"Society without a State", about criminal markets; Wired on computer expert who works for the mafia

[gusl]

Society without a State

Understanding how criminal markets work is important if we want to understand the power and the limits of markets in the absence of state-enforced property rights. A recent Wired magazine article written by a mafia computer expert has some revealing information. The anonymous author writes:

...there's the misconception that if you don't pay your debts, the mob will break your legs. I've seen that on TV but never in real life. Sure, some agents make their collection runs with a bodyguard, but wouldn't you want some muscle around if you were carrying tens of thousands of dollars in cash? Breaking people's legs is bad business. ...

Comments

[mathemajician.livejournal.com]

Nice article... I'm off to Sicily in a few weeks which is mafia central. Wonder if I'll see anything interesting. One of the little family run hotels that I've been told to say at by some friends is run by a now retired ex-mafia boss. I'm told that he speaks reasonable English and doesn't mind sharing some of the stories of his past with people including photos.