I guess they are like a government, in that they can afford to wait out disputes while the drug businesses can't. Every once in a while these other groups will try and get rid of the dominant extortion gang but since they live off skimming, and their business model is a vehicle and a gun, they can afford to go to war while the drug dealers and cartels all will be losing money and cannot sustain a lengthy conflict. The narcotics businesses have extensive bribery networks they need to keep operating to survive and any interference in the income will threaten to unravel it all. Some of them have minimum wholesale they need to buy every month in order to keep up supply, and customers will also start calling competitor lines if deliveries are stopped.
Even worse, when the heat on the streets is so hot during a war from all the shootings and police are everywhere, not much business can happen so the extortion crews turn to contract hits for income. For $10-15k you can pay them to kill off one of your rival drug dealers, potential informants or even people in your own delivery crew so you can move up and take their place. So while they are fighting off a rival takeover they are also open for local business dropping bodies all over the streets and blaming it on the invading gang, which police then turn their attention to, and are getting paid while the rivals/cartels are bleeding money. Eventually they have no choice but to give up the dispute to save their own business from extinction, much like how businesses have to settle in court when defending against government lawsuits and can't afford too much delay.
What is really surreal about the black market is after these violent outbursts everything is simply settled by a payment of back taxes owed and you just go back to work like nothing happened. One of the enforcers who managed us was shot at repeatedly by somebody he knew living in the same immediate neighborhood during one of these wars and next week it was all cleared up above us by whoever was in charge and beefs squashed. He'd still see the guy on a regular basis, no hard feelings, only business.
Even worse, when the heat on the streets is so hot during a war from all the shootings and police are everywhere, not much business can happen so the extortion crews turn to contract hits for income. For $10-15k you can pay them to kill off one of your rival drug dealers, potential informants or even people in your own delivery crew so you can move up and take their place. So while they are fighting off a rival takeover they are also open for local business dropping bodies all over the streets and blaming it on the invading gang, which police then turn their attention to, and are getting paid while the rivals/cartels are bleeding money. Eventually they have no choice but to give up the dispute to save their own business from extinction, much like how businesses have to settle in court when defending against government lawsuits and can't afford too much delay.
What is really surreal about the black market is after these violent outbursts everything is simply settled by a payment of back taxes owed and you just go back to work like nothing happened. One of the enforcers who managed us was shot at repeatedly by somebody he knew living in the same immediate neighborhood during one of these wars and next week it was all cleared up above us by whoever was in charge and beefs squashed. He'd still see the guy on a regular basis, no hard feelings, only business.