Skinny Joe and Biden?

Any of my Philly friends hear about this?

https://buffalochronicle.com/2020/1...ection-and-why-he-may-flip-on-joe-biden/

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With all do respect fellas, if anyone believes this bullshit, anyone at all, then they are total idiots!

Its not even a debate!

Whacky nut-job conspiracy theorists to the max!.....It's actually embarrassing to imagine that any level headed, intelligent thinking adult person could/would bother to finish even reading this "fantasy" article.

This article has to be from the Onion or Babylon Bee...best quote in there is that Joey wants to be a park ranger.

Lol, everytime someone posts this nonsense somewhere

I lol’d myself. For what it’s worth I posted because I saw no one else did.

NYMAfIA I don’t post here often because unlike you I’m not some gangster fan boy. I happened upon here accidentally years ago when a close friend sent me Wikipedia thing about his father. This site was down the line of the google search. So I stopped in and was blown away by many of the members and how their stories of people I knew as a kid where so close to the ones I either heard or saw. But a lot those members have left because dickhead posters like yourself. Calling people idiots from behind a keyboard is real a tough guy move. And your arguments with Moe do nothing for this site.

Bullshit lol

No the best was Joey delivering the ballots! Hahaha! Can you just picture that for a minute?!

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First of all. my comment was about the article, NOT about you per se! So please don't get your panties in a bunch.

#2, it IS an idiot article (you even said you agreed with my assessment). Did you write the article? No right? so why are you so defensive?

#3, I am not a "gangster fanboy" as you say, but I'd like to think of myself as a decent researcher and good contributor of all things organized crime. Do you not agree with me on that? Have you visited our site? Buttonguys of The New York Mafia. I think you may enjoy it if you do visit us. I invite you to do so, ok.

#4, I am not trying to be a "keyboard racketeer," In fact, far from it. I try my best to always conduct myself in an intelligent and gentlemanly fashion on this board. And I like to think I've made a lot of friends on this forum. Even when we disagree on a subject, we tend to be amenable about it, so it's actually a fun exchange.

#5, whatever words I had with Moe is because he started in with me. If you bother to trace our treads all the way back to the start, It'll bare that out. Mine was just a "defense" mechanism against verbal attacks toward me. Understand? But generally speaking I do not have any problems with anyone on here. Moe was the exception.

#6, I don't call other posters "dickheads", Lol, thats not how I speak.

Haha a lot of people seem to really dislike you NYMafia. I don't consider you a fanboy, but you do sound like somebody who would rather be friends with a wiseguy than a government official haha

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Hi ya Ralphie, Thank you for that little affirmation. In truth, I am the furtherest thing from a "fanboy" that one could be.

As far as my preference to being friends with a wiseguy as opposed to a government official? Lol.... judging from some of the politicians and government officials we've had out there, it's sometimes difficult to tell who the racketeer really is, the mob guy or the government guy! Lol..... so depending on the "wiseguy" and the "government official" you're asking about, you may be right or wrong on that one! LOL
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And lastly, I wasn't aware, as you say of "a lot of people dislike me." With the exception of Moe and maybe one or two others, I always thought conversely that we (my website, I, and my partner at the site) were generally very well liked. In fact you're statement is news to me.

You really gotta ask yourself why would it be (if it's even true that is), that certain people do not like me?

I mind my own business and don't bother anyone. We keep very, very busy researching, composing and writing what most people in general have said is very good, unique and informative content for our website; the internet in general, the forum, and other outlets. 99.9% of the time we contribute relevant treads to this forum, and elsewhere. I never denigrate anybody, regardless of who they may be, or their views on various subjects.

You should remember too that I'm not getting paid for any of this (what IMO is great content that we put out weekly). My partner and I both do this for FREE!...so what's not to like about it? On average do you realize that my partner and I release 3-5 new mob stories every single week?

PS: we also track our analytics daily, weekly and monthly to see our viewership, and subscribers. Not to boast but to point of the facts, what we have found is that (overwhelmingly) we have had positive responses and comments toward nearly every single storyline, bio, or mob related article we've ever released. We seem to be growing our members at a solid rate weekly. If I showed you the wonderful comments complimenting our stories (literally hundreds per week), you'd fall out of your chair.

So I'm actually puzzled as to who it is exactly that you feel does not like us number #1. And number #2 if I might ask, why would they not like us, or me?

