"Can I even be who 'dey need me ta be?"

The ceremony had been wondrous. Tammy experienced emotions and inner conflict she had never felt before. The daemons of her past relished in the moment, excitedly toying with her mind. She felt them on her shoulder, dancing in anticipation and ecstatic glee. She looked to her other shoulder for balance, rational and sanity, though only found another, exchanging whispers and temptations with the first. 

A broken version of herself could be seen in the trees, crawling and crying from the body of her mother. She was pleading for the protective encouragement found in a father, or the secure embrace of a lover. 

Enough. She banished them from her thoughts and convinced herself that whatever the decision, she would make it herself. In that moment it was done, and she stepped away as a Made Man.

On the journey back to Detroit, her thoughts turned to the practical realisation of her situation. The man rowing the boat was just a hired thug, but little did she know he would go on to document what was said that night and share it with the country. 

"I'm grateful, truly I am, but I'm young. So young. I'm proud ta say 'dat bein' a Made Man means 'dat I will die for miss Logan, but how can I be havin' any impact at such an age?"

"I accept 'dat any attack on miss Logan will mean 'dat I am also hunted for me rank, 'dough as I look around I see so many o'der young faces 'dat have certainly not had tha time ta build 'deir skills in'ta some'ting ta be feared. 'Dey will perish, regardless."

"At 'dis age, what does bein' Made mean?"

She looked to the rower, who just shrugged. She sighed and looked out across Lake St. Clair.

 TammyDeLuca gaining your button is something that a person shouldn't take likely, nor should it be something that should be easily given.  Each organisation leader will set goals with their set ups, goals that one must achieve to be in with the chance of getting their made man button. For most parts the set goals will  more than likely be the same for most crews. It could be that its financially focused, or it could be to have a certain amount of notches on your gun or it could be a certain amount of street presence.  It could be a mixture of everything. You do enough of these activities and you will reach made man within your organisation. 

To answer your question; 

"At 'dis age, what does bein' Made mean?" 

It takes 11 days to reach Made Man status, there is an awful lot that one can do within those first 11 days, if you want to put the effort in and thats the trick here. Within that time period you have an abundance of days to make the right impressions an connections that you need to. As they say; First impressions last and in this world, they really do. It may take some people 16 days to do this but the the principle of it is that you can certainly do enough within 11 days to be given your button. So Mrs Logan must have seen enough of you to promote you, clearly you have made the right impressions within your set-up.

The rank of Made Man is a contentious one. In some areas of this world it stands for so much, as you have rightly said, being a made member of someones organisation more or less means during war, you will perish with your crew leader- such is the nature of the beast. In other areas it lacks maybe the prestige it should. 

I think, being honest, the whole thought process behind Made man status has lost some monetary value out here in the streets and sometimes we, as a community, will take much ore notice of an unsponsored thug who has nothing to loose, shout off his mouth and not so much in our established members. Why is that? Is that fear or repercussion because of the rank? is it easy to react to a thug in a way that might be deemed disrespectful to an established member of the community.

Its very much a nurture thing with us. Its an emphasis that we, the crew leaders of the world, have to put onto the rank. We have to make a real effort to drill home to everyone, including those below us, just actually what the button means and what you can actually achieve in 11 days. Congrats on reaching a very prestigious mile stone.

TammyDeLuca,

There are tons of areas a young button man can impact greatly. There are more ways to impact than simply with your gun.
Being so young, you might be someone that the young up-and-comers can relate more. You have clearly excelled in areas that Detroit finds valuable, and you should be using this new status to help mold and guide others to follow in similar footsteps, so that they too can eventually fulfill their dreams and line up their pockets.

I think the biggest impact a young made man can do, is straighten out the associates and help guide them to that next step. 

 

Do any of 'dese attributes equal deserving a toe tag a' such an early stage in 'dat persons career?

Readin' an' listenin' ta tha history around here, Wise Guys are expected to be left alive 'cause 'dey are nah Made, but why? As I be sayin', I'm proud ta represent tha Paragons an' I trust miss Logans judgement. However o'der leaders may nah be 'dat experienced, jus' 'cause of a person's age, why should 'dat person face death when 'dey are either unprepared ta be Made or unaware what it really means?

Maybe I can-nah explain it right, 'dough a Wise Guy can be a good member, earn, train and represent, it feels 'dat we set Made Men's fate at an early age when 'dey're not capable of shootin' much we're nah confident 'dat tha rank is truly appreciated anyway. 

As you're well aware of, Tammy, I instruct everyone in our rules that I don't mind keeping someone as an associate for as long as they'd like. I've never begged anyone to become a Made Man, and I never will.

