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| Sponsored / A Discussion | Started by: DetectiveGumshoe on Jun 10, '09 02:43 |
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An awkward looking man approaches the, now infamous "soapbox." As he approaches he straightens his crimson red tie and brushes off his disgustingly olive green suit jacket, shrugging once for good measure. The people around these parts had become accustomed to paying mind when someone approaches one of these notorious "boxes" strewn about the cities we call home. As he clears his throat, those who are interested quiet to a hush and he begins to speak. Recently, our world has seen a change in basic operation from the old days. A change that, to some has little effect, yet to others is the difference between living and surviving your first few days on these beloved shores. Sure, any son of a bitch with a gun can run around our streets, but it takes true civilized men and women to create what we've slowly created here. Realizing he'd been dragging on, as he often does, he quickly gets to the point. I am talking, albeit roundabout, of the "sponsorship." This change in operation, as I previously referred to it as, has already been seen used on our streets in innovative ways within the city limits of Detroit under the leadership of long time family head HydroPhonic. After having heard her speech I realized how much impact a change like this could have on our world, no matter the city. Giving listeners a chance to soak in what was said, he lights a cigarette and puffs it before continuing. All that being said, I've always been one to love a discussion, heated or otherwise. As such, I've decided to open a few questions up to the citizens who stand here today listening to this speech:
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Rourkey stumbles through the street and sees a man talking to no one in particular. Rourkey chooses to yell out answers to the questions.
They just need to help me through my twelve step process. Anything else is gravy.
If ANYONE can put up with keeping me sober through the entire process, then God help them, I'd let them be my sponsor.
Ehhhhhhhhhhhh it goes both ways. On one hand they have to put up with me and my booze withdrawals, but on the other hand they get to spend a large amount of time with the Rourkester. Could anyone blame them for wanting a lil' somethin' to get their hearts racing? I would definitely call it an honour.
Really, finding me a new sponsor will just mean that Marietta and Aurora are off the hook from taking me to my meetings.
I don't think anyone in a war would care about who sponsors the local Detroit lush, but I think my sponsor could probably be used as a shield from bullets.
I think a strong sponsorship system will keep us all alcohol-free and prevent us from falling into periods of self-degradation. Rourkey falls asleep on the nearest park bench. |
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| Reply by: RourkeyRourke at Jun 10, '09 02:50 | |
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Listening to Mr. Gumshoe and rubbing his chin he tries to ponder what could be an answer to Mr. Gumshoes thoughts. After going through it in his head Azazel throws out some answers and maybe a question or two. To be called a sponsor I think you have to show a level of trustworthiness, but then again who would give made man to a non trustworthy member. Anyone be given the opportunity? No. It should be a select few, those that display a good communication with members and are a helpful asset to the family. Honor or a burden? Well it should be seen as an honor. You're getting a first hand look at being a CL for the most part. That associate is YOUR responsibility. The mechanics? I don't think it changes a whole lot other than more people are given a level of responsibility. In times of war? I really can't think of much unless a sponsor is starting his own little assassin guild. I think it's all around a good thing and it give those that want the chance to be in charge of others and lead a good chance to get a view on how things are ran. Maybe this could be used as a tool as a auth boot camp? Maybe see what people have in them to help the new immigrants coming to our world and if they're good maybe give them a crew of 15 on their own? Azazel lights a cigarette. This is a good topic I believe. |
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| Reply by: Azazel at Jun 10, '09 02:52 | |
