Anti-mob prosecutor: Pope Francis making the mafia ‘nervous and agitated’

[Katashi_itto]

Source: The Raw Story

Pope Francis’s crusade against corruption has made him a target for Italy’s all-powerful mafia clans, a leading anti-mob prosecutor has warned.

Nicola Gratteri, who has battled Calabria’s shadowy ‘Ndrangheta mafia, said on Wednesday that Francis’s attempt to bring transparency to the Vatican was making the white collar mobsters who do business with corrupt prelates “nervous and agitated”.

He told the Italian daily Il Fatto Quotidiano: “Pope Francis is dismantling centres of economic power in the Vatican.

“If the bosses could trip him up they wouldn’t hesitate. I don’t know if organised criminals are in a position to do something, but they are certainly thinking about it. They could be dangerous.”

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/11/13/anti-mob-prosecutor-pope-francis-making-the-mafia-nervous-and-agitated/

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/11/13/anti-mob-prosecutor-pope-francis-making-the-mafia-nervous-and-agitated/

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Conservatives hate him. The Mob hates him.

I like this Pope. Hope he manages to stay alive.

[yellowcanine]

1. The mafia and Sara Palin. Interesting.

http://thelead.blogs.cnn.com/2013/11/12/sarah-palin-taken-aback-by-pope-franciss-liberal-statements/

[saidsimplesimon]

2. Thank you Katashi

"Hope he manages to stay alive"

Come on, you think the Pope is defenseless? Jesuits know a thing or two about staying alive. Nothing unique here, just an intelligent leader hoping to guide the flock?

[Katashi_itto]

3. Oh no, he has a Secret Service. Not to mention like you said Jesuits are canny bastards.

My university, where I got my initial, first two degrees was run by Jesuits. One of the directors of the CIA graduated from my university.

In fact, the Vatican Intelligence Agency is known as "The Section for Relations with States"
Currently headed by Dominique Mamberti
Archbishop Mamberti is considered an expert on Latin America, the United Nations, Africa, the Middle East and Islam

But nevertheless, the Pope is still racking up alot of enemies fast

[loudsue]

4. He's also making a lot of fans out of non-catholics

Me, for instance.

[iandhr]

5. Michael do you renounce satan?

[Beacool]

6. This makes me nervous.

We know what the mafia is capable of doing. Pope Francis exposes himself all the time by wanting to be among the people. I hope that he is well protected.

[Bluenorthwest]

7. Is this an admission that John Paul 2 and the rest have been in leauge with the Mob?

John Paul who they are about to declare a Saint, you are saying was part of organized crime and that everyone knew this?
This sounds like more of the 'We Love The Homophobe' PR spin to me. If it is not then Francis should be calling out Ratzinger and JP2 for being criminals and I sure as fuck don't see that happening.

[Katashi_itto]

8. Whatever you say. However look over at the people he relieved/suspended at the Vatican Bank

That's part of the reason the Mafia is so upset. The Vatican Bank was being used to launder money and Francis is putting a stop to it quietly, well sort of quietly.

Vatican's top banking officials resign

http://money.cnn.com/2013/07/02/news/vatican-bank-resignation/index.html

JPMorgan Complicit In Vatican Bank Money-Laundering: Jamie Dimon Seeks Time Alone With Pope To “Confess”
http://2013rainbowroundtable.ning.com/profiles/blogs/jpmorgan-complicit-in-vatican-bank-money-laundering-jamie-dimon

[Katashi_itto]

9. And lets face it, after the previous Pope, Francis has a shitload to clean up.

[rpannier]

10. Time to go Biblical on Jamie???

practitioners be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck

[Katashi_itto]

11. On Jamie D? Hell yeah!

[MADem]

12. He needs ballistic clothing, I think.

The Colombians do superb work--they make their own styles, or they can take someone else's design and do their own riff on it.

Shouldn't be too hard to make one of those white dress things he runs around in...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3756738.stm

http://miguelcaballero.com/en

&list=PLA43B6FED1EBEADDC

[Hekate]

13. Good idea -- I hope he's thought of it!

[Beacool]

15. Good idea.

Although he seems to stubbornly want to do his own thing. I wonder if he would be willing to wear one.

[MADem]

18. The stuff is pretty comfortable--it's not like the old school clothing

that was painfully obvious and heavy. It's not cheap stuff, but there are some instances where it's a good idea to spend money. If I were him, I'd say now is the time!

[Beacool]

19. I'm sure that money wouldn't be an issue for the Vatican.

It's getting Francis to wear it that might be problematic. I've grown fond of this Pope, I sincerely hope that nothing bad happens to him.

[MADem]

20. Not for the Vatican, but this Pope is cheap.

He kicked that German dude out of his palace with the twenty thousand dollar bathroom, and is going to turn it into a soup kitchen for the poor! He doesn't like ostentatious displays of wealth. He won't wear all the jewels and furs, and he won't even wear the red shoes!

[bklyncowgirl]

14. The Pope's not only pissed off the Mob, he's been hanging with anti-fracking activists.

This was a surprise.

Pope Francis has already become a favorite of progressives with his fairly open-minded statements on homosexuality and birth control. But that adoration may go into overdrive, now that the Pope has adopted a new role as an environmental crusader, too. On Monday, the Pope was photographed with environmental activists holding T-shirts with anti-fracking slogans.

The photographs were taken after a meeting in the Vatican on Monday in which the Pope spoke with a group of Argentine environmental activists to discuss fracking and water contamination. He reportedly told the group he is preparing an encyclical -- a letter addressing a part of Catholic doctrine -- about nature, humans, and environmental pollution.

http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2013/11/13/pope_francis_anti_fracking

Let's see, right wing Catholic Bishops, the Italian Mafia and now Big Oil. Oh yes and then there's Sarah Palin. His Holiness is racking up enemies very fast. For his sake I hope the Swiss Guard is very good at what they do. At any rate, I'm no longer a Catholic but I wish him all the best. It's good to see someone unafraid to take on some of the evil in this world.

[cqo_000]

16. Vatican not worried about mafia targeting pope

Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi, however, said that the Church was not worried about Gratteri's warning. "There is no concrete reason for concern and it's not appropriate to feed alarmism," Lombardi said. "We are very relaxed".

http://www.gazzettadelsud.it/news/68975/Vatican-not-worried-about-mafia-targeting-pope.html

[Katashi_itto]

17. Would they really say they were worried?

Not likely.

[nomorenomore08]

21. To be honest, I agree with a lot of the criticisms of this Pope. But he can't be all bad

if these are the kinds of enemies he's attracting...

[warrprayer]

22. good advice from...

"B.J. Harrison: [about the pope; before the opera] The Pope's doing exactly what you said he'd do, he's cleaning house.
Michael Corleone: He should be careful. It's dangerous to be an honest man."

http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0000790/filmokey

[Hekate]

23. Sometimes you can really tell a man's quality by the enemies he makes. I like this guy.

Also: