question: Why is a drug cartel called a cartel?
comment: It's like a monopoly or conglomeration of corporations, but there is no legal paperwork tying the "companies" together. Instead it's better described as a group of independent businesses opting to work together on pricing and territory instead of competing against each other. There's no legal obligation to avoid betraying the arrangement, just an informal social convention for mutual gain. Since there's no legal framework tying the different "Companies" together, it's not a proper corporation or organization that can be sued or pursued legally for damages. When someone steps out and breaks the convention, social implications may follow, and competition between the independent companies will resume. This creates competitive turmoil (gang wars, territory fights) until one "Company" wins out or a new co-habitation/Cartel agreement can be arranged.
passages: Drug cartel
  
  A drug cartel is any criminal organization with the intention of supplying drug trafficking operations. They range from loosely managed agreements among various drug traffickers to formalized commercial enterprises. The term was applied when the largest trafficking organizations reached an agreement to coordinate the production and distribution of cocaine. Since that agreement was broken up, drug cartels are no longer actually cartels, but the term stuck and it is now popularly used to refer to any criminal narcotics related organization.
  
  The basic structure of a drug cartel is as follows:
   Section::::History.:Early years and "Chroma" (2003–2006).
   The Cali Cartel was formed by the Rodriguez Orejuela brothers and Santacruz, all coming from what is described as a higher social background than most other traffickers of the time. The recognition of this social background was displayed in the group's nickname as ""Los Caballeros de Cali"" ("Gentlemen of Cali" or "Cali's Gentlemen").
   BULLET::::- Cartel (rap group), a Turkish hip hop group
  
  BULLET::::- The Cartel (record distributor), a network of record distributors in the UK
  
  Section::::Music.:Albums.
  
  BULLET::::- "Cartel" (Cartel album), the band's self-titled album
  
  BULLET::::- "Cartel" (hip hop album), a German 1995 compilation album
  
  Section::::Film.
  
  BULLET::::- "Cartels" (film), a 2017 action film starring Steven Seagal
  
  BULLET::::- "The Cartel", a 2010 documentary film by Bob Bowdon that covers the failures of public education in the United States by focusing on New Jersey
  
  Section::::Other uses.
  
  BULLET::::- Galindo cartel, a cartel that figured largely in "Sons of Anarchy" (season 4) and the spinoff series "Mayans M.C."
   The assembled group first involved itself in trafficking marijuana. Due to the product's low profit rate and large amounts required to traffic to cover resources, the fledgling group decided to shift their focus to a more lucrative drug, cocaine.
   Section::::History.:Bolivarian government.
  
  The "Cartel of the Suns" name returned in 2004 by reporter and city council member Mauro Marcano. Shortly before he was murdered, Marcano alleged that Alexis Maneiro, head of the National Guard and the Dirección General de Inteligencia Militar, was involved in drug trafficking.
   Félix Gallardo "The Godfather" was arrested on April 8, 1989. He then decided to divide up the trade he controlled as it would be more efficient and less likely to be brought down in one law enforcement swoop. In a way, he was privatizing the Mexican drug business while sending it back underground, to be run by bosses who were less well known or not yet known by the DEA. Gallardo sent his lawyer to convene the nation's top drug traffickers at a house in the resort of Acapulco where he designated the "plazas" or territories.
   BULLET::::- Legal: Control over representation for captured traffickers, hiring of lobbyists, and overseas representation
  
  The Cali Cartel eventually became known by then DEA chief Thomas Constantine as "The biggest, most powerful crime syndicate we've ever known."
  
  Section::::Activities.
  
  Section::::Activities.:Trafficking.
   The banner's reference to "G.N." was a clear reference to Gente Nueva, but the Jalisco New Generation Cartel later assumed full responsibility for the massacre and the incursions in the state of Veracruz, traditionally considered turf of Los Zetas.
  
