Originally Posted by BensonHURST
Originally Posted by Lenox
Originally Posted by DetroitPartnership
I like his podcast, but I do have an issue with the lecture on cooperation. He did 6 years straight (they're his crimes); he's indicted and arrested again not long after being paroled; for crimes he committed, prior, but not arrested. When made men are cooperating, you decide it's ok to cooperate. A' La' John Alite: these are your crimes; no one made you do it; you owe the time to the people and OC has nothing to do with your debt to society. More excuses to cooperate. He may not like my posts as I reminded him that while Joe Gambino may prepare tasty prison pasta, he also skipped bail with his brother leaving friends and families at the claws of bail bondmen seeking to confiscate their life savings. More concerning is the reference to the violence in the neighborhood. Yes, I'll believe the senseless killings that took place, but what about the hundreds of peer teenagers that did their homework, took up a trade or went to college? More excuses! Just say I'm a rat to save myself. I couldn't help but acknowledge certain tough guys, through reputation or he noted, while reminding him that they had to outsource their wet work to the AB. The same men he references doing life did not mirror his decision of citing other cooperators and doing the same.


I agree. He makes it sound like it was the wild west and everyone was shooting, stabbing, and seliing drugs like some violent video game. I knew a few people from that area who were a little older than him and they never mention violence and crime. They did say the mob was around but “ they kept to themselves”. Everyone I knew from there mention hanging out, cruising 86th st, and playing baseball and street hockey.
According to Calandra, Bath Beach was more violent than Iraq.


The "WILD WEST" is a pretty accurate description just in a controlled way for the most part, just guys that signed up for it were the guys that were left laying in the street.

What I think he means is that everyone that was in his circle was into something... At that age your circle is your whole world,.

Alot of guys were on the fringes, a lot of 9-5 's were into a little something extra to make some extra money.

The perception was that there was NOTHING WRONG with it.
As a matter of fact as CRAZY as it sounds the guy that wanted nothing to do with was looked down upon often.

The wise guys were looked upon as if they were celebrities.

So if everyone in your circle is into something, and your parents were on the fringe so alot of their friends were into something.. And all your friends and their families were into something...

It would be very easy to feel like everyone is involved....

You have to realize alot of first and 2nd generation Italians at that time.

What that has to do with him ratting I have no idea
Just giving you an accurate description

Of course there were ALOT of hard working honest Italian immigrants



100%. I lived across the Verrazano but this is a really accurate description of South Brooklyn in the late 80s and 90s. A LOT of 9-5 guys (and women) had a little something to make money on the side. Usually minor and nobody cared or thought there was anything wrong with it. There was plenty of wiseguys and street guys but pretty much everybody was part of the ecosystem in some way. Same thing to a smaller degree in some SI neighborhoods. Small example… as crazy as it sounds my ex-girlfriend’s grandmother was the unstamped cigarette connect for about a dozen people I knew. Every week she’d take everyone’s order and we’d come see her the next day to pick up a carton or 2. To this day I don’t know where exactly where they were coming from but I promise you some of that money was being funneled to a made guy and then up the chain. Little old grandma fencing a few smokes to make an extra buck or 2. Although she used to tell stories about eating betting slips before the bulls could get to them in 60s so maybe she’s not the best example. But little things like that which seem completely normal when you are surrounded by it every day… for your whole life. It’s actually more weird to leave that environment for the first time and realize… people actually do go to stores to buy jewelry and having “a guy” who swings by occasionally to see if you are interested in his new stuff is actually not normal.