No. And for the record, his father was put out to pasture. Baby Shades is very heavy on Staten Island. But the Genovese powerbase will remain right where it is.

I'm 56. And by the time you're my age, the American mob will barely resemble today's mob, let alone what it was when I was your age. They'll be around, but the face of the American mob is going to have to make drastic changes if they don't want to become extinct after the next generation or two.

Gambling will always be there but the real successful guys $ wise will be the mostly legit guys and by mostly I mean doings things LE considers illegal but is common practice in almost every American business today from doctors to Wall Street to construction .

I would have thought they would be weaker today but I think a bunch of them adapted . They ain't what they used to be but in some industries in the area they look to still be in the mix . They are stubbornly hanging on to some things for longer than i think most would have thought . Must have been some decent leaders steering away from the cowboy act from years ago , staying off the radar etc .

The funny thing is that the guys that are 30 years old and involved think that it's 1920 and everything is fine and that they have guys to choose from .

They just don't know.

The fact is they will be in bad shape because they will become so dependent on associates with the lack of Italians let alone quality guys with a good head that can make real money.
With out real money what is left of that thing.

I have said this a hundred times you need the old guys that were from the street to mold these guys .
Without them these guys get hungry and do shit to fast ,get with people they should keep at arm's length and then there is trouble.

But most don't don't with out a mentor ,they just run balls to the wall right into the prison system or right into the hands of the Feds.

There is also sophisticated tools the Feds have it can bring ten good guys down before they hit 35 and even have a chance.

The whole thing as a whole has to be rethought no doubt .

They may be on to something with a ruling panel cos if o am not mistaken a ruling panel has not been brought down yet.

Drug dealing is where the most money can be made. You see all the drug busts being made all over the country. Does those arrests meaning any thing no.

If you can't stop the drugs coming in at the source new people will be falling over each other to take the guys place who are being arrested.

It's likely a combination of both. Because there are, without question, less guys with the stomach for murder today.

That's exactly what I meant when I said the face of the American Mafia is going to change drastically due to the assimilation of Italian Americans. They're going to have to start making half-Italians again to survive. Maybe even quarter-Italians, as long as the last mame is Italian. And they're also going to have to partner with the poorer and hungrier ethnic groups.

I was in Astoria the other day on business. Now, the Greeks have always gotten a pass to run card games there, as long as they did the right thing. But I've heard that the Middle Easterners in Northern Queens are cutting games now and they just don't give a fuck. These are people who kill themselves in the name of Allah every fucking day. Do you really think that someone with a 9/11 type of suicide mentality is going to be afraid of a bunch of goombahs?

Pizza,

Been trying like crazy to get in touch with you. I lost your email and can't send you a PM.

Sal (in Florida)

why was his father put out to pasture?

do you think barney is running the family because from what i have read he is either less involved because of the death of his wife or that he is running everything i dont know

He was with his wife from when they were teenagers. And say whatever you want about what the man does for a living, but they raised great kids. Not one of his boys has ever so much as whispered "Do you know who my Father is?"

That's rare. Most guys in that position have kids that are total assholes, forever throwing their weight around. Even the daughters. They're a very close family, and they took it very hard when Camille died. She was only in her mid-fifties.

Anyway, he's reined it in quite a bit. It wouldn't surprise me at all if he pulled a Gerry Catena and packed it in with a lot of good years ahead of him. People on these boards talk about Barney like he's still a kid. But he's almost sixty. He's a grandfather. He did twelve years standing on his head. But that doesn't mean he wants to go back inside. He spends a lot of time with his family now.