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To be a sponsor, you have to know not just the mechanics of our thing, but the knowledge. Know the rules and standards like the back of your hand with your eyes closed. And show you're up to the challenge. Just like some aren't meant to become a crew leader, some aren't meant to be a sponsor. When your crew leader designates you, that's a way of saying they have one-hundred percent faith in you and your abilities. They know that you hold your associates life in your hands, and their understanding will come from your experience. Everyday in the local paper, you always see many young gangsters die, some may of had the potential to be a great earner. With the introduction of sponsorship, I think the streets will be walked more, many young gangsters will have the oppurtunity to be part of a crew and learn what they need to know from the mafioso that reaches out to them, instead of feeling the barrel of their gun against the back of their head. When it comes to a war, if a beef is made between Harry and Lloyd, instead of all out war. Maybe Larry takes out Lloyd's associate. Or, if for some reason an associate breaks one of the rules and a war breaks out, the sponsor can be dealt with, and not the entire crime family end up in a landfill. Referring to what I said about how not everone is meant to be a crewleader or sponsor. Someone could go on a full fledged power trip, and instead of mentoring this young gangster, and teaching them the ropes. They end up becoming a big bad mafioso bully. Now, hopefully this won't happen but every now and again, things happen. In that case, a Captain or the Underboss can get in touch with the associate for feedback, and deal with the situation accordingly. |
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| Reply by: RichardRizzo at Jun 10, '09 03:05 | |
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Agreed, Richard with who or who not should be a sponsor. I think it is a great new thing our world is doing. Throughout generations of my family's diaries, I see universities mentioned within crews - once or twice even crews set up specifically for. None of this has done a lot of good in the long run. Of course mafioso in the upper part of the hiearchy should try to be available to those who need help but often time constraints with their own jobs puts a limit on this. I look at sponsorship as a one on one university for a new mafioso and that is should improve knowledge of new blood considerably faster then the generation after generation it usually takes |
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| Reply by: Caitlyn at Jun 10, '09 10:15 | |
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After listening to Detective Gumshoe speak, she listens intently, standing in the back, to those talking before her. After they speak, she approaches the front and begins... "To become a sponsor, obviously your crew leader must trust you and be able to rely on you, or they would not have named you such. I believe you have to not only know about the game and the rules, but the mechanics of how to speak and socialize and approach people. It also would depend on who your associate is. If he is more advanced, you have it easier. But if he is more confused, you must be patient with him and be able to help him nicely. I don't think anyone should be given the opportunity. Not everyone is qualified, I'm sure, and they have to prove themselves to their crew leaders before being able to look after someone other than themselves. This, in my eyes, is definitely a honor. An honor with responsibility and consequence, of course, but an honor. In the way of changing mechanics, I believe it depends on who you're with. With Don HydroPhonic, this changes the entire way the crew recruits. I think most other ways are similar. Back to responsibility. In war, there is now a sponsor who is "responsible" for an associate. As Mr. Rizzo pointed out, if the associate messes up, the sponsor can be dealt with, not the entire family. I think for the most part it will affect the population positively. However, the new citizens might get lazy and slack off, thinking they have this person to tell them what to do. They may think they don't have to learn anything, that it will be given to them. |
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| Reply by: Natalie_Marrie at Jun 10, '09 10:45 | |
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Seeing that Natalie has approached Mr. Gumshoe, Angela steps forward with her opinions on the matter.
A sponsor in my opinion isn't a joke. I see it as a smaller crew leader within the crew, managing only one member as opposed to maybe forty. Experience obviously is a big factor in who should get this opportunity, but a respectful and loyal person should be considered as well. An ideal mafioso should be handed sponsorship, if they don't already have the great honor of being a crew leader or are within the crew leader's upper structure.
I wouldn't go so far as to say anyone. I could say that giving everyone a chance is fair, but that's not necessarily true. Crew leaders decide on these recipients based on who they think can handle it, and who would do the best job. If anyone got this opportunity, I think it would be like giving a gun to a hyperactive five year old; just do it and see where it goes. That doesn't go so far as to say that nobody is good enough for the position either, but designation by crew leader is a lot easier because that defines who is deemed worthy of this opportunity. Make sense?
