Excerpt from the greatest book ever written - The Godfather

What manner of men are we then , if we do not have our reason ? We are all no better than beasts in a jungle if that were the case . But we have reason , we can reason with each other and we reson with ourselves . To what purpose would I start all these troubles again , the violence and the turmoil ? My son is dead , and that is a misfortune and I must bear it , not make the innocent world around me suffer with me . And so I say ,I give my honour , that I will never seek vengence , I will never seek knowledge of the deeds that have been done in the past . I will leave here with a pure heart .

Let me say that we must always look to our interests . We are all men who have refused to be fools , who have refused to be puppets dancing on a string oulled by the men on high . We have been fortunate here in this country . Already most of our children have found a better life . Some of you have sons who are professors , scientists , musicians , and you are fortunate . Perhaps your grandchildren will become the new PEZZONOVANTI . None of us here want to see our children in our footsteps , it's too hard a life . They can be as others , their position and security won by our courage . I have grandchildren now and I hope their children may someday , who knows , be a governor , a President , nothing's impossible here in America . But we have to progress with the times . The time is past for guns and killings and massacres . We have to be cunning like the business people , there's more money in it and it's better for our children and our grandchildren .

As for our own deeds , we are not responsible to the .90 calibers , the PEZZONOVANTTIS who take it upon themselves to decide what we shall do with our lives , who declare wars they wish us to fight in to protect what they own . Who is to say we should obey the laws they make for their own interest and to our hurt ? Abd who are they then to meddle when we look after our own affairs . We will manage our world for ourselves because it is our world , COSA NOSTRA . And so we have to stick together to guard against outside meddlers . Otherwise they will put the ring in the nose of all the millions of Neapolitans and other Italians in this country .

For this reason I forgo my vengence for my dead son , for the common good . I swear now that for as long as I am responsible for the actions of my Family , there will not be one finger lifted against any man here without just cause and utmost provocation . I am willing to sacrifice my commercial interests for the common good . This is my word , this is my honour , there are those of you here who know that I have never betrayed either .

But I have selfish interest . My youngest son had to flee , accused of Sollozzo's murder , and that of a police captain . I must now make arrangement so that he can come home with safety , cleared of all those falso charges . That is my affair and I will make those arrrangements . I must find the real culprits perhaps , or perhaps I must convince the the authorities of his innocence , perhaps the witnesses and informants will recant their lies . But again I say that this is my affair and I believe I will be able to bring my son home .

But let me say this . I am a superstitious man , a ridiculous failing , but I must confess it here . And so if some unlucky accident should befall my youngest son , if some police officer should accidently shoot him , if he should hang himself in his cell , if new witnesses appear to testify to his guilt , my superstition will make me feel that it was the result of the ill will still borne me by some people here . Let me go further . If my son is struck by a bolt of lightning I will blame some of the people here . If his plane should fall into the sea or his ship sink beneath the waves of he ocean , if he should catch a mortal fever , if his automible should be struck by a train , such is my superstition that I will blame the ill will felt by people here . Gentleman , that ill will , that bad luck , I could never forgive . But aside from that , lt me swear by the souls of my grandchildren that I will never break the peace we have made . After all , are we or are we not better men than those PEZZONOVANTI who have killed countless millions of men in our lifetimes ?

Thus spaketh the Don - Don Corleone .

Absolutely breathtaking .The greatest fictional speach ever made .

da STIFFmaester