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The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast

302. Breaking Good | Michael Franzese

The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast

DailyWire+

Education, Science, Society & Culture

4.634.5K Ratings

🗓️ 3 November 2022

⏱️ 102 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Dr. Peterson's extensive catalog is available now on DailyWire+: https://utm.io/ueSXh Dr. Jordan B. Peterson and Michael Franzese discuss being raised in a mafia environment, having a high-ranking father within the crime family, the schemes and successes of his career, and the ultimate reasons for why he walked away. Michael Franzese is an American former mobster once affiliated with the Colombo crime family. Most notable for his gas-tax scheme from the mid 80’s, it is estimated that Franzese at one point was personally making eight million dollars a week. At his height Franzese had achieved the rank of Caporegime, or the equivalent of a captain or general within the mob ranks, and was nicknamed the “Yuppie Don” as well as the “Prince of the Mob,” by his contemporaries. In 1986, Franzese was sentenced to 10 years in prison for conspiracy charges, and despite being released early, spent the next decade in and out of jail. In 1994 he was finally released, chose to retire from crime, and bought an estate in Florida. Since then he has traveled the world as a public speaker, and has written many books about his life and crimes, such as 1992’s Quitting the Mob, or his most recent 2022 publication, Mafia Democracy. —Links— For Michael Franzese Michael Franzese on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xuh0pSLRLhzWGUnpOlvXw On Twitter https://twitter.com/MichaelFranzese?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor On Instagram https://www.instagram.com/michaelfranzese_/?hl=en Michael’s newest book, Mafia Democracy https://www.amazon.com/Mafia-Democracy-Republic-Became-Racket/dp/1544530811 - Sponsors - Birch Gold - Text "JORDAN" to 989898 for your no-cost, no-obligation, FREE information kit Masterworks - Invest in art today with Masterworks at http://masterworks.art/jbp. See important disclosures at https://masterworks.com/cd. — Chapters — (0:00) Coming Up (1:23) Intro (3:28) Raised in the Mafia (11:25) Early exposure to violence (13:00) A father behind bars (14:00) The five families, Lucky Luciano (16:00) Racketeers and gangsters (18:00) The infamous gas-tax scheme (21:58) Keeping cool under intense pressure (25:15) When your father is the mob, Sonny Franzese (33:00) A dangerous meeting (43:45) Why we romanticize criminality (45:45) Responsibility and change (49:00) When Family Breaks (58:22) Turning points, Miami Gold Films (1:04:40) Love, the mafia, and God (1:11:30) 29 days of solitary confinement (1:14:00) Divine intervention (1:22:56) Christ and loyalty (1:30:24) The need for a new mindset (1:32:13) Showing change through action (1:36:27) Illegal versus immoral (1:39:00) White lies, living in truth // SUPPORT THIS CHANNEL // Newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/jordanbpeterson.co... Donations: https://jordanbpeterson.com/donate // COURSES // Discovering Personality: https://jordanbpeterson.com/personality Self Authoring Suite: https://selfauthoring.com Understand Myself (personality test): https://understandmyself.com // BOOKS // Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life: https://jordanbpeterson.com/Beyond-Order 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos: https://jordanbpeterson.com/12-rules-... Maps of Meaning: The Architecture of Belief: https://jordanbpeterson.com/maps-of-m... // LINKS // Website: https://jordanbpeterson.com Events: https://jordanbpeterson.com/events Blog: https://jordanbpeterson.com/blog Podcast: https://jordanbpeterson.com/podcast // SOCIAL // Twitter: https://twitter.com/jordanbpeterson Instagram: https://instagram.com/jordan.b.peterson Facebook: https://facebook.com/drjordanpeterson Telegram: https://t.me/DrJordanPeterson All socials: https://linktr.ee/drjordanbpeterson #JordanPeterson #JordanBPeterson #DrJordanPeterson #DrJordanBPeterson #DailyWirePlus #podcast #politics #republican #government #gingrich #newtgingrich

Transcript

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0:00.0

Hello everyone watching on YouTube or listening on my podcast.

0:18.4

I have the opportunity today to speak to Michael Francis who has an extraordinarily interesting

0:23.9

life, one that might be characterized by as breaking good.

0:29.1

Michael Francis grew up as the son of the notorious underboss of New York's violent

0:34.4

and feared Colombo crime family.

0:37.5

Francis was quote, one of the biggest money earners the mob had seen since L. Capone,

0:43.9

end quote, and the youngest individuals on Fortune magazine's list of the 50 biggest

0:49.0

mafia bosses.

0:51.3

Including number 18, just five behind John Gotti at his most affluent.

0:58.7

Francis generated an estimated five to eight million dollars per week from legal and

1:03.5

illegal businesses.

1:05.4

It was a life filled with power, luxury, and deadly violence.

1:11.4

Michael's story is a modern day Damascus road experience from his early days in the

1:16.3

mob and rise to power to God's leading him to do the unthinkable, quit the mob and follow

1:22.2

Christ.

1:23.7

In fact, nobody of Francis's rank had ever just walked away and lived.

1:30.1

Michael's compelling story of transformation is featured in his autobiography Blood Covenant.

1:36.4

He's also written several other books including this thing of ours and the good, the bad,

1:42.2

and the forgiven.

1:43.6

He's appeared widely at both Christian and secular high profile media, including the 700

1:48.6

Club Life magazine, Vanity Fair, Sports Illustrated, GQ, and many others.

1:56.1

Thank you very much, Mr. Francis, for agreeing to talk to me today.

...

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