Earth's Economy is bigger than you think

One day our global economy will get a boost when underground economies convert to above ground where its less profitable but legal.  I don't think people realize how there are criminal organizations pretty much everywhere.  We like to talk about the economy and GDP and how everything is growing.  But all that we cover on CNBC is only hitting on maybe 90-92% of economic activity.  All the illegal gains in the world might equal the GDP of country such as the United Kingdom or India.  If someone decided to study organized crime as a hobby, they would see it everywhere.  I read an article about La Ndrangheta and La Cosa Nostra.  Two rival organizations from Calabria and Sicilia.  There is an internal war/power grab within La Ndrangheta in Canada.  Most will never hear about it since there is no bloodbath in the street.  Mexican cartels and terrorist armies in 3rd world countries get that kind of attention.  While people talk about mutilated bodies being found in resort towns, Yakuza, Triads, Mafia, Ukrainians and many others are very busy. 

Depending on what they do exactly, criminal organizations can range from being fleas who just skim a little off the top from many to rabid wolves running around forcing their will on whoever is in the way.  Some are violent and some are not.  The older more mature organizations have little violence.  One day things will change.  It won't be worth it to be underground.  Some type of amnesty could occur.  I think im looking way too far ahead in the future though. Several thousand years maybe? Maybe.  But small steps in that direction could occur which would lead to a bump in tax revenue/employment/GDP.  There are individuals all over the world making hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars per year.  If their income became transparent and legal or if all that money flowed into legal businesses instead, there would be a significant change.

Legalization of recreational use of Marijuana in 4 or more states in the US already has shown that.  Smuggling weed across the border and the violence associated with it is down dramatically.  Now there are businesses selling reefer products and the IRS is getting more income.  Its a start.

Just a thought.