I'd like to think of it as an honor. If you find it to be a burden then I hope you weren't designated. This is something meant for those who want to be helpful, and to be able to gain that sense of leadership. It gives you an idea of how the crew leaders handle things, only with a much larger HQ in their hands. This gives you that taste of being able to have someone come to you for assistance, as opposed to a CL, an RHM or LHM. Though those three are forever important, it's fun to take someone under your wing as well. A burden is shaving RourkeyRourke's beard (which is why it doesn't happen); being a sponsor should be an honor.
Simple. I think it would improve our mechanics, as we can now train young mafioso to be great and form stronger family bonds with what we know. Though it takes one member away from the CL in terms of some (but not all) finances, it's a great way to give more personal attention to a new member, who would generally go missing because they had no idea what they were doing, or didn't care. It reminds all of our members that they're appreciated, whether they're a sponsor or a noob.
I can only think of one instance where this could be a problem. If, by chance, your sponsored member goes haywire and starts to run his/her mouth or completely disregard anything you've taught during war, then I can imagine both the sponsor and the sponsored would be punished. You are responsible for your member, and even in times of war, it's important to keep it together, I think.
I wouldn't say so. In all fairness, if a CL designates someone to be a sponsor, they clearly trust them on their abilities and experience to mentor another in this world of ours. If someone proves they can't handle it, or they abuse their newly given power, then obviously it was a mistake giving it to them. Did the CL know that they would do this? Probably not. Really, the same goes for rogues; a crew member trusted by a CL to be loyal and respectful to the family, only to be mistrusted and pop up with their own HQ. Different situations, yes. But wrong hands in both? Yes, it happens. I don't believe that it'll keep others from coming back. You learn from your mistakes, it's how the mafia goes. Angela steps back from speaking her novel and looks at some of those who are nodding their head in agreement. She walks off with Natalie_Marrie to a coffee shop nearby to catch up on the latest gossip. |
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| Reply by: Angela_Baker at Jun 10, '09 11:34 | |
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Slamming down his cigarette as he stepped up to the rickety box he was sure would break if he stood on it, Mudkips decided to lean against the wall beside it as he said his piece... I was recently given the chance to be a sponsor myself, and I think I can give a decent set of answers to your questions, and some insight of my own.
To me, to be a sponsor, mainly it takes knowledge and trust. Depending on how generous you are, it could take some small amounts of cash and time as well, but that's negligible. First of all it takes knowledge. Your number one job as a sponsor is to impart your knowledge of the SOP(Standard Operating Procedure) of this world of ours to your associate. They are intended to be gangsters whose bloodlines have not yet graced our shores, and the sponsorship role is intended to help them learn our ways without their specific crew leader having to teach them, or without the crew leader having to appoint someone to teach all of the members who are new to the shores. Also, they get a better learning environment, as they are being taught one on one, as opposed to just being sent places to read pre-published documents. Second, it takes trust. Trust from your leader that you will teach effectively, and also be able to handle issues which may arrive with a new member unaware of how things work in our seven cities of crime and debauchery. (By the way, not a good idea to abbreviate associate with only three letters.)
This goes mostly along with my previous response, but with one twist. If someone has the qualities I just stated, they should be considered for sponsorship. However, as sponsorship is a paid position (more on that in a moment), it should not be given to trustworthy and knowledgeable individuals looking for some extra cash. Their motivation for taking the position should not be money, but rather the desire to teach and shape the younger members of our world, so that this thing of ours can continue moving forward, and not back.
In a word: both. It is an honor due to the fact that by granting you the power to be a sponsor, your leader has signified that you are one of the elite members of his or her family, and they want you to be personally responsible for preparing the next up and coming members of their family to be as elite as you are in this world. However, due to time and possible frustration is can also be seen as a burden. That is why the position is paid, but although money can be given, time cannot. To clarify my first statement though, to me it is so much more of an honor, that I don't see it as even a partial burden.
