[Infinite Worlds] What is the Russian Mafia stealing?

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

I don't know about that. Modern society's obsession with gold seems pretty arbitrary to me. It's just a shiny rare metal with virtually no use.

I could talk about how it is enormously ductile, conductive and corrosion resistant but that's beside the point which is that if you look at the vast majority of worlds discovered by Homeline, they are in fact worlds which have the same "arbitrary" response to gold...if not more.

[Flyndaran]

Which while weird is expected for close parallels.

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

Which while weird is expected for close parallels.

I'm not sure what you have in mind as remote parallels. Gold has been valued for thousands of years.

[Verjigorm]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

Which while weird is expected for close parallels.

Still doesn't stop the fact that Gold is *useful*. As Roguebfl pointed out, it has great qualities for making electronics, as well. I left that out, on purpose, because for the majority of human history, electronics haven't been around. But gold is still an extremely useful element, and that's not arbitrary. Gold is useful because it is:
1) Rare. This means you can control the influx of gold into an economy. Useful when you are basing your currency. There have been times when Gold has been devalued by unexpected sources(e.g. Mansu Musa's Hajj), but in general, you know that gold isn't something people can fake easily.
2) Durable. While gold isn't hard(like iron), it also doesn't degrade. Gold left in a dirt hole for a thousand years won't degrade into useless crap(like iron), it will still be gold. Solid, awesome, gold. This is also why it's used in currency: your 96% gold coins arn't going to change in composition, even if you drop them in seas, bury them in offal or burn them. They will still be gold.
3) Workable. The ductility of gold is nice when you are attempting to create works of art. I'd rather work with gold than iron for making delicate scenic votives. This also comes back to the durability thing: gold artifacts are going to retain their shape for a very long time, while thin worked iron/steel(and for a long time, Steel was probably more valuable than gold) will rust away over time.

Gold is good.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by Tyneras

When those Russian mafiosi decide to go play "Czar" and loot temples, what exactly are they stealing?

Why steal? It's easier in the long run to import stuff that you can acquire legally at reasonably low cost somewhere else, but which happens to be illegal, yet desirable, and thus expensive, somewhere else. Which, since it can't be all that bulky, tends to imply drugs. Boring, but plausible.

[Tyneras]

Originally Posted by johndallman

Why steal? It's easier in the long run to import stuff that you can acquire legally at reasonably low cost somewhere else, but which happens to be illegal, yet desirable, and thus expensive, somewhere else. Which, since it can't be all that bulky, tends to imply drugs. Boring, but plausible.

Originally Posted by Infinite Worlds p.71

An alarming number of Russian mafiosi decide to go “play czar” on the primitive worlds their supposedly secret mines exploit. []...it can be months before reports of black SUVs loaded with gunmen looting the ziggurat at Lagash filter back to the Patrol.

I figure that, with conveyors costing between 10 million and 300 million per ton, they had to be getting something worth taking from a TL <4 culture. Of course, if the conveyor is stolen, it only costs power and maintenance. I wonder how much that is?

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by johndallman

Why steal?

Because it's actually lower risk than drug importation. They'll be victimizing lower tech natives with no ability to pursue them after the operation, and it's virtually impossible to prove that what you are selling afterward was obtained illegally. Drugs on the other hand pose a substantial risk on the retail end from law enforcement authorities and competitors. And it's not as if opiates are hard to get and high priced when you live right beside Afghanistan. Gold, jewels and Norma Jean Bakers are going to be lower risk and equally profitable commodities.