Big Profits in Big Bribery

āIn many foreign deals, under-the-table payoffs are aboveboard

When the forces of virtue rise one foot, the forces of vice rise ten feet.

—Chinese proverb

At a table in Mexico City's Camino Real Hotel, a foreign businessman and a middle-ranking government official are talking quietly in a corner. Midway through the conversation, the foreigner casually places an envelope on a chair next to him. When the foreigner rises to leave, the envelope remains behind. The government official slips it into his coat pocket a few minutes later and departs.

That is the way...