In some cases, the British government actually commissioned seamen to commit acts of piracy, but with one catch: They were charged to prey only upon Spaniards, British rivals on the high seas and in the New World, and turn over a large portion of the stolen loot to the government.

NPR: Pirates 101: Fact and Fiction on the High Seas

The large number of mentally ill, the thousands of drug addicts, and the hordes of dealers who prey upon them, the diseases rampaging through a population short on shelter and short on food.

NPR: Feeding the Homeless on L.A.'s Skid Row