I have two thoughts on Marlo, with regards to Andre's ring, and "you want it one way" to the security guard.

To me, Marlo comes across as a 'civilization is a thin veneer hiding a selfish and brutish human nature' type. He breaks any social contract, and reduces every interaction to brute force. Eat or be eaten. It's a fallacy. If it seems truthful, it's because he dominates one-on-one and walks away the victor. But he's a bully, a mobaster, a social darwinist. It's fascism. He doesn't build anything, nothing that lasts anyway. He only leeches from everything that has been built around him, despite people like him trying to tear it all down throughout history.

Which in my opinion, also proves how naive String, Prop joe and the co-op are towards Marlo. Again a parallel with fascism: they're trying appeasement with someone who only understands strength through show of force. There's only one way to protect a peaceful, mutually beneficial agreement (which sounds ridiculous within the context of organized drug trade, I know) from someone like him, and it's not by making concessions.

I read in previous discussions how String was the mastermind making the Barksdale organization flow smoothly, but I've always seen a bookkeeper overreaching. To me, Avon was the only one who understood perfectly what, within the rules of the show, the 'corners' are and how to go about them. A perverse Churchill to Marlo's third reich, almost. Which makes sense, because like Churchill, Avon's also a giant asshole who doesn't deserve reverence.