Renata headed to the streets with thoughts on her mind that she wished to share. It appeared that she had inherited the family trait for speaking out in public in response to pretty much any thought that popped into her head. Picking a relatively comfortable looking spot of wall, she swung herself up on to it and began to speak as the crowds milled past.

"It seems as though the events of the last 24 hours have given plenty of food for thought on the topic of leadership. Chicago's esteemed Godfather Chairman, DoctorBoom, was forced to remove 3 crewleaders suspected of disloyalty and malicious intent against the Doctor and those close to him. In doing so, he appears to have safeguarded the future of the rest of the city of Chicago for the foreseeable future.

I am lucky enough to have been left journals by both my mother and my grandmother, who both had the pleasure of working with DoctorBoom had different stages in his mafia career, and, in the case of my grandmother, the pleasure of working with DoctorBoom's father, Kimble.

Those journals tell many things and cover many wars, but the one thing that they cover, above all else, is that there has been no war that DoctorBoom is unwilling to wage to protect the people who have earned his trust, in much the same way as his father acted before him. DoctorBoom has killed the children of bloodlines that he has friendships with dating back many, many generations, to protect those people, as Kimble did before him. DoctorBoom, and his father before him, are what I would consider to be "good" leaders. They both put their family, and those loyal to their families, above all else. That is how our world is supposed to work, that is how our world is supposed to turn. I have an infinite amount of respect for the leadership of this man.

Notice what I didn't mention here though? I didn't mention how many notches DoctorBoom has on his gun, and I didn't mention the size of his security detail. I have seen the child of one of last nights deceased making out as though a leader is unfit to lead a city, because his gun is not quite a cannon and his security detail is not the largest in this world, and I have to step out and call complete bullshit on this way of thinking.

Are we really so brutal and ignorant a group that we consider the most important qualities a leader can have to be the size of their gun? Do we truly believe that our world has had no great leaders who have been unable to pop a capped Godfather? I know for a fact that there have been several in the history of our world and I have no doubt that there will be several more. 

My mother set up shop with a gun that could barely knock a tin can from a wall, and a security detail so small that a common goomba probably could have broken through if they so determined, and, despite her poor luck in the end, I still feel as though she grew into doing quite a fine job for her district. 

So this is what I ask of you all. Do you truly believe that guns and security are the most important things a leader can posses? Or are there other qualities that we hold dear too? Speaking skills, smarts, wits, charm, insight - those things, to me, are rarer and more important in a leader than a fuck-off massive gun or a huge swarm of bodyguards.

Any moron can train a gun, and many morons do. Very few can lead, and lead well."

Renata broke for air, realising how long she had been speaking for. At the end of her thoughts for the present moment, she dug in her pocket for a battered box of cigarettes and the ornate silver lighter that had been passed throughout the generations of her family and lit herself a smoke, watching the world go by, waiting to see if anybody else would have comment to make.

"was forced to remove 3 crewleaders"

What choice wording. Why not just call it what it is? He gunned down the men closest to him. He used them as his "reason" to destroy every other city in Our Thing, and then removed them when they were no longer needed.

Calling it anything other than that is stupid. DoctorBoom and his line have behaved this way for as long as I can remember. The times he triumphs most are when those around him temporarily forget that.

Very few morons can lead? I guess that is true, friend. Ok, I kid. I understand what you are trying to say.

Now, onto the meat of the topic. Guns. DO WE NEED THEM?SHOULD THEY BE BANNED?!?! Ok, no. I kid again. Of course we need guns. They help us threaten mayors, kill our enemies and they make that pewpew sound we all know and love.

I did notice that you didn't mention the size of the esteemed doctor's gun but shouldn't you have? Isn't it as important to this narrative as his leadership skills? He could stand up for the metaphorical 'little guy' just because his gun was anything but little. I realize the number of bodies he has surrounded himself with would not be as important as this 'war' was done and dusted quite quickly and nobody(I think, as I am not privy to the details) shot at him. He was enabled to be a 'good leader' because of the handcannon he lugs around(I've been told it's huge. Never really seen it and nor do I want to be looking down it.....as if I would be important enough for JTG himself to shoot me...el o el)

Furthermore, talking about the larger picture of 'good leaders' not needing large guns. My blood has been around for a while and even though there are large gaps in my ancestral memory as a consequence of retirements I don't think there has been any great leader who didn't have a fuckton of kills and bgs. Maybe Marietta in Detroit but she was backed by a monstrous hitsquad out of(I think) both her own city and New York which produced a large number of unprecedented guns for its time(TR,Deimne, Lucrezia_Borgia etc)

The point I am trying to make is that all the good intentions in the world wouldn't count for jack shit if they aren't backed with cold,hard steel.

Onto the Dexter point. I assume you are saying that Dexter is a great leader and therefore more deserving of the title of GFC than a couple of click monkeys. I agree. That is, if he is a great leader. How great a leader can someone be if two of their equals don't agree with his decisions? How amazing could he really be if he could not build a consensus as to the direction the 'group' must be taking? Now, I realize that he could be an amazing crew leader but he isn't planning on taking the job of CL,is he? Nope, he was planning on being the Godfather-Chairman of a city...which involves(I assume) a greater level of complexity than running a single crew. Maybe I'm wrong, I wouldn't know.

