How much force am I going to have to use to end decisively the piracy of my secret identity?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deviant_behavior
Deviance describes actions or behaviors that violate cultural norms including formally-enacted rules (e.g., crime)
Neutralization theory
Gresham Sykes and David Matza's neutralization theory explains how deviants justified their deviant behaviors by adjusting the definitions of their actions and by explaining to themselves and others the lack of guilt of their actions in particular situations. There are five different types of rationalizations, which are the denial of responsibility, the denial of injury, the denial of the victim, the condemnation of the condemners, and the appeal to higher loyalties.
The denial of responsibility is the argument that the deviant was helplessly propelled into the deviance, and that under the same circumstances, any other person would resort to similar actions. The denial of injury is the argument that the deviant did not hurt anyone, and thus the deviance is not morally wrong, due to the fundamental belief that the action caused no harm to other individuals or to the society. The denial of the victim is the argument that possible individuals on the receiving end of the deviance were not injured, but rather experiences righteous force, due to the victim's lack of virtue or morals. The condemnation of the condemners is the act by which the deviant accuses authority figures or victims for having the tendency to be equally deviant, and as a result, hypocrites. Finally, the appeal to higher loyalties is the belief that there are loyalties and values that go beyond the confines of the law; friendships and traditions are more important to the deviant than legal boundaries.
The Neutralization Theory says that criminals rationalize actions by neutralizing the definitions of crime. There are 5 major types of neutralization:
Denial Of Responsibility: Propelled helplessly into crime.
Denial Of Injury: Crime does not hurt anyone, not morally wrong.
Denial Of The Victim: Victim did not receive injury but rather, rightful force.
Condemnation Of The Condemners: Condemners are hypocrites, deviants as well.
Appeal To Higher Loyalties: Loyalty to a higher power than law, like friendship.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organized_crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are groups or operations run by criminals, most commonly for the purpose of generating a monetary profit. The Organized Crime Control Act (U.S., 1970) defines organized crime as "The unlawful activities of ... a highly organized, disciplined association...".
Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are politically motivated. Gangs sometimes become "disciplined" enough to be considered "organized". An organized gang or criminal set can also be referred to as a mob. The act of engaging in criminal activity as a structured group is referred to in the United States as racketeering. In the U.S., organized crime is often prosecuted federally under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), Statute (18 U.S.C. Part I Chapter 96 §§ 1961-1968).
"Piracy and banditry were to the pre-industrial world what organized crime is to modern society" (Paul Lunde, Organized Crime, 2004). Today, crime is thought of as an urban phenomenon, but for most of human history it was the rural world that was crime-ridden. Pirates and bandits attacked trade routes, at times severely disrupting commerce, raising costs, insurance rates and prices to the consumer.
Organized crime is deeply linked to the moral problem of integrating barbarian energy into civilized state building. The early Christian world was dubious about the legitimacy of nation-states. St. Augustine famously defined them as what would now be called kleptocracies, states founded on theft: "If justice be disregarded, what are states but large bandit bands, and what are bandit bands but small states?" (De Civ. Dei iv, 4).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organized_crime
St. Augustine famously defined them as what would now be called kleptocracies, states founded on theft: "If justice be disregarded, what are states but large bandit bands, and what are bandit bands but small states?" (De Civ. Dei iv, 4).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kleptocracy
A kleptocracy (sometimes cleptocracy) (root: klepto+kratein = rule by thieves) is a government that extends the personal wealth and political power of government officials and the ruling class (collectively, kleptocrats) at the expense of the population. A kleptocratic government often goes beyond merely awarding the prime contracts and civil service posts to friends (a common feature of corrupt governments[citation needed]). They also create projects and programs at a policy level which serve the primary purpose of funnelling money out of the treasury and into the pockets of the executive with little if any regard for the logic, viability or necessity of those projects.
The creation of a kleptocracy powered by dictatorship typically results in many years of general hardship and suffering for the vast majority of citizens, as civil society and the rule of law disintegrate. In addition, kleptocrats routinely ignore economic and social problems in their quest to amass ever more wealth and power.
The protection society has against kleptocracy is largely dependent on the effectiveness of the rule of law to prevent political leaders abusing their powers, the free flow of information (necessary to properly identify kleptocrats) and ability of the population to remove corrupt leaders from office. Many such protections are included in legal documents such as a constitution or a bill of rights and are also found in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 17. Many countries have these protections, on paper; in many cases, the rules have not been enforced. The imposition of a government on property rights may not be limited to taxation, licenses, and eminent domain and may extend to outright nationalization of privately held property if left unchecked by the rule of law.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organized_crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are groups or operations run by criminals, most commonly for the purpose of generating a monetary profit. The Organized Crime Control Act (U.S., 1970) defines organized crime as "The unlawful activities of ... a highly organized, disciplined association...".
Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are politically motivated. Gangs sometimes become "disciplined" enough to be considered "organized". An organized gang or criminal set can also be referred to as a mob. The act of engaging in criminal activity as a structured group is referred to in the United States as racketeering. In the U.S., organized crime is often prosecuted federally under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), Statute (18 U.S.C. Part I Chapter 96 §§ 1961-1968).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organized_crime
In order for a criminal organization to prosper, some degree of support is required from the society in which it lives. Thus, it is often necessary to corrupt some of its respected members, most commonly achieved through bribery, blackmail, and the establishment of symbiotic relationships with legitimate businesses. Judicial and police officers and legislators are especially targeted for control by organized crime via bribes.
Lacking much of the paperwork that is common to legitimate organizations, criminal organizations can usually evolve and reorganize much more quickly when the need arises. They are quick to capitalize on newly-opened markets, and quick to rebuild themselves under another guise when caught by authorities.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puppet_state
A puppet state is a state that is nominally independent, but in reality, under the control of another power.
"Puppet state" is a term of political criticism,[citation needed] used to denigrate a current government which is perceived as unduly dependent upon an outside power. It implies that government's lack of legitimacy, in the view of those using the term. The term is closely associated with the state of Manchukuo, established under Japanese auspices in Manchuria in 1932. Although the term might reasonably be used to describe a significant number of states in the past, only Manchukuo is routinely designated as a "puppet state".[citation needed]
The term has two distinct but related meanings.[citation needed] First, it refers to a state whose government depends on a foreign power for its existence and which closely follows the will of that foreign power in key policy issues; sometimes economic, sometimes strategic. Such a government is also known as a puppet régime. In this respect, "puppet state" is one of many terms that describe the subordination of one state to another in the international system. Second, the term refers to a state that has been created by the intervention of an external power in territory under the sovereignty of another state. In this respect, a puppet state is a secessionist state enabled and supported by an external power.
Under these definitions[citation needed], a puppet state either lacks democratic legitimacy (because its policies are determined elsewhere) or it lacks sovereign legality (because it was created in breach of the rules of sovereign succession). For these reason, the term "puppet state" can be useful if applied only in the modern world, that is, the world in which states are presumed to be a reflection of the will of their people, and in which war has been outlawed as means of formal territorial acquisition. For subordinate relations in pre-modern times, the terms vassal state and tributary state are preferable.
The concept of a "puppet state" implies some deliberate attempt to deceive.[citation needed] Either the citizens of the alleged puppet state or the international community are assumed to be deceived into believing that the puppet state is really independent when it is not. This presumption of deception makes the term a partisan one, prone to semantic disputes. Each side believes that it sees a reality which the other side cannot, or refuses to, see.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_corruption
Corruption poses a serious development challenge. In the political realm, it undermines democracy and good governance by flouting or even subverting formal processes. Corruption in elections and in legislative bodies reduces accountability and distorts representation in policymaking; corruption in the judiciary compromises the rule of law; and corruption in public administration results in the unfair provision of services. More generally, corruption erodes the institutional capacity of government as procedures are disregarded, resources are siphoned off, and public offices are bought and sold. At the same time, corruption undermines the legitimacy of government and such democratic values as trust and tolerance.
Involvement in organized crime
An illustrative example of official involvement in organized crime can be found from 1920s and 1930s Shanghai, where Huang Jinrong was a police chief in the French concession, while simultaneously being a gang boss and co-operating with Du Yuesheng, the local gang ringleader. The relationship kept the flow of profits from the gang's gambling dens, prostitution, and protection rackets undisturbed.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Might_makes_right
Might makes right is an aphorism with several potential meanings (in order of increasing complexity):
In English, the phrase is most often used in negative assessments of expressions of power.
The second related idea associated with the phrase connotes that a society's view of right and wrong is determined, like its perspective on history, by those currently in power.
The term can be used in the descriptive, positive way, in the same sense that people say that "History is written by the victors." Since every man labels what he thinks is good for himself as "right," only those who are able to defeat their enemies are the ones who can push their idea of what is right into fruition.
In terms of morality; those who are the strongest will rule others and have the power to determine right and wrong. By this definition, the phrase manifests itself in a normative sense. This precise meaning is used to define a moral code for society to follow in the works of Nietzsche and others, discussions of social Darwinism, Weberian theme of the authority of the state (e.g. 'Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft').
