SonnyBlackstein wrote:
Its similar to the behaviour exhibited towards Bronx.
Smug, superior attitude on this board which is simply uncalled for.
There's no comparison. Bronx claims to have inside knowledge and personal relationships with countless mob members going back ~50 years, plus "previously unknown" info about the NY mob ~100 years ago. People question this to different degrees, sometimes harshly, while other people blindly accept everything he says.
Furio posts charts he finds online and says a few things in broken English. He doesn't claim any inside scoop, but his persistence and ignorance annoys people. Personally he doesn't bother me at all... it's more funny.
On another note, this is a debate I know I've had with Wiseguy before, but I think some people can understand it better than others:
There is a difference between a "viable criminal organization" and a "mafia family". I am in full agreement that there are few Cosa Nostra families left that could be considered viable criminal organizations. However, as long as there is a hierarchy and membership in place, and those members can be introduced to members of other families and say "I'm with so-and-so," that is all it takes to qualify as a family. It doesn't mean they're NOT a shadow of what they once were and on the verge of extinction, but that is still what it means to be a mafia family.
I'm not talking about Cleveland here, I don't know anything about them, I'm only talking about a family in its most basic form because I think some people here still equate the criminal enterprise with the organization itself. Just like it's not a rule that the membership kick up tribute to the boss, it's also not essential for the organization to be engaged in lucrative criminal enterprises in order to qualify as a family. Of course the lines are often blurred and the history of the mafia is filled with criminals, tribute-demanding bosses, and killers, but the point still stands.
I recommend reading Joe Bonanno's book for an exaggerated take on it, or Antonino Calderone's book for a more cynical but practical take. There are countless other resources for understanding it, too, but I feel both of those guys explain the organization very well.