Illicit: Smugglers & Traffickers

the wonderful emptywheel discusses a book on globalization - Moíses Naím's "Illicit: How Smugglers, Traffickers, and Copycats Are Hijacking the Global Economy. "

sound familiar?

" He describes arms smugglers, drug smugglers, human (and human organ) traffickers, counterfeiters, and money launderers.
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The reason I add Naím to this list is because he offers a tremendous collection of insights that hold for globalization generally. He argues, for example, that those trafficking in licit goods are just as likely to traffic in illicit goods. They will often use the same networks and always the same skills.
[...]
So this is, in many ways, a story about what globalization has made possible. But by looking at this one aspect of globalization, I think Naím has gained insight into the larger phenomenon.... And then he makes an observation that may resonate even here in the States:

The “criminalization of the national interest” is one of the greatest overlooked trends of our time. Yes, the state is a central player in world affairs, and national interests often drive its behavior. But there is ample confirmation that in certain countries these national interests have been secretly—and sometimes not so secretly—hijacked by criminals.

Certainly, we have seen our national interest repeatedly get hijacked of late. Who's to say whether the reasons aren't criminal at the heart of much of this?"

sound familiar yet?