Lancelot had had a busy evening, making all the appropriate arrangements for the beginnings of his new crew. The Round Table was shaping up nicely, however, and he had finally had a little time to sit back and consider the events of what had, all in, been a very busy day. Having stopped by the funerals of the Las Vegas fallen, he finally found time to visit the streets and listen to Godfather Curtis explain the decisions behind the removal of the city. It got him thinking, somewhat, although he didn't wish to interrupt Godfather Curtis's discussions there and then with his pondering. So, he moved a respectful distance down the street before beginning to speak himself. 

Wars, take downs, removals and death. All of those things are as much a part of our world as the guns, the money, the loyalties. We live and we die and that is the way our world must work, it is what keeps it turning and keeps things fresh and moving. When decisions are made to war, we have certain expectations. That the reasons for that action will be explained is usually one of those expectations. Godfather Curtis came out here and explained the actions of today promptly and thoroughly. 

But, sometimes - indeed, a lot of the time - these explanations are met with bitterness and backlash, with anger and bad feeling. And sometimes, surely, it must make those in the position of making these explanations question whether or not it is worth the effort it demands. Whether or not having common thugs and gangsters scream and swear at Godfathers and Dons is a sickening sight. 

So, these are the questions that I ask of you all:

Are these speeches a right? Should, in some form, explanations for all actions be given to the public from the uppers of our world? Should these uppers have a right to wish to avoid this level of backlash from those who can slander their names to little consequence? 

Lancelot leans one shoulder against the wall of the building he had stood in front of and lights a cigarette, waiting to hear whether people would share their thoughts on the matter.

This is not a world where things are handed to you. I mentioned this before about being given the nod to run a family seems common due to the family list but it really is not. It is far from common and some people have gone their entire bloodline without ever getting this nod. This world requires a ton of work to get things done and to be taken away within a flash is definitely going to cause annoyances and anger and you cannot fault them for that.

However I do believe that relevance is needed when you talk about Thug's and Gangster's talking to Don's and Godfather's in the way that they do. For instance one of my future Kin spoke somewhat harshly to a current Godfather because they felt the need to include things in their Street Thread that were twisted and made his Father look like a terrible man when he was far from it. In this aspect he respectfully went against everything that was said and stated the true events of what occurred. Now this is just an example of what I feel is something that should be able to be done.

As long as the points being made by the so called Thug or Gangster are that at pointing out things that happened and done in a respectful way I do not see why anybody no matter the rank should not be able to do so, but when your responses are in the range of I hope you die, and things of that immature nature then I do believe that those people are just showing bitterness and in my opinion the Godfather who posted that Thread has my full support to completely ignore them as if they are not even there.

This is obviously just my two cents on this as this is something that I have personally been through a few times both on what I deem as the right way to respond from a Thug rank, and what I deem as the wrong way.

Whilst I appreciate people will become annoyed at their forefathers being killed (it's human nature after all), the reactions of some go way beyond what the majority of our world would deem acceptable, one thing is set in stone you will die that's a fact it's just a shame that the kin of some have to come out to these very streets and throw their dummies out of the pram, If you are unhappy fine argue your point of view in a constructive way, there is no need to resort to some of the tosh we have seen thrown around it's both disrespectful not just to the person it is aimed at but the of Cosa Nostra itself.

Back to the point at hand Godfather Curtis wasn't or isn't under any obligation to come to the streets and explain the reasoning behind today's actions and had he not done so people would have complained, so he takes the time to address the masses giving a perfectly legitimate reason or more to the point REASONS and yet he is attacked from all angles for his efforts, so the question remains is it worth the hassle after all?

As Denam was on his way home from the discussion concerning the Godfather Council rulings, he noticed the new auth Lancelot having a chat with an associate from Philly. He walked over and listened briefly to the end of their conversation. "Rights?" Sounds like something Gueverra would be preaching. Hell, sounds like something Denam would be preaching.

A right to information, you say? I don't know. I know the dead have only one right; and that's to an honorable funeral. They don't have a right to any reasons, any evidence, or any form of justification for their death. It sounds cruel, but that's not how Our Thing works. So if anyone has a right to that information, it's either the aggressors or the neutral party. Aggressors, I'd say, already know what the purpose of the war is or anyone on the side of the aggressors are content to follow orders without protest. That's also how Our Thing works; you get the order to take down a city you take it down. So I don't think they are owed any information, as they are expected to do their duty regardless of the circumstances.