I offer someone the rank of Made Man- the opportunity to become a true member of the family- for many reasons, and they aren't always the same mixture. I offer to make someone a Paragon because I've seen how they operate and I trust them to represent me (at least as much as anyone can). I offer to make someone a Paragon because they've shown an ability to contribute to our public discourse- something you're proving correct right now. I offer to make someone a Paragon because they've proved themselves to me. Made Men have more responsibilities and weight in our family business. I seek their counsel and I trust their judgment- at least to a point.

As to your question of why a Made Man and a Wise Guy of the same age and skill often suffer different fates during a war... well, to me it's a question the commitment that each Made Man has made. It may be smarter to hang around as a Wise Guy, theoretically safer from danger (although not always)... but in my opinion, it's up to each crewleader to inspire their associates to want to reach that higher level and truly join the family.

I had to read through many volumes of familial memoirs and diaries to get a handle on this issue. Even so, I am no authority to speak confidently. Along the personal family line opinions differ greatly. When and why does rank relegate ones own fate to that of their Leader? 

The take I find most interesting is that of some long lost uncle. Here's how that man looked at the matter:

There is no such thing as a victimless crime. From that first apple you steal your fate is sealed. Maybe you had to snatch up that purse or go pocket diving so your kids could have something to eat that night. Maybe that purse contained every penny some poor widow had to her name and now she'll starve. Better them than you though, right? 

Get a few of the neighborhood kids hooked on the shit you sell. Make the pretty ones sell their bodies, have the rest steal for you. The cycle perpetuates. Doesn't matter. Your bank account is growing nicely.

Hop the counter at the bank and tell everyone to eat floor. Fill up those sacks you brought with you. If everyone cooperates everyone goes home alive. You secretly want someone to try the hero routine. You'd love to drop the hammer on a fool. Take their life. Won't ever be as sweet as yours. King of the world.

You kill. Again and again. Over and over. You are legend.

Your button, or lack of one, holds no sway. Your age does not matter. Neither does your level of involvement and experience in this thing of ours. Every single man or woman who willingly enters this world knows the score. They gave up coventional conveniences such as mercy and compassion and traded it for mammon.

If you are accepted into a family and are made, your future is inextricably entertwined with that of the leader you serve. If you are a soldier in the ranks and surround yourself with a retinue of bodyguards and advisors, your life is forfeit. If you are a glorified gopher you will die a death befitting a varmint. Not one will be found innocent. None shall be spared.

His philosophy was scorched earth centric. Further entries entreated future generations to own their malfeasance, misfeasance, and mistakes. To learn, to educate, and to accept death as a consequential reality of business.

Perhaps this would be more appropriate in his day and age. Times change, as do the people that live through those changes.

HI MOMMYYYY

HighPitchEric speaks to Tammy in a bizarre, high-pitched, and mostly unpleasant voice.

DURING MY MADE MAN CEREMONY, MY HANDS WERE SWEATING SO BADLY THAT FITZCHIVALRY COULDN'T BURN THE SAINT CARD WITHOUT MY PALM PERSPIRATION EXTINGUISHING THE FLAME. FINALLY AFTER THE THIRD TRY HE GAVE UP AND SAID FUCK IT AND THEY JUST STOMPED ME IN LIKE A COMMON BARRIO GANG. MY HANDS GET CLAMMY WHEN I'M NERVOUS

Maybe I can-nah explain it right, 'dough a Wise Guy can be a good member, earn, train and represent, it feels 'dat we set Made Men's fate at an early age when 'dey're not capable of shootin' much we're nah confident 'dat tha rank is truly appreciated anyway. 

I think when you're putting rank into a war scenario, it very much depends on the type of war/takedown it is. Sometimes rank during war isnt enough to just simply put a death toll on certain ranks, dont get me wrong, it very much can but its not as much as an open and shut case.

There are a few different types of scenarios; it could be that the take down of a Crew leader, is just that. Only that specific Crew leader will die, for what ever reason. In this scenario, no matter of rank, anyone who doesn't go on the offensive are left to find new homes. It could be that all an upper structure would die, I.E. left and right hands, again leaving the rest of the family to live, regardless of rank. It could also be that its both scenarios above and all Made men. This is a very common scenario now, probably the most common. Why? Well like i said its very much a nurture and conscious decision from us, as a community. We recognize the rank of made man to be something that we must celebrate in life and in death. We have to give the rank the prestige that it deserves. So in labeling the rank like this in a war scenario, it adds huge sustenance to what the rank can do for and you and most definitely can get get you killed.

