ay it a million times, Giovannis my shield against the Mafia. Theyll kill him first, then theyll kill me (33 Robb). That weekend he went to see his mother, before his plans to leave town. When Borsellino pressed the bell at the gate, he was blown to pieces by a car bomb explosion that killed him and destroyed the apartment buildings above. The Mafia also cursed Leoluca Orlandos name, and it is a wonder that he is still alive. The maxi-trials of 86-87 insured that the contract on his head wouldnt be seen for some time, but its always looming. Orlando resigned as mayor of Palermo, and now he goes around the nation preaching non-violence. Today, the Mafia is extending their interests to the countries of the former block of East Europe. They have been mostly trafficking drugs, forged currency and art. The opening of borders in Europe(as a result of the unification), however, has allowed for weapon trafficking as well. Apparently its extremely easy to find weapons in Croatia and other parts of former Yugoslaia. The mafia is still laundering money, too, despite the European Unions attempts to stop it. The EUs fight against money laundering has become extremely difficult since the borders all around Europe were opened; they are having an extremely hard time coordinating all the countries. This makes it especially hard, because the European Union has no judicial authority. Another problem is international regulation. Only Italy, Germany, Belgium, Ireland, Netherlands, and Great Britain have national regulations about money laundering and criminal activities, and some countries are delaying the introduction of legislation thats required by the order. The Mafia is, and always has been working like a well-oiled machine. That is, if by oil you mean blood. Intimidation is the basis of any formal government, some way or another. Even in democracies there is crime and punishment, action and reaction, cause and effect. It seems that ...
