Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA The Avalanche
AKA The Glacier
AKA Michael Dynamite
The Guide to Getting More out of Life http://www.thegmanifesto.com
Armed Heistmen stole designer watches worth 700,000 pounds (about 1.38 Million Greenbacks according to my calculations) in simultaneous daring daytime raids on two upmarket department stores in Manchester on Wednesday, police said.
Two men carrying claw hammers smashed display cases at Selfridges, while a third man filled a bag with watches worth 400,000 pounds ($791,280).
At the same time, two men wearing motorcycle helmets attacked a security guard at the nearby Harvey Nichols store, busted up cabinets with hammers and stole watches worth 300,000 pounds ($593,460).
Both stores, which are very close to each other, in the Exchange Square shopping district were open at the time, but no customers were injured. Smooth.
The five men escaped in a stolen red Ford Transit van before switching to an unknown getaway car. Smooth.
The documentary, Bra Boys, about the notorious Maroubra Beach locals (Sydney) will premiere in LA on April 7th and it is being released in select US Theaters on 11th April, 2008 (I am guessing in coastal communities).
Bra Boys centers around the Abberton brothers; pro surfers, Sunny Abberton, Jai Abberton, and Koby Abberton and the hardships growing up in Maroubra and Brotherhood. The movie is narrated by Russell Crowe who also has plans to turn the story into a feature movie which will most likely be terrible (see movie version of DogTown and Z-boys- The Lords of Dogtown). Actors can’t play Surfers and Skaters, and Surfers and Skaters can’t act.
Maroubra’s “Bra Boys” are described by police and local media as a gang and have been involved in various scrapes with the law. Back in 2002 the crew was involved in a brawl with off-duty police officers.
The Bra Boys were also involved in the peace talks with gangs following the 2005 Cronulla Riots.
In May 2005, Jai Abberton was acquitted of a 2003 murder of standover man Tony Hines, whose body was found dumped off a cliff. His brother Koby was handed a suspended nine-month jail sentence after being found guilty of perverting the course of justice in the same matter. Hence the whole, “My Brother’s Keeper” thing.
The Bra Boys have also taken over extremely hollow, extremely shallow Cape Solander, Kurnell and renamed it “Ours”.
Typically, I have been over surf flicks, (one reason being the quality of punk music in this day and age sucks, let’s face it, the bands today are no Minor Threat) but Bra Boys has my interest. One, I dig Australia, two, I have strong affinity for other kids who grew up in tough urban environments, and three, The Bra Boys are going through a real life rags to riches story.
Rags to Riches is the heart and soul of The G Manifesto after all.
Admit it, SUV’s are pretty obnoxious. They guzzle gas and perpetuate wars in the Middle East. Sports Utility Vehicles are also horrible for the environment. And you are not doing yourself any favors as far as style points are concerned, especially compared to vintage muscle cars, vintage Cadillacs and hell, even brand new Lacs.
Sure, SUV’s are necessary if you want to drive from Diego to Cabo San Lucas or if you need to shoot down to a Panamanian beach for a few low profile months. Or if you are rolling around a Cartel controlled Latin American city, bulletproofed down. But, if you all you do, is drive around the Suburbs, go to work and Starbucks, you are pretty much a jerkoff. Fair enough?
Tupac – Holla If Ya Hear Me (G Manifesto Certified Classic)
Here is another reason not to drive an SUV:
My little cousin, Mark Pablo Mason, is an up and coming baby G who lives in Washington DC, was recently was out west visiting colleges. He gave me a call and we met at Pink’s Hollywood for some Hot Dogs. We were both fresh on the scene, crispy and clean like Kentucky Fried Chicken and Irish Spring.
Like two Assassins in the height of fashion, we had young fly LA girls in SUV’s, peeping us as they rolled by. (Not really part of the story, but I just wanted to set the record straight in ‘08.)
As we ate Polish Pastrami swiss cheese dogs and choked down cigarettes (the lunch of champions), I asked him about what’s new on the baby G money making scheme front.
Mark had some pretty basic stuff to say, like bean flipping, standing over rival factions, making book, rigged dice games, swooping private school girls and socialites from a higher economic strata, arson for the Barons, small time heists etc. You know, typical baby G stuff. But then he got my attention with something, as it turns out, gave me some faith in the younger generation. Mad Innovative.
Mark went on to tell me he and his crew have been heisting catalytic converters from cars, primarily from SUV’s because of their height off the ground. He said he can heist a catalytic converter in with a socket wrench or cordless sawzall and be gone in 60 seconds. His crew is so quick, they can even wack them during the daylight. I knew immediately where he was going with this…
See, the commodity markets are very bullish these days. Metals prices have been on a sharp upswing. Catalytic converters (not to be sexist or anything, but for the girls out there, Catalytic converters are used to reduce the toxicity of emissions from your car’s engine) contain precious metals. Most importantly your Catalytic converter contains Rhodium, priced today at over $6000 an ounce. It also contains Platinum (and I don’t mean Platinum Diggers either), $1,200 an ounce and Palladium (and I don’t mean that 80’s Ian Schrager and Steve Rubell nightclub in NYC either) at $320 per ounce.
Mark and his crew would heist the catalytic converters and get paid up to $100 per, from the Barons upstairs. Cats also don’t have serial numbers on them, therefore, reducing the risk.
I thought this was interesting since I heard through the G grapevine about how some guys heisted an empty Fuel tanker and sold it for scrap. I also caught wind of Cats being heisted on the west coast, to be put on containers, headed for Japan.
Just one more reason not to drive your environmentally damaging, wack SUV.
Either way, since Mark is flush with CASH he paid for my Pink’s. I can’t remember the last time someone paid for my meal.
Kid has got some class. And the world’s future is safe, at least for the next generation of G’s.
After Pink’s we ran into a couple of the fly girls in a SUV at Fred Segal. They followed us to Chateau Marmont for some late afternoon Champagne. Worked out well into the night. We were driving a ’64 Lac. In case you wanted to know the data.
Heistmen wacked a jewelry store in Milan, Italy on Oscar night. The take: 20 Million.
A seven man crew dug a tunnel to the store from an adjacent building. The crew took advantage of the situation since the building next door was under construction.
The G’s were dressed in outfits from Guardia Finaza; the tax police in Italy, to get the drop on the jewelry stores employees.
The hoods then hit up the stores safe deposit boxes. The heist could have been for more, but many of the expensive pieces were being worn by starlets at the Oscars.
The robbers made an innovative move in hitting the store at a time when people would least expect it.
