Dear Mafiosa. I come to you today with a bleeding heart, we are stuck in the rebuilding process yet again.

Deja Vu.

During my sheltered and comfortable life I have watched many family head's fall by the wayside. My pops always told me stories about what happened in his line of work. He never encouraged me to follow in his footsteps, but was never afraid to share the spills and frills of his lifestyle, he regaled me with tale upon tale of family heads biting the bullet.

And now I see those same tales coming to life, only with different actors.

It has made me sit here and think... Are any of the current head's going to be any different? Obviously there are a few that will stay with us for at least a while in Marietta and Thomas, however it does genuinely seem like they just clean up the messes that everyone else makes every now and then. My pops always mentioned those 2 in his stories so it seems that they are the 2 that have cracked this way of living. They know how to survive, how to negotiate, how to sing and dance to somebody else's tune while simultaneously beating their own drum far louder. Are we going to see another batch of leaders fall by the wayside or is there a diamond among the rough? Or will someone else cement their place in history?

There are a couple of head's on the verge of greatness, but I am a very pessimistic person and have seen so many come so close that I struggle to believe that anyone has it in them anymore, Does anyone see someone with a burning desire or passion around here anymore?

I guess what I'm really asking is... does anyone see something I don't?

Just so we're a bit more clearer, my definition of "greatness" or "someone who sticks out" is someone that generation to generation knows. Someone who crosses times boundaries and jokes and tales are reminisced over in that coffeeshop heaven. Someone who is remembered for who they are (not their coffeeshop name).

Note: All references to my own boss are taken out because of the complete and utter bias i have towards her :)

I think there's always young talent around our great cities, i think that when an old dog has learned all the tricks he was capable of, there's always a new pup to take his place and learn a lot more.

We have talent everywhere we look, it takes a good leader to spot that talent and use it to their advantage.

Though i say take every day as it comes, what happens happens.

There are a couple of head's on the verge of greatness, but I am a very pessimistic person and have seen so many come so close that I struggle to believe that anyone has it in them anymore, Does anyone see someone with a burning desire or passion around here anymore?

Not to point out the obvious, but didn't you see when Premier, former Don of New York, ascended to the hallowed rank of Godfather earlier this afternoon? I believe he's a fine example of "someone with a burning desire or passion" as his family lineage has toiled for ages to reach such an important plateau. Not only this, but with Premier's move to Los Angeles and promotion, we were graced with the introduction of Judge_Holden. He gave a lovely introductory speech shortly after Godfather Premier's announcement and I eagerly look forward to his time in Los Angeles.

I take the opposite approach to your speech. I'm a man who sees the glass "half-full" rather than "half-empty." I understand it's a bit of a tired cliche, but I tend to look at these vacant cities and see opportunities out there for large-scale successes rather than areas for inevitable disappointment.

There are plenty of people out there with the potential to lead well. Die_Clause is a perfect example of this.

Indeed Sir, I had noted that Godfather Premeir had ascended to those Godly heights. However, not so long ago a few other people have taken full control of a city and been given the Godfather title and will barely be remembered beyond a few weeks (Adrian and...uhhhmmm, that guy who got shot? see! i forgot their names already!). This is not to say the aforementioned Godfather won't go on to "be all that he can be" (love that line), he is clearly doing very well at present but having your own city to deal with brings far more to the table and only time will tell  where that story ends.

I do realise that it's not the be all and end all to be remembered by everyone I guess I'm just frustrated at the lack of direction and vision we've had from family head's now deceased.

That is the beauty of this thing of ours. YOU JUST NEVER KNOW!

There are no scripts to dictate what is going to happen. It would be pretty damned boring if we knew what was going to happen ahead of time wouldn't you think?