Snakehead by Anthony Horowitz 6th post

' "Have you ever heard the term snakehead?" Brooke began. There was silence, so he went on. "Alright, let me start by saying that the snakehead groups are without doubt the biggest and most dangerous criminal organizations in the world. Compared to them, the mafia and the triads are amateurs. They have more influence--and they're doing more damage--even than Al Qaeda, but they're not interested in religion. They have no beliefs. All they want is money. That's the bottom line. They're gangsters, but on a huge scale. Have you ever bought an illegal DVD? the chances are that it was manufactured and distributed by a snakehead. And the profits they'll have made out of it will have gone straight into one of their other concerns, which you may not find so amusing. Maybe its drugs or slaves or body parts. You need a new kidney or a heart? The snakeheads operate the biggest market in illegal organs, and they're not fussy about where they get them or even if the donors are deceased. And then there are weapons. In this century alone, there have been at least fifty wars around the world that have used weapons supplied by the snakeheads... shoulder-launched missiles. AK-47s, that sort of thing. Where do you think the terrorists go if they want a bomb or a gun or something nasty and biological that comes in a test tube? Think of it as an international supermarket, Alex. But everything it sells is bad" ' (Horowitz 62).

The main reason why I chose the above passage is because it talks about the criminal organizations called snakeheads, after which the novel has been named. This passage also uses great imagery to convey to the reader that these snakeheads are bad, and not to be underestimated, mostly by listing all of the illigal activities the snakeheads are involved in, and by mentioning their business affiliations with terrorists. This makes me think about the events of September eleven, 2001, and the terrorist attacks on that day. The above passage is important to the novel because it serves as an introduction to the "beginning of the end" for the entire novel, since the remainder of the book will probably be about Alex infiltrating one of these snakehead organizations.
Some of the questions about the book that have come to my mind include: How does Mr. Brooke know so much about the Snakeheads?
How come I have never heard about Snakehead organizations before if they are supposed to be so powerful?