Finally, the actual sequence of events that have transpired show us what really matters in this world. Discussions between people who can do something about a certain situation and then le pewpew.

Telkin didn't often come to the Streets, but lately there had been a few discussions that piqued his interest. Listening to the conversation that was transpiring, he stood in the background and waited for an opportune moment to pitch his thoughts in.

I couldn't care less a Civilian which leader can one-shot-one-kill anyone across the country. Could care less about their protection status. Things Civilians should be looking at are things such as Activity, what CL's are actually doing with their Active time, tax rates, etc etc.

They should be taking the time to mail multiple Made Members throughout the organizations to get the feel of each Family as to see whether or not they think they'd fit in well there.

But alas, all too often Civilians hop aboard the first friend that sends them an Invite - except those who are fresh to our shores - and then all too often they fall victim to the first member whore that comes a writin'.

Telkin pauses and lights a cigarette, his soul thanking him for the delicious nicotine. Exhaling a cloud from his nose, he moved on to the part of the conversation that really interested him.

A good leader... Who wants a good leader? Not I. I want a GREAT leader. Now what does this entail? Well, in my opinion it entails quite a few things. And not a single one of them has anything to do with notches on a gun.

A great leader is someone who has the ability to take a completely fresh bloodline to these shores and shape them up into something great. A great leader is someone who may not necessarily be the most active in the Streets - but when they do speak, they are well spoken and people listen. A great leader is someone who trusts their members and is completely open and honest with them in as many aspects as humanly possible. A great leader pays attention to each individual member of theirs - not just the ones their bloodline(s) have been friends with for generations.

Most importantly...A great leader can only be great.... if they inspire greatness. I am under the belief that a CrewLeader is only as good as their members, and that is something I think goes forgotten all too often.

Yes, having a big gun is the most important thing your leader can posses because when all is said and done, if someone does your family wrong then you know you can go to your leader and they have that ability to take matters into their own hands.

Having good contacts and some integrity is also important but with a good gun at your disposal then you'll be able to force the hand of others when you need to and not shy away when someone has done something that you find questionable.

I know we all like to get nostalgic about the good old days and how we had leaders who spoke in the street, but this is a different world now and it's not a requirement for leaders to speak out here and so we have a breed of mobsters who don't particularly give a fuck about it. Who really cares if you can speak with confidence? A charming personality and a few witty words won't keep you alive, sadly.

What is leading now anyway? You throw up a HQ and get 40 guys to earn you money, the crews run themselves pretty much after that, there's not even any organisation needed so what exactly are you leading? What are you doing to lead your crew? In my opinion not a lot. There's no more sub crews to divide the larger numbers we once had, no testing people to see who may be a worthwhile leader one day.

You can build a rapport with your minions and keep them chummy and they'll think you're the best thing since sliced bread but the rest of us on the outside we wouldn't know who the fuck you are, in our eyes you're just another bold Don. Is that enough? Not in my opinion. With a gun everything changes, people respect you more. 

Cin had been listening intently to the conversation that was happening around her. As she listened her mind began to think. While her mind worked she put her thoughts together before she spoke.

"I've done a fair amount of thinking on this topic. While I admire leaders with a variety of things I can't truly say I think that the gun is the most important thing. I think it is the leaders that actually value hard work, not just say they do. Those that are willing to stand up for their members rather than watch them killed without good reason. The leaders that can be honest and have a conversation no matter how hard the topic is. Those things top my list for leadership. Those two things will likely be what gains my loyalty. What causes me to stick around through rough wars and the good times. If you can't gain the loyalty of your members or their respect then you aren't leading as well as you thought you were.

These traits are hard to come by in consistent form. I've seen leaders claim to possess them and do for a short period, then they fall by the wayside for whatever reason. I recognize that I am not a leader but these are the traits that I value in the leadership around me. Something I can get into as a member and fully respect."

Keats ambles through the streets, listening to Renata's speech and the many replies- reflecting on how much she'd grown since he first met her. Clearing his throat, he offers his brief thoughts.

A worthwhile discussion, I think. Even if many people have seen it before, it's worthwhile for those new to our shores to consider- and it's worth being reminded about the truly important questions. 

A part of me sympathizes with the argument from IronMan, who aptly stated that "all the good intentions in the world wouldn't count for jack shit if they aren't backed with cold, hard steel". There is some wisdom there- but it isn't my answer.

Communication is another essential quality.

But Telkin hit the nail on the head, I think. The thing the ultimately defines great leaders, to me, is their impact on their crews. Ultimately, the "stats": number of kills, number of bodyguards, amount of money earned, etc.... these things can be indicators of greatness and allow one to have a larger impact. But the true greatness is similar, I think, is only evidenced from the impact a leader has on his or her members. You don't need a cannon if you can inspire ten people to go out and kill for you. You don't need to be a huge earner if you inspire your crew to hang around for one more drug price change. 

Ultimately, I think it boils down to this: are the people in your crew maximizing their potential? Are they achieving at their highest possible level? Are they chasing greatness? And are they doing this to a greater extent than they would with a solid/boring/neutral impact CL?

If so, you're a great leader.