Ralphie, I also want you to know that I'm asking this question very sincerely here ok? What possible reason (or reasons) would someone, anyone, "dislike me?"

I just don't get where any disapproval or "dislike" comes from...in what way did I offend anyone?

I agree Merlino. Park rangers are cops who have jurisdiction in a park instead of the streets. No way would they give felon that job, and no way would a guy like Merlino want it anyway. The average ranger in NJ State Forests couldn't tell you much about the plants or animals, but they can sure write you a ticket!

Yes, I can see Skinny Joey in a khaki outfit and Smokey the Bear hat, asking campers to clean up their trash--or else!

NYMafia has claimed to be related to two ranking wiseguys, which explains the slant inherent in all of his posts.

Two options.

Assuming he's fibbing, A): He is a fantasist who has developed an obsession with a certain Italian-American subculture.
Assuming he's telling the truth, B): Everything he says has to be taken with a grain of salt because he cannot remain impartial about government witnesses or cases that are on the docket.

Hey NY, don’t listen to those gavones, moe and some others on this site offer little other than busting peoples balls, in my opinion. Just bums with nothing else to do than bug people on the internet. I for one enjoy your articles and appreciate the time you and your pal put into them. Keep up the good work!

What he writes has as much credibility as the Weekly World News!

Sounds like a bullshit story to me. The only believable thing is the part about being paid $10 per ballot. If the mob got the chance to do that then I could definitely see them getting together a group of associates together to churn out 300,000 ballots. $3 million in a couple of days is just too easy to pass up.

Well it’s still an interesting read, atleast he’s helping to keep these forums alive, and he’s not making up information. Yes he does have a bias, but so what many of us do. A lot of us are interested about wiseguys, and to an extent admire some of them in some ways, so I think he gets a pass for that.

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Moscone, first of all I wanna thank you coming to my defense, as well as that endorsement of my articles. I am glad you enjoy them. Thats why I do what I do in the first place. It's gratifying to hear people such as yourself say that. So thank you!

And as far as Moe Tilden goes, or any other of these type of argumentative posters, and I use the word "posters" very loosely here, I actually take them with a big grain of salt at best, which is the only healthy way to really look at them I think. How does that old saying go?..... "Those who can play get out onto the playing field and do so, showing what they got. Those who don't know how to play, often sit on the sidelines and just bellyache and complain about those players that do!" .... LOL, I think that analogy may very well apply here.

As you so astutely pointed out, typically you'll see that these kind of posters actually contribute very little positive content to any dialogue they enter. They are rabble rousers and malcontents who try and insult others in order to stir the pot and start trouble.

But enough of them already. We give them too much importance. Agreed?

Until we speak again, "stay well".... or as they say in Italian "stare bene"

I like you too NYMafia and more to the point I think you obviously do everyone here a huge service with the research and posting you do. Actually, right before you appeared on here I thought things had become very dull and I think you've done a lot to liven it up. Without content, there's nothing to drive a discussion board! NYMafia creates a ton of content and we should all be grateful for that.

I suppose you do strike me as a bit of a fanboy, but I don't think you should take offence to that. Aren't we all, to some degree fans of the subject if not the individuals involved in this life? If NYMafia feels some affinity to some of the guys we talk about here, that's your right to feel how you want. Lots of people feel affinities for famous figures whether that's Princess Diana or the Pope or whoever else. We can debate the morality of whether or not we like/approve of these figures - but isn't having that debate one whole key component of even having a "discussion forum" like this? It's a Discussion Forum, not an "agreement forum".

Anyone who claims they're not at least a bit of a fanboy, I guess I gotta ask - why are you here? Just nothing better to do? Why have almost all of us here spent time watching mob flicks and reading the books and so forth?

It is after all a fascinating subject - I've been called on it by friends of mine and have gotten used to offering my own explanation for what I find so fascinating about OC.

As to whether NYMafia has bona fide connections, who knows, and what does it matter anyway? It's like talk radio - callers call in with all kinds of claims, good hosts don't even bother trying to ascertain the veracity of the caller they take their claims at face value and debate and discuss them on that basis for the purpose of a largely theoretical discussion -- assuming what the caller is saying is the truth. I don't care if NYMafia is connected to anybody, or not. I'll likely never meet NYMafia in real life - my only relationship here is as a consumer of their (rather excellent) content, and to whatever degree we have some discussion or debate.

