Seven 'Rising Star' Mobsters Are Arrested In Italy As Police Swoop On Resurgent Cosa Nostra

The Daily Mail offers a piece on the arrest of suspected “rising stars” in the Sicilian Cosa Nostra by the Italian police.

Seven suspected 'rising-star mobsters' have been arrested in Italy as anti-mafia police are dealing with resurgent Cosa Nostra.

The raids follow a swoop against the mafia in December when a jeweller was captured just before being appointed 'boss of the bosses' of the reconvened Mafia Commission or Cupola.

Two of the people rounded up last month revealed secret information about clan leaders who were allegedly part of the Cupola.      

'Like never before, within a month (of the December arrests) we had two new state witnesses. 

'And not any old members, but two from the upper echelons,' Palermo's chief prosecutor chief Francesco Lo Voi told journalists.

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619627/Seven-rising-star-mafia-mobsters-arrested-Italy-police-swoop-resurgent-Cosa-Nostra.html 

W. Somerset Maugham's 'Mr. Know-All'

W. Somerset Maugham, a fine novelist and short story writer, was born on this date in 1874.

I love his short stories and I love the films that dramatized his short stories. One of my favorites is 'Mr. Know-All.'

You can watch W. Somerset Maugham introduce his story via the below link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDUJvCHqUqo
 

Happy Belated Birthday To Joseph Wambaugh, Author Of 'The Onion Field' And 'The Choirboys'

Happy birthday to Joseph Wambaugh, author of the classic police novels The Choirboys, The Blue Knight and The New Centurions, and the classic true crime books The Onion Field, Lines and Shadows and Echoes in the Darkness.

Joseph Wambaugh turned 82 yesterday.

You can read my Washington Times piece on Joseph Wambaugh and the war on cops via the below link:

www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2017/07/why-war-on-cops-is-war-on-all-of-us.html

You can also read my Washington Times review of his novel, Harbor Nocturne via the below link:

www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2012/04/joseph-wambaughs-new-cop-novel-harbor.html

And you can visit his website at www.josephwambaugh.net/

A Little Night Music: The Godfather Orchestral Suite (Live) By The Danish National Symphony Orchestra

Director Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, based on Mario Puzo's novel, are near perfect films that I and many others can watch over and over again.

One of the reasons to watch the films over and over is Nino Rota's beautiful, evocative, majestic and haunting soundtracks for the two films.

You can watch and listen to the Danish National Symphony perform The Godfather Orchestral Suite live via the below link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-jdl9hcCeg

My Washington Times Review Of 'Tell Your Children: The Truth About Marijuana, Mental Illness, And Violence'

The Washington Times published my review of Alex Berenson’s Tell Your Children: The Truth About Marijuana, Mental Illness, and Violence. 

Many people these days, it seems, believe that marijuana is a mostly harmless drug that helps to ease pain and relaxes people, like a good, stiff, alcoholic drink. But like alcohol, the effects of marijuana can be serious and even deadly.

Alex Berenson, a thriller writer and former New York Times reporter, has written a book that exposes the myths of marijuana at a time when many politicians are pushing for nationwide legalization.

In “Tell Your Children: The Truth About Marijuana, Mental Illness, and Violence,” Alex Berenson warns that the chemical in marijuana that causes one to “get high,” 9-tetrahdrocannabinol, commonly called THC, can cause psychotic episodes that can end in violence.

...“Most people will never have a psychotic episode while using marijuana. Some will have temporary breaks from reality. But an unlucky minority of users develop full-blown schizophrenia,” Mr. Berenson writes. “At this point, doctors have no way of predicting who they will be.” 

Mr. Berenson writes that the most important finding linking marijuana and psychosis is a 2017 468-page research report issued by the National Academy of Medicine titled “The Health Effects of Cannabis and Cannabinoids.” The study reported that marijuana does not appear to cause lung cancer. But the study offers less good news when it comes to mental health. The study found strong evidence that marijuana causes schizophrenia and some evidence that it worsens bipolar disorder and increases the risks of suicide, depression and social anxiety disorder.

The higher the use, the greater the risk, the study concludes.

You can read the rest of the review via the below link:

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/jan/20/book-review-tell-your-children-by-alex-berenson/ 

On This Day In History American Writer Edgar Allan Poe Was Born

On this day in 1809 Edgar Allan Poe, father of the American detective story and author of The Tell-Tale Heart and The Raven, was born.

You read my Crime Beat column on Poe's work and the tribute to Poe by modern-day crime writers via the below link:

www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2009/04/my-first-on-crime-thrillers-column-for.html

Social Security Administration: Beware Of Scammers Pretending To Be Social Security

Jim Boland, the Social Security Administration's acting deputy commissioner for communications, offers the below warning.

In the digital age, frauds and scams are an unfortunate part of doing business online. During the holiday season, Social Security has traditionally seen a spike in phishing scams, and we want to protect you as best we can.

We urge you to always be cautious and to avoid providing sensitive information such as your Social Security Number (SSN) or bank account information to unknown individuals over the phone or internet. If you receive a call and aren’t expecting one, you must be extra careful. You can always get the caller’s information, hang up, and — if you do need more clarification — contact the official phone number of the business or agency that the caller claims to represent. Never reveal personal data to a stranger who called you.

Please take note; there’s a scam going around right now. You might receive a call from someone claiming to be from Social Security or another agency. Calls can even display the 1-800-772-1213, Social Security’s national customer service number, as the incoming number on your caller ID. In some cases, the caller states that Social Security does not have all of your personal information, such as your Social Security number (SSN), on file. Other callers claim Social Security needs additional information so the agency can increase your benefit payment, or that Social Security will terminate your benefits if they do not confirm your information. This appears to be a widespread issue, as reports have come from people across the country. These calls are not from Social Security.

Callers sometimes state that your Social Security number is at risk of being deactivated or deleted. The caller then asks you to provide a phone number to resolve the issue. People should be aware the scheme’s details may vary; however, you should avoid engaging with the caller or calling the number provided, as the caller might attempt to acquire personal information.

Social Security employees occasionally contact people by telephone for customer-service purposes. In only a few special situations, such as when you have business pending with us, a Social Security employee may request the person confirm personal information over the phone.

Social Security employees will never threaten you or promise a Social Security benefit approval or increase in exchange for information. In those cases, the call is fraudulent, and you should just hang up. If you receive these calls, please report the information to the Office of the Inspector General at 1-800-269-0271 or online.

Remember, only call official phone numbers and use secured websites of the agencies and businesses you know are correct. Protecting your information is an important part of Social Security’s mission to secure today and tomorrow.