I'm not sure they will at all. If anything, the only two changes I see are a small dip in the amount of money the crew leaders make while members are young, and a change in how people act around here. Buy pulling these youngsters off the streets early and showing them how things are done, we're less likely to have crazies taking pot shots, and less likely to have uneducated, uneloquent thugs and gangsters in our streets overloading us with questions which they could have solved on their own, or can now be answered by their sponsor.
Like Angela_Baker said before me, I can only see a problem arising if your associate starts taking shot at people he or she shouldn't, and you get held responsible as well. However, the level of punishment you receive should be much lower than theirs. You may be responsible for teaching them, but you still cannot control them.
Absolutely. As a sponsor, you are their first contact in this world. And first impressions are key. There are two bad scenarios I can see right off the bat. First, if someone is taking advantage of the system just for the money, and they neglect their associate, they may become discouraged, feel lost or confused, or may take actions they are not aware aren't allowed, and they may not return to our world. Second, if someone who does not exemplify one of the elite members of our world is a sponsor, they may teach improper SOPs, such as bad etiquette or grammar, lack of respect for others, improper PP or Wacking, and so on. The problem with this is, even if the sponsor's teachings cause the associate to be killed, it may be hard for them to learn the right way to do things, if they come back to our world at all. I wish I had more to say, but your questions were well worded and structured, and covered all the bases for the most part. As Mudkips pushed himself off the wall he had been leaning on, he flicked a business card down hard, having it stick in one of the cracks of the soapbox. Everyone around watched in surprise as the added weight of only the card was able to destroy the box into a splintering of wood and dust... I knew that thing wasn't safe! ...but by the time the dust settled, Mudkips was gone; a flash of light from his holstered .38 Special and a puff of smoke from a fresh cigarette the only signs he had ever been there at all... |
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| Reply by: Mudkips at Jun 10, '09 13:22 | |
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Eric approaches and waits for the group to stop talking about the death of Mudkips, apparently he was the last to speak on this topic, then was killed shortly after. Well I think this is a very good topic to speak on, given the fact that the Associates feature was implemented. Eric steps forward and begins to answer the questions as they are presented to him.
I think that it takes a great deal of knowledge of how things go in our world. You need to know the in's and out's of how to do just about everything that can be done here. You need to be a loyal, honorable, and respectable mobster.
No not just anyone, you are going to be the person molding some new mobster into someone that will eventually become part of the family's inner circle. You need to be able to trust that the person doing this is someone that has half a damn brain. You wouldn't just hand anyone a gun and tell them to be a family hitter, so why would you just choose anyone to help mold your future family members.
It should definitely be seen as an honor, it means that your crew leader felt highly enough of you to trust you with training future family members. If you view the job as a burden, then maybe you should seek another job within the family.
I think it will bring a new dimension onto the way we recruit new family members. Hopefully this will be a change for the better.
Of course it might, if you have someone that approaches you and is completely ignorant to everything that it means to be a sponsor, I would imagine we could lose some new family lines for good. That is why it is important only to make someone a sponsor if you are sure they are the right person for the job. |
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| Reply by: EricStevens at Jun 10, '09 17:14 | |
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What do YOU think it takes to be called a sponsor? I'm agreeing with Eric on this one, I think you need to have a lot of background with the game or to show your family head that you may have what it takes, not always asking about it. I'f your family head notices that you have a little talent in that area, of training n00bs or supporting the ill equiped. Should anyone be given this opportunity? I'f you have the space for new members, i think you should give anyone who wants it this chance to prove themselves, although do not let them off lightly if there associate messes up. Let them know they have to prove themselves worthy if they want to recieve the sponser title again. Is it an honor or a burden? I think its an honor training up a young mobster and letting them gain access into the HQ as a fully fledged member. When they graduate it should be a proud day in both your family leader and your own lives. Knowing you have moulded this young one into what he is today. How will this change the mechanics of what we're so used to? I think it