Oh and as to the Joey story, that is obviously bullshit. Much like the claims of mass voter fraud themselves. I don't think Joey could rig a PTA election at the local elementary school much less the US federal election. Joey is no Sam Giancana.

Which wiseguys has he claimed to be related to? I must admit I doubt he knows any wiseguys, but I do enjoy some of his articles. I know many of them are fiction, but some are accurate

Yeah, there is no way in hell any candidate from either party is approaching a known gangster like Joey for help. Back in the old days maybe, but not now. The FBI is always lurking, and everyone with any common sense knows it.

"Buffalo Chronicle" was started in 2014 and has been flagged as dubious by watchdog sites. The site is strange. Authors names aren't listed with a lot of the articles, there's no ownership information, "about" page, etc, as most legit news sites have.

https://www.newsguardtech.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/buffalochronicle-1.pdf

https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/the-buffalo-chronicle/

NYmafia appreciate your content always an interesting read. Haven’t posted in a long time but felt compelled to write this considering the amount of content I’ve read of yours in recent times. Keep em coming

Fake news lol, but on a local level I do think mafiosi have links to politicians. But to influence national politics is impossible although there were rumors the Outfit helped JFK.

NYMafia makes valuable contributions to this board. If you disagree with his articles or conclusions, you're welcome to say so. But, don't make personal attacks.

I don't think the American mafia has the leverage anymore to control a politician. That racket was taken over by corporate America.

NyMafia, I really enjoy your posts. I especially love your "guess the Mobster" game. It's fun racking my brain to try and decipher the clues (and to be honest,I haven't gotten one yet). The bios are great and there's always a tidbit or two that I never knew. I agree that there's no need or purpose for personal attacks. My counter proposal to the detractors would be that if you don't like what is posted,then maybe do some posting of your own. I love this board and your contributions have,at least for me,given it a major shot in the arm. Thank you for all the work you do.

Bingo! Lol... Thank you again Moscone. We "all" has a bit of a bias, one way or another.

As far as info goes. I NEVER make up information. I don't need to. There is so much legitimate data out there if you know where to search it out, there's no need for BS.

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Ralph, I'm glad you enjoy my articles. But why would you say some are "fiction"? NONE are fiction. they are not even 95% accurate. I'd put that range at about 99%. (hey, nobody is perfect right? Lol)

As far as knowing wiseguys. Again, why would you say that? Why is that so incredulous?

My father, uncles, grandfather, great uncles, and several cousins, were ALL wiseguys. FACT! ..... Over the years i grew up in the areas of Downtown New York - Little Italy, Brooklyn, and Queens. At one time or another I lived in all those areas. All of which were heavily saturated Italian neighborhoods. I rubbed shoulders with guys all my life. Since birth. As far as my own personal credentials go (I won't even go there).

Do you NOT think that I'd bump into guys, go to school with guys, play ball, and hang out with guys. Be with my family members while they operated and bounced around?

Remember, that I didn't grow up out of state. Or in some rural area, or city where there is no presence of organized crime. In my neighborhood if I threw a rock I'd hit 12 wiseguys, or their family members.

In fact I'm not gonna even go any further. Use your imagination and maybe, just maybe, you'll realize that I'm a bit more hooked in than one would first imagine.

My partner was laughing yesterday at some of the comments on the forum. She could not believe that nobody would notice that while she lists her name as Lisa openly. I always go under the handle of "The Other Guy." Why do you think that might be? She was surprised that nobody would deduce that maybe it's because I wanna keep my anonymity.

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Liborio, I appreciate your stepping up to the plate in my defense. The fact that you felt compelled to talk up is a very cool thing. And I'm so glad that you read and enjoy my stuff.

And you can have full confidence in the knowledge that what you read is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth! So help me God! Lol

Thanks again pal!

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Turnbull, as a moderator I appreciate your input here. So thank you for that statement.

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Lou, what can I say? Thank you! Thank you!..... The fact that you also defend me and my work is greatly appreciated. Everything you said IMO has truth to it. Thanks for the backup.

I'm also glad you like my little mobster guessing game. Lol... I promise we'll do a few more in the future ok pal?

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Eastside, I saved you for last. You wrote I lot and I wanted to do you justice.

Bravo!

