Carmen knew she was guilty of a great many things since she had landed in the promised land of the USA - her mother had told her before she set sail from Dublin that she'd amount to absolutely nothing, just like her waste of space father, but she had always done the opposite of what everyone had told her to do.  She found it easier than perhaps she should do to forget the things she'd done - the thefts, burglaries, the pickpocketing....and worse.....but in the circles she ran in, these things were expected in order to progress.  And Carmen was nothing short of ambitious!

Since meeting Drax and Alessandra, she'd learnt a lot, and progressed steadily if not spectacularly through the ranks of the Destroyers, paying her way, and sending up whatever she could.  Indeed, Alessandra had taught her a lot about how to handle herself both publically and privately, until now she stood, according to rumours, on the edge of being Made.  This is the highest honor a Family can endow upon a member - up until this moment, Carmen's entire existence had been to do as she was told, and to earn money for her superiors.  Being Made, however, meant really becoming a part of this thing, being trusted to join the inner circle - from this point onwards, the sky was the limit.  Doubts flooded her mind, even though she had never been short of confidence - have I earned this?  Do I deserve it?  What if I let people down?

Carmen knew what lay ahead of her, Wayne had alluded to this in the private conversations they shared recently...but still it had got her thinking about the value of titles in this thing of ours, and so, she had come to the Streets to gauge the opinions of her peers!

"Until we reach the status of Made, every change or promotion we encounter is predetermined - we're not reliant upon how others see us, just upon how hard we work.  Every organisation, and indeed city is different in the expectations they place upon their members in order to be Made, and this is how it should be.  From my frequent visits to the Seattle city library, I have found myself fascinated with a certain ideology that existed many years ago regarding the promotion to Made, and those beyond it."

"I discovered stories of a gentleman called Mr Evilman.  Mem, as he was known in certain points at the time, grew from nothing to rule the cities with criminal activities, and he was untouchable...at least until he encountered an upstart called Uncle Nicky.  That, though, is another story.  Mr Evilman, once he had rid the world of his rivals, was set to put into place a criminal structure where every job title meant SOMETHING!  Being Made was the greatest honor of all, but a more interesting idea was the use of consiglieres.  He believed that every Family should have 1-2 maximum - the role of the consigliere being to advise the head of the Family, sort out disputes lower in the food chain, and above all to act as number 3 in the family behind the head, and the right hand. (Obviously, in smaller families, this person might be number two in the structure).  Below that, the places were earned as the crewleader decided."

"My question to the people on the streets and, indeed to those sitting on their thrones, is this - being Made is a massive feature in every Family, but does this thought pattern continue beyond it?  The majority of people I come into contact with see all promotions as being one step closer to their goal, but do you think about what that job title involves?  The history behind the title?  Example - when you become a Capo regime, do you help and guide and, I guess, take responsibility for the development of the thugs and gangsters in your organisation, or is the title merely a stepping stone to more money and power?"

Carmen hopes that people will take notice after they finish with the on-Street plays and other entertainment!

Interesting, and perfect timing.

The records of my ancestors really show very few examples of what you're discussing here.  Most of the time there were some minimal expectations of what it took to become Made in those crews but after that, little else. 

In the crews called 'The Ivory Tower' the leaders had tried to put into place a system in which made men were mentoring associates, Capos were working as sponsors, and bosses lead street gangs comprised of associates, Made Men, and Capos.  The point being, that everyone felt they played a vital role in the family and ideally everyone learned something about leadership.  As spots opened up, people moved up and spots opened due to people being promoted up sometimes, other times due to untimely death or in rare occasions demotion when the burden of their duties was simply too much.  And, of course, the hands stood beside their Dons as Consigliere - advisors and leaders in their own right. 

Point being, each rank in the family had some important part to play and if you moved up into that position, you were expected to be acting accordingly.  It's by far one of my favorite things to see in action... when the crew is full enough to warrant it.  Sadly, it's a little harder to implement in a small crew and in the most recent run of the Ivory Tower crew, the attempt to have street gangs failed utterly due both in part to inactivity and lack of warm bodies in the crew... an unfortunate side effect of a very long era of peace, but that's another discussion.  