If we wanted to, we could try to do that with any rank within this thing of ours, if we wanted to change the culture so that capo was the new made man, we more than likely could try to push it. I suppose what im trying to get across is that we choose that rank to celebrate your achievements with an organisation but if we wanted to move the goal posts and use a different rank as the mils stone we could, in theory anyway. Also i think how the gods see fit to allow us to progress to that rank plays a huge part on the emphasis put into Made Man, if that was so for capo, capo would be the bench mark. 

Your button, or lack of one, holds no sway. Your age does not matter. Neither does your level of involvement and experience in this thing of ours. Every single man or woman who willingly enters this world knows the score. They gave up coventional conveniences such as mercy and compassion and traded it for mammon.

  kookookoala i have to say, i cant agree with the first part of this. Of course it holds weight, the conflict is that it means more in some family's than it does in others, there is no base standard-apart from the ones that the gods set out. So the rank can sometimes be cheapened by lazy or none shcelont Crew leaders. It very much matters, in the grand scheme of how we operate. Yes the level of that varies depending on who, what and where but we must not make a concision effort to down grade what a Made man is. 

Its only us as Crew Leaders and as a community that can keep and uphold what the rank really is. 

Your button, or lack of one, holds no sway. Your age does not matter. Neither does your level of involvement and experience in this thing of ours. Every single man or woman who willingly enters this world knows the score. They gave up coventional conveniences such as mercy and compassion and traded it for mammon.

 kookookoala i have to say, i cant agree with the first part of this. Of course it holds weight, the conflict is that it means more in some family's than it does in others, there is no base standard-apart from the ones that the gods set out. So the rank can sometimes be cheapened by lazy or none shcelont Crew leaders. It very much matters, in the grand scheme of how we operate. Yes the level of that varies depending on who, what and where but we must not make a concision effort to down grade what a Made man is.   

I'm no amanuenses, nor do I claim to be able to speak for the dead.

I commented on two ideas, why should a persons rank be taken into account when deciding who lives and dies after a war, and the question: "Do any of 'dese attributes equal deserving a toe tag a' such an early stage in 'dat persons career?"

The viewpoint presented was that whether one can be considered a hardened veteran raised on the tenets of omerta, or a fresh off the boat kid stealing his first fish from the local monger, both are seen as equally guilty. Neither can claim to be any less deserving of judgement or accountability for their crimes.

In his eyes, my ancestor believed that there is no concept of little versus big sin. Both are equal. The severity of the crime (did anyone get hurt, did anyone die) does not excuse the crime. If all criminal acts are to be held equivalent, then one punishment fits all crimes.

His concept of judgement was death. This zeitgeist carried over into the question of who lives and who dies after a CL gets their fort stolen. Not just that CL. Not just the CL and hands. Not just the CL, hands, and those whom are made. All.

I believe the thinking back then for him was that families/organizations were seen as a single entity. If the way a CL conducted himself was unacceptable to his contemporaries, it was assumed that they were bringing up their members in the same fashion. There was no selective cull, but rather genocide. The reaper should know no distinction between rich or poor, nor between those merely serving the family and those whom are grafted in. Harsh by our standards today.

I believe this was not to be taken as a sleight to any rank. It was a matter of practicality. If that generation was removed, their children (should they be so blessed) were to be educated in a matter that was more aligned to his way of thinking. Learn from the mistakes of the parents, cultivate a better mafioso.

Once again, not being made myself, I cannot speak from experience. All I can do is crack open a few old journals and share the contents within. The opinions of those who came before me.

Another of this persons antiquated beliefs was the opinion that only mafioso y mafiosa whom were made and above should be allowed to speak in the streets. Yet here I am, present day, sharing information with CL's and gangsters alike. This argument, and that of conformity, would probably skew this conversation off track so let's revisit it at another time.

Its only us as Crew Leaders and as a community that can keep and uphold what the rank really is. 

Amen brother. One could argue that being made essentially enrolls one in an underworld meritocracy. A position of trust. It can't be bought. It is beyond priceless. Which brings us back to the original question: Should belonging to this exclusive club automatically warrant your death in the event of war? You represent a family in life, do you follow them in death? Are there extenuating circumstances that would save lives? As a CL, would one judge another family head for taking in members who were made from a family that they were previously at war with? Would you, as the child of a former CL, view made members of your father or mothers old family whom jumped to the other side in a negative light? And how about those ancient wiseguys who possess skills relative to their longevity, do they get a free pass?

We've heard these questions before in these streets through the years, listened to pros and cons. I'm not educated enough to bring anything new to the table, but I am ready to entertain all opinions and voices so that I can be better informed.

kookookoala what a fantastic speech before i address a few things, let just extend my gratitude to you and presence out here, its a shame we dont get more people with view points as strongly as yours coming out here more often. I know i, as a Crew Leader, really favor a presence like yours and within my setup you would easily reach the rank of Made Man, if you kept it up. 

The viewpoint presented was that whether one can be considered a hardened veteran raised on the tenets of omerta, or a fresh off the boat kid stealing his first fish from the local monger, both are seen as equally guilty. Neither can claim to be any less deserving of judgement or accountability for their crimes.

I agree, a crime is a crime, no matter of its severity. Black is black and white is white. I am just going to use a traditional  juditional court as an example. Like you have said, a crime is a crime, punishable as such and regardless of its nature you're still punishable by that crime and will be dealt with accordingly. Thats the same here, of course. in a court of law though, adults and children are not tried the same. If you commit any crime as a child, you dont get treated and punished as you would as an adult. You're considered a minor. Thus you go to a different place than an adult would. This is where i would draw the comparison here. As someone who is under made would be classed as the child, like wise Made man and above would be the adult. 

Apply this notion to how the effect is felt throughout your family. As none made (a child in my example) if you fuck up, for the lack of a better phrase, the effect it has on your family can be considerably less than that of an adult (Made Man). The Crime that the Made man has committed would have a greater impact on those around him.  So i dont know if i buy into the equal side of it (concerning the outcomes, rather than focusing on a crime being a crime)

In his eyes, my ancestor believed that there is no concept of little versus big sin. Both are equal. The severity of the crime (did anyone get hurt, did anyone die) does not excuse the crime. If all criminal acts are to be held equivalent, then one punishment fits all crimes.

 I think ive pretty much summed up where my head is on this. I will add though, that sometimes the bigger picture is that there will always be an us and them divide. That will always go top to bottom. A human element will always have a huge staring role when it comes to any decision making in this world, its something that we simply can not over look. At times we have to agree that there is a divide from big to little, only we can change who or where that divide sits. 

I believe the thinking back then for him was that families/organizations were seen as a single entity. If the way a CL conducted himself was unacceptable to his contemporaries, it was assumed that they were bringing up their members in the same fashion. There was no selective cull, but rather genocide. The reaper should know no distinction between rich or poor, nor between those merely serving the family and those whom are grafted in. Harsh by our standards today.

I mean, i agree wholeheartedly but we have so many variables in this world. ones that we can not overlook and its these variables that change the way we do things. Yes, in an ideal world this is how we would act but we are far from an ideal world. One size does not fit all. 

His concept of judgement was death. This zeitgeist carried over into the question of who lives and who dies after a CL gets their fort stolen. Not just that CL. Not just the CL and hands. Not just the CL, hands, and those whom are made. All.

I think sometimes when a take down happens we can do too much damage. Sometimes the perps are only the Crew leaders them selves. So sometimes not completely scorching  has a positive effect. Killing just a few select people works. What we dont want to do is to deter lines away from our world. Yes these are not innocent to our ways but do they warrant death if they are not am established member (Made man). Can we preserve some integrity by selective takedowns. 

Another of this persons antiquated beliefs was the opinion that only mafioso y mafiosa whom were made and above should be allowed to speak in the streets. Yet here I am, present day, sharing information with CL's and gangsters alike. This argument, and that of conformity, would probably skew this conversation off track so let's revisit it at another time.

I would encourage every single person to venture out here regardless of rank or stature. But this is where the line can get murky for me. Sometimes we see the young guns come out here with what i like to call; "nothing to loose syndrome" and pretty much say what they want and say it how they want and we pay much more attention to those than we do of someone who is of a much greater role here. Why is that?  is it because people could be worried about addressing an established member of community and the possible reprocution?  

overall kookookoala i have really, really enjoyed conversing with you. I do sincerely hope we meet out here again. 

A horrible syndrome it is, Space-pole. I hear medical experts are still torn on whether it’s the fatal stage of the ‘So-much-to-win Syndrome’ or whether it’s the result of ignorance to reality.

Aside from a possible disrespectful approach, which should be condemned, I believe young speakers often get more attention because they bring thought-provoking matters to the streets. Their ideas ask for a response, either to defend what they oppose, to clarify on what’s been said or to evolve ideas into mature proposals. Young speakers often toy with the identity of this place and regardless of their inspiration or intentions, that’s why they get more attention.

Established men and women of honour rarely seem to bring thought-provoking or pace-changing ideas to the public. They often don’t see the need to change or question the system that raised them into what they now are, because it might also question their personal careers or the approach of the people above them. Or simply because there is no need to do so seeing they are already trusted and appreciated by their leader. Personal benefit can be a great motivator to keep things as they are. Why would someone discuss something that works for them? Things got them to Made already, so there’s no reason to draw uncertain attention with a promising career on the way.

Coming to that, if I may add my opinion to the discussion, I think that the impact of a Made Man can be that their leader has confidence in their unique abilities and empowers them to employ those. I would hope that a leader gives his men of honour the trust that they are capable mafiosi. That this may be a signal for these men or women to really work at the best of their capabilities, which will be something that gets seen by the people in the family and possibly beyond the walls of an HQ.

And with that, it should be a signal of loyalty and talent within a family. For any opponent that should be reason enough to remove them as well if they decide to remove the Don of the family.

Granted, much of what I said here is based on stereotypes that I think are true to this place. There will always be unique situations.
Any Made Man should be proud of what they achieved. It’s a promotion within the career path that they chose for themselves. Whether others on a different path will value it in the same manner doesn’t really matter. They have their life to account for. If they want to be better or worse, that’s their call.

Thank you Space-pole, your words are wise and I can see truth in them. Illustrating as a court of law really clarifies your position.

Makes perfect sense. It also establishes a sense of value on the young - that they are worth giving a second chance to, that they could be rehabilitated. Repurposed. Wiser. I will never argue against forgiveness. 

I agree, a crime is a crime, no matter of its severity. Black is black and white is white. I am just going to use a traditional  juditional court as an example. Like you have said, a crime is a crime, punishable as such and regardless of its nature you're still punishable by that crime and will be dealt with accordingly. Thats the same here, of course. in a court of law though, adults and children are not tried the same. If you commit any crime as a child, you dont get treated and punished as you would as an adult. You're considered a minor. Thus you go to a different place than an adult would. This is where i would draw the comparison here. As someone who is under made would be classed as the child, like wise Made man and above would be the adult. 

If we look at this through old curmudgeonly eyes it could break another direction. They have their court of law that runs according to their rules and we have our own thing going on down here.

The essential difference is that theirs is easily corruptible.

From Joe Flatfoot walking the beat, to the chief of detectives, all the way to the Mayor's office in city hall. All of them on our payroll. That's only at the local level. Then we got your boys in the FBN at the federal level. Senators. Congressmen. They all want what we have - the money.

How contemptible it must be. Having your master be the very same thing you are sworn to eradicate. I can't begin to wrap my head around selling out. The lack of honor. For what? Your neighbors an electrician and just bought a boat, now you need a boat too? Yeah, but twice as big right. Human nature I guess. They want access to the kind of money we generate. They are willing to sell their integrity for it. Even the judicial system - especially the judicial system. 

We know their courts are broken. How money influences their decisions. I could go for low hanging fruit and ramble on about pedophile archbishops and human trafficking sweatshop owners but everyone knows the score. When our worlds collide, ours and theirs, money will allow us to walk free. They can't help themselves, like a dog back to its own vomit.

Our world is different. Hustle and bust your hump and you will accrue vast wealth. Is having riches a sure prophylactic against a corruptible spirit? Not always, but we have better accountability. Imagine the previous scenario with the neighbor, only in our world. Your neighbor buys a boat, whaddaya do? Go next door and tell him you're going to buy him a truck so he can have something to tow it with. Because you can. Money in the bank.

This sounds like we're all winners down here, and everything is perfect. But we know different. Nothing is perfect. And when things get so fucked you can't unfuck them, our system is immutable. People pay for their mistakes with their lives. If the debt is severe their family will suffer as well. Trading mercy for mammon, remember.

If you liken those who have not been made to children, it suggests that leniency is required on our part. That it would take a hard bastard to kill a child over a mistake.

I've known an awful lot of hard bastards. They seem to sleep okay at night.

I would encourage every single person to venture out here regardless of rank or stature. But this is where the line can get murky for me. Sometimes we see the young guns come out here with what i like to call; "nothing to loose syndrome" and pretty much say what they want and say it how they want and we pay much more attention to those than we do of someone who is of a much greater role here. Why is that?  is it because people could be worried about addressing an established member of community and the possible reprocution?

Concur. The streets should be full with people expressing their opinions. Their vision. Their unique individuality. 

I've always believed that if you have something on your mind it is best to get it off your chest. Like you say, sometimes the young guns garner more attention because of the nature and delivery of their message rather than the message itself. Sometimes that message is poignant and timely yet will slip by, overshadowed by a contentious spirit.

Let us encourage those who feel they have no voice to get on the soapbox and transcend their fear and self-limiting. Five cities, sharp minds in every one. What they have could prove beneficial to all. But we'll never know unless they share.