What you have written is so succinct that I agree with everything you wrote, as well as how you wrote it! My compliments. You obviously have real good comprehension and the art of deduction, as well as some writing skills to be able to put down on paper such a comprehensive argument on my behalf, and for the health of this forum. I'm not gonna delve into each and every item you discussed because I think you did a perfect job of laying it out. Theres not much I can add to it truthfully. Lol

I just wanted to say thank you! I'm very happy that you and so many others have spoken up regarding all this BS.

Your still posting on this idiot thread? Get a life!

To the poster that said all of us here are “fanboys” to some degree, I guess you haven’t read some of the older times post on this site. A lot guys in past have posted here saying crime doesn’t pay. They learned from personal experience. Not biased fanboy bullshit from the above.

Turnbull, yes the guy adds to forum but at the cost of turning people off by his bias support of criminals. Because at the end of the day these guys he defends so Vehemently are criminals. And believe me I get hating US government. I’m all in on that, but let’s call a spade a spade here. As far as his articles I have never gotten through a whole one. Way WAY too biased. You know, the definition of a “fanboys” writing.

I miss the days of pizza boy arguing with Ivy League over facts. They never made it personal. This guy here gets his g-string in a knot if you disagree with him or point out how biased he is. Look at how he took over a thread I posted to get a bunch of laughs and had to get those shameless plugs in.

AND NOW I ADDRESS THE FORUM WITH THE ISSUE OF MY SO CALLED "BONA-FIDES" ...LOL

If you guys have noticed I NEVER write biographies about living or active street guys. I only write about things from the past, and about guys who have either died, or are so old that they are mostly out of the life for many years already and cannot be "hurt" if I mention them.

Do you know why that is? Because I know either the statute of limitations has long expired on any criminal violations I may write about, or these guys are in the ground and unless the law plans to dig em up and charge them with a crime, they've all reached home base safe and sound. Lol

Why? Why would I care? I'll tell ya why. Because many of the subjects I've written bios about are/were my friends, or members of my blood family. Hell, many of them were my blood family (or we were like family)! So long as I know that I cannot hurt em, I feel free to write about them. In other words, its over!

I even have that exact disclaimer on our Button Guys of The New York Mafia website.

I still have family members and many friends in "The Life", and I'll be damned if I'd ever look to hurt them, or "out" them in any way. I'm no rat! Lol

Many of these people are dear to me. Whether that sits well with readers is of no importance to me. It is my life, and I'm keeping it real here. As real as a heart attack!

But as far as educating the public, you guys, It's my pleasure. I personally feel this thing is mostly over. For me its mostly a historical thing at this stage of the game. If it was still a viable entity. A solid coalition of guys the way it was many decades ago. Believe me when I tell ya that I'd never be on here. And there would be no Button Guys of The New York Mafia because I never would have created the website in the first place. Lol.... and THATS the Gods honest truth!

So there ya have it fellas. Believe it. Don't believe it. Thats entirely your choice. But I thought once and for all I'd let you guys know what's what ok.

One more thing, the wiser of you might notice that while my partner Lisa openly allows her name to be used for the site. I do not. You might wanna ask yourselves why that is? .... food for thought no?

Or maybe because no one gives a fuck

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I wasn't even going to respond to this post of yours but I felt a bit compelled. Lol. You first started the thread. So who's really the idiot here? Lol

Nobody gets turned off here but you, and I suspect that may be because of a personal flaw in your makeup. And the fact that you cannot finish reading an article or story is another failing of yours. But hey, what can I say?

But regardless of all that. If you don't like my work I suggest don't read it. Why do you feel it's required reading?

And as far as being patriotic. I'm as patriotic as the next guy, maybe even more so! (so are most wiseguys for your information). My father and uncles served in actual combat in WWII. My father was wounded in one battle and received medals. My uncle too. How about you? What have you done for our country? I suspect not much!

How about we agree to disagree ok? We obviously don't see eye to eye, and we never will. I for one, am very happy about that fact. I wouldn't have it any other way!

Your articles are well written for the most part and I truly appreciate your effort. However, the biggest problem every true crime writer has is the source. That is why many OC articles tend to be a little off at times. The writer can be as honest as Jesus, but his sources rarely are. Jerry Capeci may be right 60-70% of the time, and I consider him to be one of the better true crime writers out there.

