Dwalin, I don't think there has ever been a "common concept" that the mafia in Italy didn't (doesn't) kill women or children. It's pretty common knowledge that anything goes and no one is off limits.
Maybe that concept being common is outdated information, I don't know. People know better today, but before there was (and there still is) somebody who considers the mafiosi as local heroes. I once watched an interview with some people from a town with a strong mafia presence and I remember when a young man was asked if, according to him, "his life would be better or worse if the presence of the mafia in it were not so strong", he said "I think it would be worse". I don't know if to laugh or cry at that statement
It's always been, and it's known today, that to get to a man, they will use his wife/mother/father/child to get to him. It's always been this way in Italy.
I understand what you're saying about the interview you watched, but you have to understand, many times the mafia has protected their own towns, or kept drugs from their own towns, and yes, people have felt somewhat safer having the mafia in control rather than local street thugs. It's true.
