Last *new* infobox before revisions start getting posted.
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Following the ceasefire with the Confederation of Islamic Movements in 2026 and the effective end of Islamist terrorism in Europe, security forces across Europe turned their attention to organized crime. Criminal organizations on the continent had enjoyed relative freedom during the Second War on Terror, with the investigation of normal crimes taking a backseat to terrorist threats. The sudden crackdown caught many by surprise, and dozens of groups experienced mass arrests and disruption of their enterprises. In Italy, the Sicillian Mafia was on its last legs, out-competed by rival groups and heavily targeted by counter-terrorism task forces.
In response to this existential challenge to the Cosa Nostra's way of life, Gastone Baresi, a minor don from Potenza, decided that it would require a fundamental change in the mafia's operation and image to survive the coming decade. Against advice and threats from other members of the Cosa Nostra, Baresi founded his own political party in 2031. While Baresi never publicly admitted to the Cosa Nostra or his own involvement, his rhetoric of calling for "all elements of Italian society" to work together, and to "find new ways to manage crime," as well as the party's name itself, heavily pointed to this fact. The public was aghast, and many called for Baresi's arrest. However, tunes changed with Baresi was the victim of a botched assassination attempt, with a bomb going off early in his car in the spring of 2032. This attack, clearly perpetrated by Baresi's opponents in the mafia, shifted the narrative. Where were the mafia attacks against Italy's leaders? Why was this man the target of criminal ire? Baresi became a national figure, and while deeply divisive, his efforts to reconcile Italy with its criminal element earned him and his party respect in the south.
While Baresi was finally killed in a fourth assassination attempt in 2043, the movement he started has continued on. With new forms of crime and terrorism rocking Italy and Europe, the mafia's role in Italian society has changed completely. Now, commercial crime is only a minor part of mafia activities, with the new primary objective being protection against organized crime and terrorist organizations. While many complain that the Le Decine (The Tens) are no better than the terrorists, their ruthlessness and willingness to go beyond what security forces can stomach have made them popular with southern Italians, and hated by the north. While the paramilitaries claim that they only want to protect Italians from violence, there is no doubt that their activities inflame regional tensions. European security forces have ample reason to crush Le Decine, but the mafia has once began become a lynchpin in Italian society, making many fear that such an attempt would bring the country into chaos. For many Italians, the services provided by Le Decine are more than worth their occasional overreach. Better to have harsh protectors than to let the Padanian militants tear Italy in two.
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Just in case people missed it:
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Following the ceasefire with the Confederation of Islamic Movements in 2026 and the effective end of Islamist terrorism in Europe, security forces across Europe turned their attention to organized crime. Criminal organizations on the continent had enjoyed relative freedom during the Second War on Terror, with the investigation of normal crimes taking a backseat to terrorist threats. The sudden crackdown caught many by surprise, and dozens of groups experienced mass arrests and disruption of their enterprises. In Italy, the Sicillian Mafia was on its last legs, out-competed by rival groups and heavily targeted by counter-terrorism task forces.
In response to this existential challenge to the Cosa Nostra's way of life, Gastone Baresi, a minor don from Potenza, decided that it would require a fundamental change in the mafia's operation and image to survive the coming decade. Against advice and threats from other members of the Cosa Nostra, Baresi founded his own political party in 2031. While Baresi never publicly admitted to the Cosa Nostra or his own involvement, his rhetoric of calling for "all elements of Italian society" to work together, and to "find new ways to manage crime," as well as the party's name itself, heavily pointed to this fact. The public was aghast, and many called for Baresi's arrest. However, tunes changed with Baresi was the victim of a botched assassination attempt, with a bomb going off early in his car in the spring of 2032. This attack, clearly perpetrated by Baresi's opponents in the mafia, shifted the narrative. Where were the mafia attacks against Italy's leaders? Why was this man the target of criminal ire? Baresi became a national figure, and while deeply divisive, his efforts to reconcile Italy with its criminal element earned him and his party respect in the south.
While Baresi was finally killed in a fourth assassination attempt in 2043, the movement he started has continued on. With new forms of crime and terrorism rocking Italy and Europe, the mafia's role in Italian society has changed completely. Now, commercial crime is only a minor part of mafia activities, with the new primary objective being protection against organized crime and terrorist organizations. While many complain that the Le Decine (The Tens) are no better than the terrorists, their ruthlessness and willingness to go beyond what security forces can stomach have made them popular with southern Italians, and hated by the north. While the paramilitaries claim that they only want to protect Italians from violence, there is no doubt that their activities inflame regional tensions. European security forces have ample reason to crush Le Decine, but the mafia has once began become a lynchpin in Italian society, making many fear that such an attempt would bring the country into chaos. For many Italians, the services provided by Le Decine are more than worth their occasional overreach. Better to have harsh protectors than to let the Padanian militants tear Italy in two.
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Just in case people missed it:
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