As far as you knowing or being related to wiseguys. Look, a lot of people have claimed that around here. I always take that stuff with a grain of salt. Not saying you're a liar, but I am also not saying I believe you either. Hell, you could be a childhood friend of Danny Pagano for all I know. I'm not sure why you want to remain anonymous or why you feel the need to point that out. A lot of people get off by making people think they are bigger than they truly are. You could be Vincent Gotti's pool boy for all I know.

I like Lisa a lot. Does she post here? She does a very good job with the videos.

Or because or writing sucks and it’s extremely biased. Like watching CNN or Fox News. Btw your above statement again proves how biased you are. It’s ok to admit it I would respect you a whole a hell of a lot more.

You have zero self awareness. If it wasn’t for your writing style I would think you were a typical 20 something in today’s world. I mean did you even go back and read all stupid shit you wrote just in this joke of thread? Self serving and completely unaware of oneself. I mean you’ve completely gone off track you even needed to know what Ralph meant by people not liking you. Wake up. Oh well if nothing else your just another guy to cringe at.

Well written? Are we reading the same articles?

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Lisa is my partner in the Buttonguys website as well as the Mob Fireside Podcast, where she narrates my work.

I do not mention my connections or family members for any other reason than to try and let you know that what I write often comes from direct knowledge of either knowing these people, or knowing of these people from my personal interactions with them through my lifetime. How the hell do you think that I'm able to provide some of the intricate details about some of them? Through osmosis?

It is certainly not to make you think that I'm a "big man" or to pat myself on the back. Lol... thats the furtherest thing from my mind. That would be awfully pathetic to say the least! LOL

For me its just about providing credibility for my work. Understand?

Haha I will admit that some of it does feel like a child wrote it. I don't know how old this guy is. Maybe he's 22 or something. I don't wanna come off as some kind of hater though. He could get better.

I do post here. I usually post up the new article links and sometimes comment on things but pretty much try to keep my mouth shut. However, I do feel compelled to make a comment about this thread. First, though, thanks for the compliment on the videos. They're a lot of work but I thoroughly enjoy doing them especially the Cherry Hill ones as that is probably my area of expertise in the vast ocean of all things mafia.

I also think some people on here (and this isn't directed at you per se) are like the pot calling the kettle black. You can't call someone biased because they take one side of things while on they themselves take a particular side of an issue. If you're pro-government, that's being as biased as someone taking the side per se of the mafia subject at hand. For the most part, The Other Guy lays out the facts in any bio or article he writes and he presents both sides as I do as well. The only difference being is that we actually present the other side of the story -- so unlike a lot of stuff out there -- it's not just lopsided in favor of the government.

I don't necessarily understand why people have such a problem with other people taking a different view on this subject. But the loudest complainers seem to be those that are antimafia which once again makes me want to beg the question of why exactly if you're so antimafia, are you on a site dedicated to the mafia and devoting so much time to this subject? Are you a wannabe fed? Are you a fed in hiding trying to stir the pot looking for information and maybe the truths of what we write is shattering your smoke and mirrors? I just don't get it.

You are very welcome. I hope your YouTube channel takes off. Absolutely LOVED the Cherry Hill videos by the way. Please keep doing what you're doing. The channel is in my top 5 at this point

What is it about the mafia that attracts Walter Mitty characters like NYMafia and Jeff Lowman?

I get where you're coming from, and just to clarify I am NOT anti-mafia. I absolutely adore the mafia. I always root for them when they're having problems in court and stuff. Growing up, I was the biggest Nicky Scarfo fan. I even sent his lawyers money

Proud of you Lisa. Keep on killin 'em

I get that NYMafia adores the mafia. That's not my quibble. Lots of people probably watched movies like The Godfather and Goodfellas and TV shows like The Sopranos and are unable to understand what they were trying to convey, and separate them from real life, in the way Coppola, Scorsese and Chase intended. He should just have a disclaimer on everything he writes that says he's a mafia fan so people know not to be hoodwinked into thinking that what he's writing carries any credibility or integrity.

I don't want to insult the guy, he writes some interesting stuff and makes the forum livelier, but I draw the line on him acting like an authority or some impartial expert.

Thanks. Two more episodes of Cherry Hill left...and I've expanded quite a bit from my original article on the site but am trying to put in all the additional info over there as I write it.

