Organizational Crime

[Fazor]

We have to do a paper for my Criminology class on orginizational crime. Not "organized crime" like the Sopranos, but Organizational (white-collar) like Enron. I don't want to do mine on Enron or any of the recent ones because, well, that's boring. But I'm having a hard time coming up with a topic. I'd rather do one that is a look at the cause/effects of, rather than just retelling the story of Mr. So and So who embezzled such and such and blah. (see? boring). Just wondering if any of you guys knew anything that could help get me started in a dirrection.

[Moose]

Are you sure? The Enron story goes _way_ beyond mere embezzlement. They'd been manipulating the energy market in California for quite a while. The rolling blackouts were totally avoidable. There's a story there.

Granted half your class will be going in that direction, and granted you may have a hard time finding reliable information considering how high-profile cases like Enron tend to attract conspiracy fantasists.

Hmm. I'll think about it some more, but other than Enron or Worldcom, and the unnamed defense contractor that ripped me off (indirectly) six years ago, there really aren't any that come to immediate mind for which there'd be a lot of information available to you.

[Matherly]

What about political crime? Maybe something like the Teapot Dome Scandal?

[Fazor]

I was thinking something along those lines. Like, what if watergate would happen today, or more interestingly some older political crime I'm not aware of :-P My proff is against internet sources (we can use them, but sparingly and most of our sources must be from more credible sources). Might be easier to pull up resources on a political historical hullabaloo than on the newer stuff.

[Gerrsun]

Maybe this book will help.

http://www.historycooperative.org/jo...7.1/br_12.html


Maybe this link on Tammany Hall and Boss Tweed

http://www.albany.edu/~dkw42/tweed.html


What's the difference between organized crime and the political process?
You don't get to vote on mob bosses. :P

[Gerrsun]

Or how about Phenix City, Alabama. The wickedest city in America in 1954.

It is right across the Chattahoochee River from Columbus Ga where I grew up and it was out and out lawless. Murders in broad daylight, peoples' children murdered and thrown in their yards as intimidation, thugs hired to stand outside polling booths to intimidate voters... open gambling, brothels, drinking joints...

They eventually had to call in the National Guard. The movie is cheesy but it'll give you a starting point.

http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movie...ml?v_id=106039

I know you could find someone at the DNR who could tell you more about it.

www.gashpo.org

[Argos]

Resort to fiction; the great corporate crimes of the movies.

[Doodler]

Halliburton. Have fun.

[Moose]

Oooh, oooh oooh! The stuff Scientology was pulling a while back. I can't remember anything especially useful, but they'd actually been busted for raiding the FBI for documents on their "enemies", or some such.

Apparently there's a town in Florida whose police department is just about completely owned, to a member, by Scientology.

Maybe you'd find something like that more interesting?

[Maksutov]

[edit]Apparently there's a town in Florida whose police department is just about completely owned, to a member, by Scientology....

Here you go.

[Kwalish Kid]

Fazor, you might want to check out the book Toxic Sludge is Good for You.

[Hydro]

We have to do a paper for my Criminology class on orginizational crime. Not "organized crime" like the Sopranos, but Organizational (white-collar) like Enron. I don't want to do mine on Enron or any of the recent ones because, well, that's boring. But I'm having a hard time coming up with a topic. I'd rather do one that is a look at the cause/effects of, rather than just retelling the story of Mr. So and So who embezzled such and such and blah. (see? boring). Just wondering if any of you guys knew anything that could help get me started in a dirrection.

Maybe an environmental crime? Like Love Canal?

[sarongsong]

Monsanto's quest to establish their "Terminator Seed" technology, which would require farmers to purchase 'new' seeds annually, particularly now in India and Iraq.

[teddyv]

There are lots of colourful and interesting stories in the mining world - Bre-X Minerals the more recent of the big scams.

[Moose]

Thanks Mak. That's one city that's sooooo off my vacation spot list.

[The Supreme Canuck]

There's also the scandal that the last two Canadian governments were involved in, if you want to go that route.