Yes, indeed. One of the major reasons for the decline of today's Mafia is the upward mobility of Italian-Americans. They were among the poorest and most discriminated-against groups in America several generations ago. In some neighborhoods, the Mafia was the "employer of last resort," like the telephone company was for WASPs in smaller cities. Nearly all Mafia types were just common criminals. But a few--Charlie Luciano, Frank Costello, Carlo Gambino, Tony Accardo, among others--had real abilities and might have been successful in business, the professions or the arts, if they'd had the opportunity. They didn't. Today's Italian-Americans do, and they choose careers in legitimate life. The Mafia is left with the John and Junior Gottis.