will take a lot of stress of the crewleaders shoulders, knowing they have a good team who can do the inviting for them instead of them having to worry about it themselves. How might the given information of who is a sponsor be used in times of war? I suppose if the opposing side kills a sponser there associate will be left homeless, therfore weaking the crewleader. I'm not sure, this is something that will probably be tested in the future i'm sure... Will sponsorship in the wrong hands reflect negatively on the population of new citizens migrating here over time? Yes, ofcourse it will, if the person is sponsering a n00b for instance. The sponser is this n00bs main contact and therfore if he mistreats the n00b, the n00b will probably hate this life of organised crime and may want to kill themselves to get out of it. |
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| Reply by: Grassboy at Jun 10, '09 20:16 | |
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Frank steps up and feeling the need to answer the questions that have presented to him What do YOU think it takes to be called a sponsor? Well this is going to seem like a rehearsed answer just waiting for the oppourtunity to be recited, cause in true fact a sponsor is someone that is dedicated to the family and be able to lead the misguided thugs into the darkness of the criminal underworld. So I guess DEDICATION & LEADERSHIP skills are vital Should anyone be given this opportunity? In one word NO Is it an honor or a burden? An honor it shows you are trusted. How will this change the mechanics of what we're so used to? It will save the CL, RHM & LHM time in recruiting and free up time able for them to deal with important issues. While training sponsors to lead. How might the given information of who is a sponsor be used in times of war? It could be used negatively wacking sponsors I guess will weaken the family as associates will become homeless Will sponsorship in the wrong hands reflect negatively on the population of new citizens migrating here over time? Without a doubt, mistreating a new citizen will make them feel unwanted so they will either hop on the next boat back home, go into hiding till one day they are caught without a sponsor and a slug between the eyes. |
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| Reply by: Frank_Blazini at Jun 11, '09 09:19 | |
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Firstly, I want to say that I feel this new way of running businesses is not only innovative, but it's probably one of the best steps forward our world can take from now on. As a leader it makes more sense to outsource your grunt work to common thugs and thieves, to have them learn the ropes before they are even given a glimpse of your HQ. At least, this is how I feel on the subject. Now, to answer the questions you asked, sir... What do YOU think it takes to be called a sponsor? I personally would not trust this honor to anyone below the rank of Boss. At the rank of Boss your title implies that you have the ability to lead. Yet you still work for your own leader. So if you are not a Captain, nor a 'Sub Crew Leader' as the slang is determined these days, why not pair you up with a young thug to work for you, that you can pass your legacy on to? I also feel the people in the sponsor position should have a FIRM knowledge of the inner workings of the HQ. A casual associate won't be able to fully prepare and teach the young mobster everything they need to know otherwise. Should anyone be given this opportunity? No. There will always be those who abuse positions they are granted, as that's just human nature. This is why I like that leaders are able to selectively handpick who they want running this operation. Is it an honor or a burden? Anything- any work, any position, any casual form of praise- that is handed down to you you're your Boss should be considered an honor. Even if you are scraping the bird shit off the front steps like I make Vic_Vaselino do, it should be an honor. How will this change the mechanics of what we're so used to? Leaders will have to put a little more faith and trust into those that are now doing the 'hiring' for them. I like it, because it will make leaders break out of their comfort zone and learn to depend on the family. The entire family will, for the first time in awhile, all be working together as a giant machine put together with various parts, rather than a machine that runs on three cogs (Leader, Right and Left Hands) alone. How might the given information of who is a sponsor be used in times of war? In my opinion if it's a war everyone (or close to everyone) is going to die anyway, so this question doesn't really need an answer. Will sponsorship in the wrong hands reflect negatively on the population of new citizens migrating here over time? Yes. Wouldn't you say the same if it were, oh, a gun? A gun in the wrong hands will negatively affect the population. A bomb in the wrong hands, a keys to an HQ in the wrong hands. There is always a way to ruin things. I'm just hoping that those handed the responsibility of sponsorship will conduct themselves in a mature and responsible business-like manner. |
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| Reply by: Marietta at Jun 11, '09 13:55 | |
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