I've been wandering around the streets for awhile now and during that time I've seen some things, I've even done some things. Hell, if you're one of the 7 magnificent people who loaned me their eyeballs for 5 minutes, you might have actually heard about or potentially seen some of my exploits on a street corner not too far from here too. 

Avard gave his jaw a small flex, wondering if the twinge he felt was real or imagined. Fucking rogues, he mused before continuing trying not to lose focus. 

To those of you who don't know who I am, my name is Avard and I'm trying to build a reputation for myself in the business. I haven't done much yet, but I'm working on it. I've taken a 'sew the seeds, give them sunlight and plenty of water...before punching them in the face and making sure their collections aren't light', approach to mobstering. So far it seems to be working; after landing a few scores and not fucking up a prostitution ring for the family, amongst other things, I've managed to prove myself to my boss and he's entrusted me with the responsibility of becoming one of his button men. That didn't happen over night and I'm really grateful for the trust he's displayed in me as being Made means a lot to me. 

That honour got me to thinking about the various ranks that we earn within our thing and what they actually mean. I've heard talk about the philosophical meaning of each, but little about the practicalities of them and what is inherent in being named to it. For example, a made guy is capable of sponsoring associates but is also part of the family. He's one of us. A Capo has progressed further and should be capable of leading their own crew of soldiers for the family and a boss should be able to have a family for the Don in their own right. I wonder how many of our ranks actually reflect the ability our Dons feel we have, rather than just it being ingrained that these be awarded upon the minimum requirements having been met.

Avard shrugged. He didn't know how each family worked, but he hoped his Don felt that he was worth the rank he had been given, but could he be more than that? He pushed the thought away.

I guess my question is really this. Now that we can see the different pull each gangster has with the FBN, should ranks be handed out to those who haven't demonstrated they meet the requisite standard? Should you ever be a Boss if you couldn't be the boss? Should you be called a Consigliere if the Don wouldn't actually take your advice? 

I think I would rather be a Made Man until my Don believed I could lead soldiers than be a hollow Capo who devalued the name.