It had been a long morning. The office had been busy and the crew had been in and out constantly with enumerable questions and requests. Kurtz enjoyed being busy, it always made him feel productive. It was important to remain constructive and always in motion. The stagnant are the dying. To stand still is to fail. He leant back in his chair stretching his back and cracking his fingers in a moment's stolen relaxation. The door swung again and his friend Forza appeared.

"You ok there chief? Need anything?"

Kurtz chuckled and looked down at his desk.

You know, I used to be in the gangster business, now it seems I'm in the pencil pushing business. Think I'll grab myself some fresh air.

Getting up from his desk he collected his jacket and headed out into the afternoon sun. Wandering through the streets he eventually came to a familiar square and a familiar perch under the cooling shade of a willow tree. Thinking about the various discussions he had heard, a thought crossed his mind and he decided to ask the passing community what they thought.

Hi.

...HEY!

Ah, that's better. Now...

There is often discussion about what people should give to their family. What the family bond means to them. We see plentiful discussion about the values of loyalty and the need to be blood-bound to the life and death of your chosen leader. These are all very important topics to discuss and the values they cover are pivotal to the fabric of our existence. This point does not need to be stressed any further by me, today.

On the flip side of that, we don't see too much discussion about what the regular work-a-day mobsters expect from their families.
I have seen many different ways that crews attempt to operate in regard to their members. I have seen a hundred and one different angles played. Incentives given. Competitions run. You name it. With recruitment and competition being what it is these days, crews will use all manner of approaches to entice candidates into their families. But what I want to know is not what they are doing. What I am curious about is what the normal mobster wants from his or her crew.

What was it that made you chose your current family?
What is it that makes you want to stay there?
What are the most important things that your family gives to you?

So much emphasis is placed on what you should give to our family. I think its time to hear the other side. What do they do for you?

Waving at the local kid selling iced lemonade, Kurtz buys a paper cup of crushed ice and lemon and sits under the tree waiting to hear people's opinions.

What was it that made you chose your current family?

This is easy one to answer, when I cam to these shores my first port of call was Chicago. Upon arriving I was approached by a number of people seeing if I needed a home, however there was one who rather than offer me a place to some time to get to know me for who I am, not who my line was so I decided then to join them.

What is it that makes you want to stay there?

Another easy one to answer, it's a family, we look out for one another, there is never any real pressure to earn. We are expected to do our best even if like me that involves being a lazy sod and dissapearing for days. It's one family that understands not everyone can commit the way others can.

What are the most important things that your family gives to you?

This again is easy to answer, my family allows me to be me, while there are the obligatory rules that must be followed I am free to conduct my business as I see fit

(MrGrumpy walks up looking rather grumpy)

What was it that made you chose your current family?

“My family bloodlines made the choice for me knowing that I was entering into a family that had a history, I joined Liberty Inc knowing that there was a wealth of knowledge and respect and also knowing that I could look to those within the family for guidance in this thing of ours”.

What is it that makes you want to stay there?

“The answer is simple I feel like I am truly a member of the family everybody talks to one another and is willing to help each other out, also you get rewarded for the hard work you put yes the standards are high but that’s what makes Liberty Inc the best fit for me”.

What are the most important things that your family gives to you?

“Stability and protection as well as never ending knowledge, I look to Francie and the Hands for guidance the walk these street with pride and by doing so I do as well and most importantly a family the is willing to work just as hard as you do to advance the city of New York”.

(MrGrumpy tips his hat and walks away mumbling to himself)

What was it that made you chose your current family?

They came to me not to persuade me to join they asked me if i needed help and that's what they did they helped me out when i needed it most.

What is it that makes you want to stay there?

They help me when i need it there my friends my family we have are laughs we talk we just mob with one another and we always stick together.

What are the most important things that your family gives to you?

Like grumpy said and i qoute “Stability and protection as well as never ending knowledge" and more.

Juggalo listens in on Kurtz speech and feels he has a great topic here, walking up beside Kurtz he offers to shakes the mans hand…

Good speech if I do say so myself, though in the end there you had used everyday gangster now that can fall into a wide category of people, I mean I would think everyone’s goals a tad bit different to say the least. This though as you had mentioned leads to which family would be best for them.

 As for me, it was a hands down debate where I was heading. An old family friend was doing quite well and I wanted to add to help him and his success. So I was instantly snagged by the need to be a part of the morning wood elite. I guess you can say I felt good to be with an old friend again, also I new the kind of family his fathers had run back in the day, my fore fathers always signed into there journals what a great time they had, the loyalty, the respect. Old school.

Over my time in The Morning Wood Elite it was really actually what my fore fathers said Kimbles fore fathers families were. But perfected, stronger, smarter, bigger. Even now that Kimble has stepped away for a well deserved break I am still glad to be a part of this thing of ours we have going. There are a couple reasons, im glad to still be part of something he created and keep it going, I got to know a lot of other people the people I now call family and will die for because I know they would do the same for me. And last but not least, but I took my oath here, I grew up here, Chicago born and bread and will be till the day im considered fish food.

Most important, I would think protection. I mean that’s fairly common but other then that its good to know you have people behind your back, that wont only protect you but help you if need be. Our family gives us so much, a piece of mind, an image, a reputation.

Again good speech Kurtz, and well chosen topic.

