ABSTRACT
Although organized crime is one of those things that "everybody knows about," in reality, few understand its workings, structures, personnel or networks. Nor do people generally understand its extent or the degree of threat it poses to the sOcial fabric and the major institutions of a society. It is variously perceived as sinister, secretive, terrifying, romantic, fascinating and necessary. Over the years it bas provided the subject matter for popular entertainment. Not only in the United States and other industrialized countries but in developing countries as well, organized crime is mythologized as an exotic, simultaneously attractive and repellant phenomenon. It is found around the globe, from The People's Republic of China to the United States, Europe, South America, Africa, the former Soviet republics, and more.
