my first thought was “can there really be a demand for that worth killing over?”; after all, the West isn’t short of human fat. It appears that there probably isn’t any real demand for it:
Dr. Neil Sadick, a professor of dermatology at Cornell Weill Medical College in New York, said using a product with someone else’s fat carries the risk of an immunological reaction, which is why people who do use products with human fat get the fat from their own body.
Dr. Adam Katz, a professor of plastic surgery at the University of Virginia medical school, said he was baffled that there would be a black market at all for fat.
“It doesn’t make any sense at all, because in most countries we can get fat so readily and in such amounts from people who are willing and ready to donate that I don’t see why there would ever be a black market for fat, of all tissues,” he said.
Which raises the question of what the hell they were doing.
A couple of thoughts:
1. Not to violate my general belief in rational choice theory, but these are uneducated gang members, and I think a few of them, possibly while high, got a “good idea” that just didn’t really pan out. A short story: Friend of mine, fluent Spanish speaker, extensive experience in Peru, was walking to his car in Lima with another friend. They happened to be carrying hand guns. They were accosted by a knife wielding dude, clearly a bit high or crazy, demanding cash. My friend and his friend displayed their weapons, though they left them holstered. The knife man was undetered, and continued to demand cash. He wanted at least $10, equivalent. My friend agreed to give the dude $10, but told him: “After I give it to you, I’m going to shoot you. Do you still want it?” He still wanted it. The point is “gang member” is a very loose term, and doesn’t mean “organized criminal mastermind.”
2. Crime in Lima is particularly weird. It tends to escalate to fatal violence very fast. I can see this being a “well, we killed them, what do you suppose we should do with the bodies now? Hey, I’ve got a great idea…” situation.
3. If you think we have a lot of psuedo-scientific bullshit beauty and medical treatments here in the U.S., you ain’t seen nothing until you’ve seen that industry in Latin America. As but one example, every spa, even the high end ones in top notch hotels, offer “weight reduction massages.” Nonsense treatments are everywhere. I can see these geniuses thinking they could capitalize.
No more thoughts.
Comment by Jack — 11/20/2009 @ 9:40 pm