Tony and Silvio always seemed haunted by having to kill Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bompensiro. He was a guy they grew up with, like a big brother, and was respected and tough and loyal--But he was a rat. But then again, this wasn't the first rat they ever dealt with nor the first rat close to them. But killing Pussy is the only murder Tony and Silvio ever actually feel bad about; It's only murder they seemed to carry around in their consciences and wished thy didn't have to commit.

Consider how easily Jimmy Altieri was disposed of, with no mercy and no respect for his corpse, despite being guilty of the same crime. Consider that Tony orders Adriana's murder with little sadness over it and Silvio coldly executes it, with some cruelty, even though most considered her to be almost family.

Do you think the reason Tony and Silvio not only felt bad about killing Pussy but regretted is because inside they knew they'd have probably made the same decision as Pussy, if they faced the same circumstances?

Tony and Silvio, as we're told, never really did HARD time. Little stints here and there, but nothing big. They were also big family men who loved their kids and wanted the best for their kids, and they weren't that far in age from Puss.

If say it was Tony or Silvio cornered in '98 with a minimum sentence of 30 years in jail (in essence a death sentence), I can't imagine either of them not at least CONSIDERING flipping. Both had kids who were still in High School, like Puss, kids who needed them around, kis who needed to be guided the right way; Pussy's own motive for ratting was to stay around to ensure his kids got into good colleges and didn't end up like him; Like Puss, I don't think Tony and Silvio probably would want to see their grandkids from behind bars. I can't imagine Tony would want to go to jail with AJ at 13 and Meadow still in High School--Knowing that with him behind bars they'd never go to an Ivy League School and that AJ might fall into some gang and end up like him.

Do you think that their sympathy for Pussy, and their giving him a relatively dignified death, comes from the fact that, besides loving him like a brother, they knew deep down that if they had been placed in that piss poor position--rat on your friends and get to have a life with your family, don't rat and spend pretty much the rest of your life in jail--they would've made the same decision as Pussy?

When you think about it, Pussy, Silvio, Tony, and Jackie Aprile Sr all wanted the same thing: They wanted good, respectable lives for their kids, far away from the Mafia and did what they did to provide for their kids.

Only one of those guys was ever actually put to the test of what came first, Family or family: Puss.