You must not have spent much time in larger cities, stellina. You would be surprised with what people would look the other way rather than involve themselves in.
[Self-preservation. Bystander effect. Whatever the case may be, people don't want to involve themselves with Passione's business unless they need help.]
At any rate, there are different kinds of attention. Our members work outside the limits of the law, sure, but in a way, we are part of Italia's infrastructure as much as any public official. If you were to remove Passione tomorrow, much of Italia's government and economy would collapse. Being known for that much isn't a bad thing. It's how we're accepted and it's how people know where to go looking when they need help. To that end, even if I chose not to dress in suits, people within my team's territory would still know my name and face as well as what I do.
But there is a bad sort of attention that gangsters can draw to themselves. For example, the betrayal I carried in my heart for so long would have easily made not just me, but my entire team targets for assassination if I hadn't kept my head down for as long as I had.
And there was also the path Passione was on with Diavolo. The people wouldn't tolerate something like that forever. If he hadn't been removed from within, it would have come from without and the whole of Passione would have fallen with him. That would have left kids like the ones in my team on the streets with nothing at best, or rotting in a jail cell at worst. It would have set loose the more sadistic members of the gang at the time with no one to rein them in or to put them down.
[late night action]
[Self-preservation. Bystander effect. Whatever the case may be, people don't want to involve themselves with Passione's business unless they need help.]
At any rate, there are different kinds of attention. Our members work outside the limits of the law, sure, but in a way, we are part of Italia's infrastructure as much as any public official. If you were to remove Passione tomorrow, much of Italia's government and economy would collapse. Being known for that much isn't a bad thing. It's how we're accepted and it's how people know where to go looking when they need help. To that end, even if I chose not to dress in suits, people within my team's territory would still know my name and face as well as what I do.
But there is a bad sort of attention that gangsters can draw to themselves. For example, the betrayal I carried in my heart for so long would have easily made not just me, but my entire team targets for assassination if I hadn't kept my head down for as long as I had.
And there was also the path Passione was on with Diavolo. The people wouldn't tolerate something like that forever. If he hadn't been removed from within, it would have come from without and the whole of Passione would have fallen with him. That would have left kids like the ones in my team on the streets with nothing at best, or rotting in a jail cell at worst. It would have set loose the more sadistic members of the gang at the time with no one to rein them in or to put them down.