I know this is directed at The Other Guy, but I have to chime in with a little shocker....I'm personally not a mafia movie fan. I would lose at any trivia bet related to the Godfather or even Goodfellas and even though I was a television critic for many years and wrote for an entertainment site....I've never seen the Sopranos. Thus, for me, I'm not living in some fiction television fantasy world. And neither is the Other Guy for that matter...lol. And again....if the articles are based on research and facts how is it not credible? Because we're not posting government press releases which are truly biased?

To be clear, two people can use the same account on here?

So to the second person. Lisa I assume? I’m guessing here since that name was thrown out there and I truly have no idea who you are. Again I tried reading some of these “articles” of the member or apparently members known as NYMafia and couldn’t get through them. So forgive if I have the wrong person. Who is it that you think is pro government here? I mean your on a LCN site so I wouldn’t think there would be too many.

I'm the one who designs and manages the site as well as puts together the YouTube videos. The Other Guy is the primary writer on the site although I myself have contributed some articles. I've been a journalist for over 30 years having written for The Chicago Tribune and other newspapers in the Chicago area as well as for magazines and so forth. I also wrote the story/book on Steven Crea and the Meldish Murder - Guilt for the Guiltless.

Ok cool. There’s a big difference in the linguistics. I wanted to clear that up. Thank you.

But back to the question I posed. Who is it that you think is so very pro government?

Moe Tilden is the first that comes to mind.

This makes sooo much more sense now. A few articles are supremely well written. At first I was truly impressed, but then I started seeing more and more articles that had wording that I could only see a child use or somebody who doesn't know how to write. It was so confusing. I thought for a while that somebody had a drinking problem or something. I was totally willing to forgive all that

Lol ok. I can’t debate that. But to fair to Moe and in my years of lurking here he more so seems to be busting balls more then anything else. But again as I said I very rarely post and engage. I found the story hilarious and I had to post it. As far as your partner he rubs me the wrong way. That’s all. Him and I don’t need to go back and forth. Some people just don’t mix.

Everyone is entitled to their opinions but The Other Guy is a good writer, tells a compelling story, and is a superb researcher.

I know he's your friend, but you are a much better writer Lisa. He could very well be a fine researcher though. Everyone is good at something.

If I could, I'd pay you to do what you do Lisa. The fact that you're doing this for free is fucked up. You deserve some good pay for this

What was this thread even about before it got hijacked?

I have no idea

Me either and I started the thing

Lisa, get your own account here. People have no idea if they're talking to you or the other guy. It's not like you're identical twins

When I do comment, I clarify that it's me and not the Other Guy who does 99% of the posting on this board.

What if he gets a new account? I don't know. I just don't like it.

Are two people even allowed to share the same account? I thought it was against the forum rules

The administrator of the site is aware that we both use the same account as NYMafia.

Wasnt Biden connected to Sheeren some how. He was mentioned in the book, cant recall how though.

Sheeran said he organized a strike to prevent the distribution of a newspaper that had political ads that would hurt Biden. Sheeran claimed a member of Biden's team approached him with this. But like most things Sheeran has claimed, the story begins to look very shakey when analyzed closely.

That's it, like you said got to take everything Sheeren says with a pinch of salt. That would be a good thread to start most mobbed up american politician.

Absolutely, the candidates are endless

That is an outstanding idea for a thread!

Smokey the Bear. Joey Merlinos childhood dream career.

Yes. And, his portrayal in "The Irishman" was even shakier.

Reputed mob boss Joey Merlino roped into bizarre Philly election fraud conspiracy
Attorney for former Philly mafioso categorically denies bogus story

https://www.phillyvoice.com/joey-merlino-philadelphia-mob-trump-biden-election-fraud-lawsuits-2020/

I don't understand the argument that you have to admire mobsters to be interested in reading organised crime.

I'm interested in the Jeffrey Epstein case. Does that mean I have to admire people who molested children?

Somewhere there's a forum about white-collar crime and people going on about how Bernie Madoff and Jeffrey Skilling are "stone embezzlers".

You don't have to, Moe - that's not what I'm saying at least.

But I'm saying you ARE a fan of the "genre" - whether you approve of the actions of individual Mafiosi or of Cosa Nostra in general, or not - you lap up all the info just like the rest of us.

I am not a fan of these guys either, although occasionally you do read about those who would appear to have redeeming qualities which is part of what makes it so fascinating.

There's nothing wrong with being a fanboy, Moe, of the genre itself. That's exactly what you are or you wouldn't be here with almost 5,000 posts to your name.