Years ago an old timer told me something that I totally agree with but back then was a little young to fully understand.
He said there are 3 tylpes of street guys.

1) union and construction type guys. I suppose he also meant the garment industry and waste industry.
2) numbers guys and shylocks
3) baseball bat guys, drugs, and robbery crews

He said to always stay away from number 3 because they were the one’s that took the most risk and looked at serious time. The most likely to cooperate. He also said a lot of those types are “ strung along “ with the promise of one day being made but most never are. They are just used.
They make money and kick up to impress the wise guys but they have too much to prove and most never will get made.

Look at the most violent crews in the 90’s and early 2000’s. Most of those crews flipped.
Bath avenue crew
Tanglewood boys
Gianinni crew
Colombo farm team crew
Gene borello

Do you mean Gemini Crew?

A Gene Borello or John Alite is more dangerous than the others and gets a deal to go free, while the less dangerous people get put in prison for long sentences, The same can be said for Barboza in Boston way back when, he ratted on everyone and walked away (Or di the have to do some time?)

But you need #3 to protect the operation. Since it's illegal business, they can't go to the cops when someone steals from them.

I do believe the brains at the top are the most important, however. Every strong family has an intelligent boss, if not they're in their final days. See the Gotti era of the Gambinos.

Thats true Oak but most of the strong arm guys back in the day had self control and didnt run around doing reckless bs.

vincent gigante is a guy who was the 3 of them together
also tony salerno

True, there are a handful of exceptions, by the 1970s it had gotten worse to where they were killing each other without permission became common. By the 1990s it was a bunch of drugged up associates looking for their next fix, and the families need people on the streets in case of a war, just look at Amuso and Casso of the Lucchese family, Persico and Orena of the Colombo family, Gotti of the Gambino family, Massino and Spero of the Bonanno family to see the pattern. A lot of guys who are young fit in number 3, and move up to number 2, and some had been liked to bring them around to number 1. But it was guys on their own product or wanted more money that were bringing in too many young and unproven guys around that they could not control.

Sammy Gravano was all three. He supervised the Gambino family interests in construction unions, he did bank robberies all over the place when he was an associate, he did drug trafficking, controlled card games and had a shit load of money on the street.

In fact, I would say what separates Wiseguys from the average criminal is that they CAN engage in all three. To me that's what makes a Wiseguy a wiseguy.

. Agreed. Say what you want about Sammy but you can’t deny he was a successful mobsters. He was one of those guys who had the brains and the muscle. He was a major earner and used for big hits. Obviously he is a piece of shot like most mobsters but his success can’t be denied