ABSTRACT
There are two realms of political, economic and social relationships and activities. One is the realm of overt, visible, legitimately recognized activities and institutions. It has received the bulk of scholarly attention. The other includes illegitimate and only occasionally visible activities which are often obscured or suppressed from consciousness. These constitute what I have called the covert world. Specific types or instances of covert activities have received scholarly attention, for example organized crime and the drug trade, the arms traffic, national intelligence services; and particular cycles of political violence. Much of this work has been done in the perspective of state agencies charged with combating these activities. There have been few efforts to develop a general picture of the covert world and its relationship to the better-known overt world.1
