Summary
The author reviews the literature on organized crime, and relates the information to the situation in Canada. He concludes that the political organization of crime can be viewed as a pre-industrial structure, related to the feudal or royal patron-client relationship. By contrast, the economic organization of crime is much more modern, operating as a diversified, decentralized union of rough equals, each with its own subsidiaries and satellites - a cartel, in short. This difference in the relative "modernity" of its two organizational components marks a weakness in the criminal organization, and that weakness is discussed in some detail. The author concludes, however, that this does not provide an effective weapon for police to use in combating criminal organizations.
Contents
1. Introduction to the research. -- 2. The political organization of organized crime. -- 3. The economic organization of organized crime. -- 4. Historical continuity in organized crime. -- 5. Migration and mobility as sources of change in organized crime. -- 6. Changing criminal organization in a changing environment. -- 7. Organizational cognates of organized crime. -- 8. Organized crime in Canada.