Does the Mafia still exist today

The traditional mafia, as portrayed in movies like the Godfather series and Goodfellas, has largely been broken apart due to relentless Federal prosecution. It still exists, but its certainly not as powerful as it once was.

If the movie portrayals are accurate, getting into the drug trade was what ruined them. It required more viciousness, and brought the wrath of the government down on them. They were willing to tolerate things like prostitution and the old "numbers" racket, but drugs made them mad.

Also, there was a change in the Nevada gaming laws -- in the past, only individuals could get licenses to run a casino. You practically had to be a criminal to get the type of money it took to open a casino as a private citizen. Once corporations could get gaming licenses, the mob lost Vegas as a power base.

Membership numbers wouldn't be easy to determine.