Why we use the term "conspiracy."

I just found this on the CCHR news feed:

Dr. Alan Gumer, 64, of Tamarac, Fla., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Gumer was charged on Feb. 15, 2011, with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and four counts of health care fraud.

Full article:
www.cchrint.org...

This is an example of a "small-time" conspiracy, and the use of the term in law. There are all kinds of laws against conspiring to do this or that. This particular "little" conspiracy stole $200 million from the Medicare system.

Most white-collar crime, like organized crime, is conspiratorial in nature. So when we accuse someone of being party to a conspiracy, it's a serious charge. And world-wide, we are talking about large amounts of money disappearing into the wrong pockets.

Here is one site that discusses the annual cost of corporate-related crime:
www.corporatepolicy.org...
Add up a few of their figures and you're up to about a trillion dollars a year. And that's not counting deaths and injuries from work and product-related accidents.

According to a short Wikipedia article on the subject, the FBI's own estimates of the costs of this sort of crime in the US is also in this range.
en.wikipedia.org...

So, let the poor saps who don't mind being swindled (or are the swindlers) laugh at us for trying to point out that there is something wrong with this picture! We are providing a free public service that in saner and more honest times would be paid for!

Excellent discussion, and your point is never said enough.

Conspiracies abound and exist in all societies.

All a conspiracy really is, is two or more people communicating together in secret to commit a crime.

In fact if you and some dude robbed a bank and discussed it before hand, that's conspiracy too.

"There is no conspiracy" or the famous "Not everything is a conspiracy!" are insulting, not to me, but to the people who say it. How does it insult me if someone else makes a public idiot of themselves? It doesn't. I usually laugh at the absurdity that must exist in their minds.

I am always constantly amazed at how gullible they are towards authority though. I swear it's like Authority becomes like Jesus to some of these folks and they cannot fathom or allow anyone to speak ill (blasphemy) of their holy perfect never conspiring overlords.