  Section::::History.:Present-day.
   The last known modern day use of the title 'cartel ship' refers to the , a British P&O cruise liner that the UK used in 1982 in the Falkland Islands War. Known colloquially as 'The Great White Whale', "Canberra" ferried 4,000 Argentinian prisoners of war from the islands to Puerto Madryn, Argentina, from East Falkland after the cessation of hostilities, and was appointed a cartel ship by the Red Cross representative Hugo Berchtold, then present in the islands.
  
  Section::::Citations and references.
  
  Citations
  
  References
  
  BULLET::::- Dudley, William S. (1985) "The Naval War of 1812: A Documentary History". (Government Printing Office).
   There are other operating groups within the drug cartels. For example, the drug producers and suppliers, although not considered in the basic structure, are critical operators of any drug cartel, along with the financiers and money launderers. In addition, the arms suppliers operate in a completely different circle, and are technically not considered part of the cartel's logistics.
  
  Section::::Africa.
  
  BULLET::::- Cape Verdean organized crime
  
  BULLET::::- Mungiki
  
  BULLET::::- Nigerian organized crime
  
  BULLET::::- Confraternities in Nigeria
  
  BULLET::::- Black Axe Confraternity
  
  BULLET::::- Anini gang
  
  BULLET::::- Mai-Mai militia gangs
  
  BULLET::::- Moroccan hashish smugglers
  
  BULLET::::- Ahmed organization
  
  Section::::Americas.
  
  Section::::Americas.:North America.
  
  Section::::Americas.:North America.:Canada.
  
  BULLET::::- Rivard organization
   In recent times, Los Zetas has experenced severe fragmentation and seen its influence diminish. As of December 2016, two subgroups calling themselves Los Zetas Grupo Bravo (Group Bravo) and Zetas Vieja Escuela (Old School Zetas) formed an alliance with the Gulf Cartel against a group known as El Cartel del Noreste (The Cartel of the Northeast).
  
  Section::::Mexican cartels.:Major cartels.:Sinaloa Cartel.
   It was believed each cell would report to a larger group, who would then report to the leaders of the cartel. The groups as cited by former Cali accountant Guillermo Pallomari are:
  
  BULLET::::- Narco-trafficking: Control over processing labs, shipping methods and routes
  
  BULLET::::- Military: Control over security, punishment/discipline, and bribery in relation to military or police officials
  
  BULLET::::- Political: Responsible for establishing governmental links such as with congressional members, federal officials, and local authorities
  
  BULLET::::- Financial: Control over money-laundering, front businesses, and legitimate business ventures which they owned
   In 1907 a fourth principle, "patria", was added to the other three. Patria did not mean a limitation of membership to people of German, Austrian or Swiss origin, as several members from other countries, as Belgium, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom show. For example, on 28 February 1905 the first American, Irville Charles LeCompte , later a professor at Yale, was accepted as a member of AV Rappoltstein, then in Strasbourg, now in Cologne (KDStV Rappoltstein).
   BULLET::::- New York
  
  BULLET::::- Dwyer gang
  
  BULLET::::- The Westies
  
  BULLET::::- White Hand Gang
  
  BULLET::::- Higgins gang
  
  BULLET::::- St Louis
  
  BULLET::::- Hogan Gang
  
  BULLET::::- Egan's Rats
  
  Section::::Americas.:North America.:Mexico.
  
  Mexican cartels (also known in Mexico as: La Mafia (the mafia or the mob), La Maña (the skill / the bad manners), Narcotraficantes (Narco-Traffickers), or simply as Narcos) usually refers to several, rival, criminal organizations that are combated by the Mexican government in the Mexican War on Drugs (List sorted by branches and heritage):
  
  BULLET::::- Gulf Cartel (The oldest Mexican Criminal syndicate, started as prohibition-era bootlegging gang)
   BULLET::::1. To increase the ranks of their cartel after the deaths or arrests of their own members;
  
  BULLET::::2. To exterminate members of their rival gangs;
  
