Like a Government, Minus the Hypocrisy
Thomas L. Knapp at Center for a Stateless Society - a comparison of public and private organized crime, the government vs. the mafia. Conclusion: they're pretty much the same thing, except government's crimes are much larger, and the mafia doesn't try to convince you that their criminal activities are for your own good.
Drag a businessman out of his establishment and board the place up because he didn't fork over for the proper "business permits," you're a "public servant." Drag a businessman out of his establishment and set the place on fire because he didn't cough up "protection money," you're a goon.
Play the government lottery, you're an upstanding citizen. Put $50 on your neighborhood numbers game -- or worse, help set up that game -- you're a crook.
Give a pimp or madam a hundred bucks for an hour with one of his escorts, you're a john. Pay the county clerk $50 for a "marriage license" and keep up with the attendant annual tax penalties, have all the sex you want for life -- it's "legit."
Buy or sell an oxycodone tablet on the street, you're a "drug dealer" or a "substance abuser." Get a license from the DEA to sell, or a prescription from a doctor to buy, that same pill and you're a "pharmacist" or a "patient."
Pressure a jury to acquit your associate, you're a "mobster" engaged in "jury tampering." Pressure a jury to convict your opponent, you're a "prosecutor" making good use of "voir dire."
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