Juggalo nods and finds his way back into the crowd…

What was it that made you chose your current family? 

I arrived here after a recomendation from a work friend, and was surprised and delighted by the many offers of joining a family witin the first instance of walking of my boat.  If I am honest I have no idea why I chose my current family other than the fact that the introductory message of helpfulness I recieved from my sponsor WeBuyJunk cars seemed the most succint and least contrived.

Having Spent a couple of days with this family in NewYork I feel it is fate that I now call this my home.  The Headquarters is well maintained and a sense of order and safety is automatically instilled, which is reassuring as I see nearly every 10 minutes or so somebody is being killed.

What is it that makes you want to stay there? 

Having just arrived I am still just feeling my way.  I have always wanted to be a professional mafioso and the way the world is structured seems, so far, to meet my needs.  

What are the most important things that your family gives to you?

As mentioned briefly above, having few aquantancies, my family gives me a definiate feeling of security and everyone seems helpful and intrested in how I should progress.  I think the most important thing that a family can do for one so young as I, is protect them from the outside world whilst giving them enough slack so to test the water and become an accomplished member of the family in thier own right.

Benton stands to attention outside the HQ, resplendant in his Red Serge he looks almost like one of the guardsmen outside Buckingham Palace. He listens to the speeches being given but dare not join in, duty being the most important thing after all. Finally the local Clock Tower bell chimes 11 O'Clock and he steps down from his guard duties only to be replaced by one of Inspector Gadgets associates.


An interesting topic you have brought up my old friend, thank you kindly for doing so. you are of course quite correct in your assessment, many people talk about what you owe your leader, but few mention what made you join your leader, or what you get from that relationship. I myself didn't choose to join with Ispector Gadget, it was more a quirk of fate that threw us together. I first came to Chicago on the trail of the killers of my father and, for reasons that don't need exploring at this juncture, I remained, attached as liaison officer with the Canadian Consulate. I had originally joined the Walking Dead, and slowly worked my way up through the ranks. A few months back Godfather Roman decided to send us to Detroit, to branch out and further extend his influence over the 8 cities.

It was whilst working in Detroit I was approached by my leader and informed that Inspector Gadget was to get the nod. Inspector Gadget would require strong minded and loyal individuals to assist in the set-up of his family, and as I was from a well respected bloodline would I mind joining him. So I did my duty and took my place at inspector Gadgets side. Actually it couldn't have worked out much better as one by one the best and the brightest Detroit had to offer fell victim to mysterious gun malfunctions. It wasn't long before the Good Inspector was top dog in Detroit and next inline for the role of Godfather.

Benton reaches down and absentmindedly strokes the head of Diefenbaker, his loyal half Wolf companion before continuing.

I have to say I have enjoyed my time as one of Inspector Gadget's hands. What keeps me here is a sense of Loyalty and the leeway he cuts me as one of his most trusted advisors. Whilst he may be the Capo di Capo tutti, he treats myself and to a lesser extent Guiseppe as equals, allowing us to persue our own business as well as helping to develope his own. Together we are helping develop Detroit as a powerhouse of the Underworld, and creating ties with our sister crews and families spread throughout the continental United States. Whilst my position now and the family I'm in occured purely by accident, its not something I would change for all the tea in china.

"I can't speak for my current family, as I am the leader of it, but I can speak for the first family I joined upon coming to these shores, The Morningwood Elite."

What was it that made you chose your current family?

"Walking these streets, I was approached by many mafioso asking me if I was in need of a family and if I would like to join theirs. However, I ignored each and every one of them as that's not how it should be. Approached by SpuffWaffle, the RHM of Kimble at the time, I was not asked if I needed a crew or asked about my family line. SpuffWaffle and I sat for many hours, discussing the past, the current situation in the cities and what I planned for the future. We sat as friends would, just talking. Along the way, I learned about his family and about their leader, Kimble. I knew that after those many hours, he wasn't just in it for another member. Talking with SpuffWaffle sealed my opinion and my choice of a family."

What is it that makes you want to stay there?

"The people. The Morningwood Elite had some of the best members I've seen in one group of people. Not only that, but I wasn't cast aside as just another member, if I needed to talk, they were there. If I wanted to help with something, I was given permission. They relied on me as a member as much as I relied on them as a family. We worked as a cohesive unit and not just a bunch of mafioso under one banner."

What are the most important things that your family gives to you?

"Just to name a few. Protection, Ambition and Pride. Protection, not in the sense of bodyguards, but in the sense that if something were to happen, the family would be there for me. Ambition, because you dreamed of one day reaching the higher ranks and do/did. Pride, because you know that you have done your best and that your family recognizes that."

"Without a family, you wouldn't be mafioso. You'd be just another street thug trying to make a buck."

What was it that made you choose your family?

I've read through my ancestors journals and they had a few friends in certain cities, so when I first came to these shores I know I have a better chance if I go to one of them, but for a change I decided to go where no one knew me and make it a challege for myself to work in a new environment.

What is it that makes you want to stay there?

Even though none of them knew me, they were quick to make me feel like I was at home, treated me like family and whenever I need help plus they have been here longer than I have so it's a perfect bunch to stick around with and learn a thing or two from them and I certainly have.

What are the most important things that your family gives to you?

Experience, knowledge, encouragement, support just to name a few.