But what about neutral parties? Do they have some right to that information? I'll say no, but I think it's very practical to provide that information for the sake of the aggressors and the neutral party. I say no because in principle, no one needs to know about any personal grudges or disrespect that led to the death of a city. I say it's practical because making that information public shows to neutral parties what happens when they cross the line. It's practical in that it provides a line not to be crossed. The purpose of the takedown or war is entirely hidden, but if you don't want that line crossed again it would be prudent to make everyone privy to the circumstances that brought about the conflict. If you have no interest in preventing future conflict, then I suppose you have no reason to provide any information on the subject.

Denam turns to Lancelot to see if the shiny new auth has any thoughts on his conclusions.

It seems the Great one has been very busy running his mouth lately. So in the interests of boring all you jabronis even further, let the Rock break it down for you.

You are entitled to nothing in this life except a funeral. Its the only guarantee. We all leave this world feet first. Information is no different, its given purely on a need to know basis. Being a member of a family does not make you privy to all that family's secrets. Associates will know next to nothing, made men a little more, Hands a good deal more, even the Crew Leader himself may not know everything his Godfather knows. Now its been usual for sometime for the victor to come into the street and explain why so and so was killed or why such and such happened, but this isn't a right, its a privilege. If we take the recent takedown of LV as an example, Godfather Curtis could have come into the street and said He hated LV and that's why he did it. He could have said I woke up grumpy and that's why they died. He could have said he heard that Sydney was planning to wear white after Labour Day and that's why it happened. Fact of the matter is he could have said anything, or he could have said nothing. He could have just as easily sat in his HQ in the Great city of New York, and left you all wondering.

However, he didn't he came out and laid it all on the line, he explained in great detail the whys and wherefores, but he was under no obligation to do so. You had no god given right to this information. No ruling from the God Father council has given you the right to this information. It is possible that if you had family killed in LV that you feel you have the right to know why, but you don't. This is the Mafia, not the Velvet Mafia, not school, not lets all hold hands and sing kum by ya, and your feelings have no merit here and carry no weight here. The only thing that matters is those in power, and those with the power to enforce their rule. Rights be damned.

Walking back to his headquarters after a long day trying to get everything straightened out Lancelot comes across the discussion he started earlier still in full swing, after listening to the young man finish what he was saying Lancelot walked over to Denam...

"Personally I would have to agree with much of what you have said, we the general public do not have a god given right to any explanations, whilst we all remain curious as to why such actions take place it is of course the choice of the victor to come here to these streets to enlighten the masses" pausing for a few moments Lancelot proceeds to quote something which he finds quite relevant.

If you don't want that line crossed again it would be prudent to make everyone privy to the circumstances that brought about the conflict.

 "One of the main reasons leaders come to the streets with explanations is for this very reason, how can someone learn from a mistake they do not realise they are making?, If a leader district or city for that matter were taken out because they were incompetent and were unable to run their shit in the appropriate manner then why shouldn't everyone be made aware?, as far as having any sort of rights to an explanation simple truth is you haven't, we could have the attitude of oh well shit happened move on and give no explanation whatsoever but would that help the community as whole? I don't think so and neither do a lot of the leaders who have in the past and do now grace our shores, mistakes when made should be rectified and then pointed out, I do however find the abuse that is more commonly thrown at the leaders for their explanations appalling".

Lancelot looks at Denam gives him a smile then heads off down the street.

Lyra pushed passed the crowd, in order to get her way, confidently walking as she did so;

 Do we have a right to know? A tricky question, we can go from one angle, well, no it wasn’t our business, we weren’t involved and therefore any information pertaining to the takedown wasn’t ours to be known, and another angle, yes, I think the dead do deserve some justification as to why they were rolled into their coffins, it wasn’t an abrupt-quick trigger death, there was a legitimate reason for pulling the trigger. I think speeches are a necessity, allowing everyone to clear the air, clarify what really happened, and the reasoning for their deaths. I like to know why my mother was killed before me; not to point any blame, but her death was a sound reason, an unfortunate incident that needed to be carried out. It allows passing generations to accept/deal with funerals that much easier, it’s a form of respect to those passing and an organized conduct. I deeply respect any Godfather/Godmother who comes out into the streets, to clarify and summarize the information for us passing folk.