Of course, a few other great crews from the past spring to mind with some well-outlined expectations of their Made Men & up ... and some even had expectations based on what role you had in the family (ie: hitmen, scouts/proers, earners), but the amount of enforcement of those expectations and support from the leadership for those attempting to keep the family engaged and active varied.  

If I'm being honest, overall the expectations of those above Made has been pretty rare in the annals of my bloodline.  It makes me sad to admit but some of my ancestors weren't even spoken to before they became made, let alone received some kind of ceremony on the occasion.  

As my ancestors have seen both extremes, I have to say I prefer having a crew in which each rank has rights/responsibilities.  I'm not saying that a rigid hierarchy is the only way to do things well, but I think if you want to maintain an active and engaged family it's not a bad idea to (at the bare minimum) express some basic expectations even if it's surrounding how much training you want them doing with their guns, cash you'd like to see them bringing in, or where you hope to see them rep'ing your family's good name in the VIPs of the streets.

Danny just happened to be passing by when he saw a woman standing on the top of something to make her taller and speaking. He listened a bit and from the little he happened to hear in passing it was enough to get him to stop and continue to pay attention. He'd heard a bunch of things about these public discussions on the streets, there had been great out cry for more of them recently instead of the mixture of stories and the speeches. Funnily enough, the woman who was currently talking wasn't one of those people complaining about the stories being told, only to not start any of those discussions that were so frequently cried for. The irony made him laugh and appreciate the woman, beside the fact of what she was saying. As he listened to what she was saying he began thinking and felt like he had something to say on the matter. He saw another more respected woman from Las Vegas step up first, so he stayed back for a minute just listening. He found himself agreeing with her as well. 

Once she was finished and stepped back, he took a good look to see if anyone else was planning on stepping up themselves. When he saw the coast was currently clear he stepped forward himself. 

"From the stories those before me have passed on, this seems to be one of the most hot button topics there is around here. What does rank mean, what should they mean, which ones should have greater meanings than other, or if any have much meaning at all anymore besides the big ones. Me personally, along with my ancestors before me, have always felt that the rank of made man, should always feel like taking a huge step forward in our life here. It shows that you have the makings to truly be apart of an organization, despite what that organization might be. In a way it's being brought into the inner circle of said organization, and that's nothing that should just be handed out to anyone. So it should be celebrated and should be something that's made to feel special.

However, I have to agree with Ms. Harlow in the fact that it's been rare to see it actually mean something in the greater scheme of things, especially these days. What I would like to point out is that it's not always on the shoulders of the leaders either. My ancestors have been fortunate enough to work with leaders and be leader who always wanted to put a special little something to and for someone who has just earned their button. There has been times in the past where those who had earned their button, didn't want to wait for something special to be done for them. They'd rather just informally just receive the promotion and the rank, based off doing the minimum of work and because they hung around the crew for long enough. 

The same could also be said for other higher positions, besides the top three of course. I like the idea of only having a certain amount of something in an organization, it makes it that much more special. I mean how special can the rank of Captain or Capo be if everyone in an organization is one. But these days most people are expectant and feel entitled to ranks, that trying to set something up like organizational structure is a bit harder to do, and has been for sometime according to stories from my ancestors, though it's been tried here and there, the success rate of it is very low. Right now it would seem the position or rank of made is seen more as a money making opportunity, and a right, instead of a privilege. 

Some people try to dress it up, and make it more than what it is, or go on about what it should be, but from as far as what I can see in most places, it's just a rank that gives you access to putting together your own jobs and gives you a bit more things to do in and for your organization, instead of the esteemed position it should be or people try to make it out to be, and it's more the fault of both sides instead of just one or the other, leadership or the people working under them. That is my opinion on the matter." Danny says. 

As he finishes he steps back into the crowd, and lights up a cigarette. Probably not the best thing to do when you were feeling a bit winded, but it brought him comfort. Comfort was what he wanted to feel deciding he'd stick around for a bit to see who else stepped up to speak.