  BULLET::::3. To kidnap people for money and other ransom.
   Prior to World War II (except in the United States), members of cartels could sign contracts that were enforceable in courts of law. There were even instances where cartels are encouraged by states. For example, during the period before 1945, cartels were tolerated in Europe and were promoted as a business practice in German-speaking countries. This was the norm due to the accepted benefits, which even the U.S. Supreme court has noted. In the case, "the" "U.S. v. National Lead Co. et al.", it cited the testimony of individuals, who cited that a cartel, in its protean form, is "a combination of producers for the purpose of regulating production and, frequently, prices, and an association by agreement of companies or sections of companies having common interests so as to prevent extreme or unfair competition."
   Los Escorpiones, also called Grupo Escorpios, ("The Scorpions"), was believed to be the mercenary group that protected Antonio Cárdenas Guillén, the former leader of the organization. According to reports by the Mexican government, Los Escorpiones was created by Antonio Cárdenas ("Tony Tormenta") and is composed of over 60 civilians, former police officers, and ex-military officials. According to "El Universal", there are several music videos on YouTube that exalt the power of this armed group through "narcocorridos". After the rupture between the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas (which until then had served as the cartel's armed wing), Los Escorpiones became the armed wing of the entire Gulf organization. The first mention of Los Escorpiones on the media was in 2008, when "El Universal" wrote an article about some "protected witnesses" from the Gulf Cartel who denounced the alliance between the Beltrán-Leyva Cartel and Los Zetas to the Mexican authorities, and that the Gulf Cartel had created Los Escorpiones to stop and balance the growing hegemony of Los Zetas.
   Los Zetas was named after its first commander, Arturo Guzmán Decena, whose Federal Judicial Police radio code was "Z1", a code given to high-ranking officers. The radio code for commanding Federal Judicial Police officers in Mexico was "Y" and those officers are nicknamed "Yankees", while Federal Judicial Police in charge of a city was codenamed "Z"; thus they were nicknamed as "Zetas", the Spanish version of the letter.
  
  Section::::History.:Foundation.
   After the assassination of the youtuber Pamika Montenegro Real known as ""Nana Pelucas"" in February 2018, the Prosecutor Xavier Olea Peláez said during a press conference that the ambushed was organized by Javier Daniel Cervantes Magno aka ""El Barbas"", member to the cartel of Acapulco leadered by José Ángel Palacios Galeana aka ""El Capuchino"".
  
  Section::::Emergence and structure.
   Section::::History.:"Cycles" (2008–2010).
   Since its foundation, the Cartellverband only accepted into its structure one fraternity from every university, called the principle of singularity. Those fraternities, which were denied membership founded other umbrella organisations, like the "Katholische Deutsche Verband farbentragender Studentenkorporationen (KDV)", sharing the same principles as the CV. In 1907 the principle of singularity was abolished. Now the former members of these umbrella organisations could join the Cartellverband, which structure and membership exploded.
   BULLET::::- Lieutenants ("Lugartenientes"): The second highest position in the drug cartel organization; they are responsible for supervising the "sicarios" and "halcones" within their own territory. They are allowed to carry low-profile executions without permission from their bosses.
  
  BULLET::::- Drug lords ("Capos"): This is the highest position in any drug cartel; they are responsible supervising the entire drug industry, appointing territorial leaders, making alliances, and planning high-profile executions.
   With connections to British and Israeli mercenaries, allies among countries, countless spies and informants in the government, and its vast intelligence and surveillance network throughout the city of Santiago de Cali, the cartel was once renowned and compared to the Soviet KGB by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which called it, "One of the most powerful crime syndicates in history", later dubbed "The Cali KGB".
   The hierarchy rises to regional officers and ultimately to two supreme regional "Incas" based in Chicago. The heads of the entire criminal organization are known as "coronas". One retired detective said in 2004: "When you compare them to other street gangs like the Bloods and the Crips, none compare to the organization of the Latin Kings."
  
  Section::::Organizational structure.:Discipline.
  