I am not saying every Mafioso is entitled to every dark little secret skittering around every corner or every dark secret looming in every family, privacy is there for a reason, a must for order and for the structure; but I do think at times, the ones killed are entitled to some reason for their deaths, if it isn’t obvious or glaring them right in the face. However, as some have stated, no, we don’t have any entitlement to the information, isn’t right, but a privilege we receive from the Godfathers/Godmothers all parties involved. It helps the community as a whole, communication is key in stopping out assumptions. For every death, is it really fine, to say ‘Well shit just happened, move on son,’

I appreciate the information brought forth into the streets, to clear up any misunderstandings, I feel like every speech connects the community that little closer, districts, people, we are informed, we are not to so far out of the loop we have no importance.

You’ll always get one aggressor who cannot accept the passing of their mother/father, bridled with such anger, slandering all those who are trying to do us a service by coming to the streets. I don’t think its right for them to be under such backlash, and no way deserve the unjust comments pelted their way for a sound decision, but deaths are a time of grievance, where emotions are undoubtedly spiked high. I think these speeches to some extent, calm down or help certain individuals to move on, that their deaths wasn't random. Just my opinion on this, I know a few others might clash/disagree with my point of view.  

Daemon waits patiently for everyone to voice their opinion before opening his mouth. A certain question from Lancelot's speech kept playing in his head.

Should these uppers have a right to wish to avoid this level of backlash from those who can slander their names to little consequence?

"Are the people always entitled to a war speech by the aggressors? Well, it's always nice to be let in on the information as to why a city or crew was leveled. But it's not always practical for a Godfather or leader to come out to the streets with sensitive information for every random thug or civilian to hear. I think that it is up to the aggressors if they wanted to make a war speech or not. People will always moan and bitch about the ones in power, with whatever decision they make. If they decide to come out to the streets with a reason, there will always be backlash from the people who lost their kin in the war. And if they decide not to, they will be dismissed as being ignorant and incompetent. There would be repercussions either way, so why would they even bother?

So if someone comes out to the streets with a war speech, I'd be thankful and appreciate them for their time. They did it cause they could, end of. They could have very well chosen not to share the details and deal with people's bullshit."

He pauses, and turns to Denam.

The purpose of the takedown or war is entirely hidden, but if you don't want that line crossed again it would be prudent to make everyone privy to the circumstances that brought about the conflict.

"I'm pretty sure the other Godfathers or district heads would be privy to this information even if it is not stated ever so openly in the streets. Wouldn't it then be their responsibility to prevent such mistakes from ever happening again to ensure the longevity of their district?"

Sheldon herad his good friend Lancelot talkin about recent things that happend,and about GF Curtis speach

after Lancelot finished his speak about that,Sheldon asked for word to say...

"my dear friend if all this gangsters are ready to lose their lifes for their familys,I think that they have right

to know why they gived their lifes for,at least  if I die one day in some simmilar way I would love that my son know

why his father has fallen"

after Sheldon was done with his speach,he light his cigar,and waited to hear other opinions

Walking up to a crowd growing bigger and bigger by the minute afghan decides to put forward his two cents.

I don't see how we are owed an explanation for anything we aren't involved in. Even if you are involved as an attacker I don't think it to be that wise to question before or after the fact to why you are attacking whoever it might be, you just follow the orders you are given. On occasion, no one should know the reasoning behind another's demise, it could be something business related that if went public could potentially hurt your business or reputation if it became known. I'm sure we have seen these excuses made public before and wondered okay now what is the real reason behind this, maybe those are what I'm speaking of, maybe not. Or if the reason why you attacked a city was because they were more powerful than your own city, would you then come forward and tell the masses that you killed all those people because they had more power and you wanted to be the all mighty powerful one over all? If there is another leader still more powerful than yourself, they have a fairly good reason at attacking you before they are the one getting attacked. So no, I don't feel as we have the right to this information at all I actually feel the opposite.

