“Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God?”
“Hell no. I swear to be faithful to La Camorra and if I should betray it, my flesh must burn just as this image burns.”
When I was a little girl my father taught me
Everything he thought he
Should pass on to his firstborn child.
And of these words of wisdom
His Neapoletan dictum, a list I've compiled.
Number One.
The best way to dodge a bullet is to
Never be in a position where you can get hit.
That means never sit with your back to an exit
You never know if a foe
Will walk through
Trying to make their debut
By getting rid of you.
Number Two.
Never make decisions when you're livid
You gotta keep a clear head
And emotions, clog a diagnosis
Worse, than deep-vein thrombosis
Obstructing the flow of cold, hard logic.
Number Three.
Keep enemies closer than compadres
Know their thought patterns, their whereabouts
And keep an ear on those ready
To rat them out.
Number Four.
A real G, always deals in hard currency
Cheques can bounce, cards can be traced
Only cash will do in this kind of rat race
Number Five
Never reveal too much about
The ones you love
Cos this is something an enemy
Will take note of
So if you don't wanna lose them
Keep them out of reach and
Don't infuse them into your speech.
Number Six.
Never reveal everything of anything to anyone
Not your brother, your current lover or your mother
Keep 10% inside your head
Cos if there's a snitch in the sit-uation
You can escape to that secret location
Number Seven.
Never, ever forgive betrayal
Word is bond.
Any abuse of this by any and all
Should result in instant dismissal
Number Eight.
It is better to be feared than respected.
Now that's a lesson from The Prince
It worked for Machiavelli
And it's not be wrong since.
Number Nine
Never start something you can't finish
If your confidence or army is diminished
Hang tight.
And Number Ten
If your blinded by your ego
You're ready to fall
Take heed of these lessons
Or make sure
You have a priest on call.
