Sunday, October 19, 2008

Gangsterism.....

A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a persistent violent crime organization, such as a gang. As an adjective it can be used as an unflattering depiction of the violent and devious methods commonly used by mobsters, and the derived form gangsterism implies such methods as practice or habit. The term gangster is most commonly used in reference to members of the criminal organizations associated with American prohibition and the American offshoot of the Italian Cosa Nostra, the Mafia, such as the Chicago Outfit and the Five Families, and individuals such as Al Capone.

Gangsters are typically organized criminals who are actively engaged in crime as a group activity or enterprise for power, pleasure, or profit. The visibility of activities of gangsters can range from the low-level such as drug-trafficking, which are prone to be "under the radar", to the in-your-face spectacular, such as the UK's multi-million Brinks Mat robbery. Gangsters often run their operations as businesses insofar as they offer a "product" or "service", albeit an illegal one, or, as is sometimes the case, a legitimate business operating as a front for criminal activity.

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