He hears some people chatting among themselves and drunkenly walks over to the beautiful people having their conversation about rights or something, he really has no idea. All he knows is that it is in dire need of Ted to liven it up, and what better way to do that is with an introduction via fireworks?! Lighting them all off at once, he looks up to the sky and watches the beautiful colors explode like a dance. A really, uh, dangerous dance he quickly finds out-- as a few sparks fly back down directly onto his shirt.

"SHIT." He stops, he drops, and then he rolls. His shirt now tattered and nearly unusable, he shrugs and takes it off and then looks at the crowd which is now all staring at him. Ha. It worked to perfection, they're all ready to hear exactly what he has to say. 

"Are people entitled to anything in this thing of ours? Well, no. You kill and you're killed, that is the only constant in what we do. That and the fact that I'll always put on a good show, am I right? Haha. Okay, so yeah, back to my point... no one IS OWED and explanation to anything that happens. You wipe an entire city and don't mention why you did it to the sons and daughters of the people you killed? Well that's your decision, and as the winner, you are allowed to make that decision."

He pauses and wraps the remaining portions of his shirt around his head so he looks more like a badass, that will surely make them pay even more attention to him!

"However, this will make people angry. This will make them wonder. Hell, it might even fuel paranoia and people will come up with their own reasons for why you did it. That's why I believe that even though no one is owed an explanation, it is just easier and makes more sense to offer one up. Even though people may not always like it or agree, at least you can say that you tried to give them closure."

and with that... his opinion is over. At least for now, until someone says he's wrong. Sigh. Debating is so hard...

Wondering over to the street corner Lancelot was speaking at, Cloud listens carefully to him. Once his friend finishes he takes a long hard drag from his smoke, and speaks up.

"An interesting discussion indeed. I wonder though one thing. Since when has it become a given that anyone who goes to war as the aggressor has to talk in the streets and explain their action? I know what you are going to say 'It's something that has been going on for a long time, and it's become almost like a tradition'. Well to that I say it's always been a privilege, not a right. To have the person who orchestrated your parents death, and probably the death of their entire city come to the streets and give reasoning as to why your father or mother is dead, is not something they have to do."

Takes a deep breath of crisp night air and strolls on his merry way.

The easiest answer is a simple no, no we don't. Lets think about it like this; why would a God Father come out into a busy area of the streets, gather every known bum in society and tell them all that they have murdered several hundred people. These here streets are crawling with all sorts of low life's, informants, rats, not to mention the local police frequent the brothels. Surely, this would not be good for your health, there is high possibility you will be locked up for many-a-year. Why would you risk this.

Lets assume that the victors manage to find a small unoccupied area of the streets, free from the eyes of the law to tell us all what happened, my answers would still be the same, NO! You're not entitled to anything in this world, my ethos is a need-to-know basis, and those in power, or those who's business it may effect, should be the only people privy to such info.

I think as we have evolved though, its now become an accepted action after a war, accepted is in more a common curtsey action. Secretly too, I think we all love to see post war speeches solely to here the thoughts of bereaved kins and their children's outcry's, it does become somewhat comical and ironically its when we see most action on and around the streets .

What I am pleased of recent though is the nature of how the speeches are conducted. Mostly now, people have the courage to tell the truth, none of this smoke and mirror bullshit that become so see through that it derailed the actual speech its self.

I think as a population we have been spoiled with such speeches and thus have come to expect them. Often there is a bigger outcry because one has been offered, which if honest, bemuses the fuck out of my scouse brain. (It doesn't take much, I know)  Its nice to be offered an explanation, of course it is, but as a community, for a lack of a better word, its not something that we're entitled too, even though people think we are. I can tell you now, that you're not.

If a kin of any fallen family member wants to actively go search for a reason to get closure (even though dying is the nature of the beast) then so be it, that is something I would encourage, albeit done in the correct way. Coming out here and making yourself look like a cunt is not the best approach, even if it is comical.

Likewise though, if the winning side doesn't want to explain, who the fuck are we to cry foul play? It could be as simple as; "we did it because we wanted too" Why would they waste their energy coming out here to say that?

anywho, more bins for me to dip. Adios!