I think you're right on 100%. The media attention made the other guys on the streets jealous, and that's when they all started "beefing" to Chuckie Merlino and Scarfo. That Wall Street Journal article that called him the "crowned prince of Philadelphia" and the "fastest rising star in the Scarfo organization" certainly was the beginning of the end for him in my belief. Salvie calling off the wedding to Merlino's daughter was just the "play" that Chuckie and the other made guys needed to start taking their other so-called beefs to Scarfo - he's dealing drugs with the blacks in North Philly, he's so powerful he's going to start his own family, etc.

At that point I think the jealously combined with the paranoia that Scarfo already had and he felt that he didn't have any other option but to whack Salvie. I agree that a lot of the reasons given sound like excuses, but Little Nicky being paranoid is certainly one I can get behind and not dismiss. He saw how treacherous Philly had become after Bruno and the Chicken Man were both rubbed out in one year; how could you be the boss right after all of that happens and NOT sit back and think if/when somebody is going to try to take you out? All in all I think it's a shame he was killed for such an absurd reason, but absurdity was pretty much the definition of the Philadelphia mafia during Scarfo's reign. Had Salvie stayed alive and got nailed for 35-45 years like some of the other guys in that RICO case, he would be back in Philly right now like the rest of the Scarfo era guys and there would be no question who the undisputed boss of the family was.

I remember reading in George A's book about Tommy Del (Mobfather) that he said at some point in the 1970's Phil Testa went to Angelo Bruno and sought permission to branch out and start his own family. Tommy Del goes on to say that it was such a breach of protocol that Testa should have been whacked immediately for even entertaining the idea. I was just curious about this because up until I read the book I had never heard anything like this about Phil Testa wanting to break away. I've only ever heard the usual about the supposed "rift" he had with Bruno. It was just interesting to me because it seems like the same beef that was used on Salvie about being too powerful and breaking away from the family may have actually originated from guys beefing on his dad to Bruno about the same thing.