Secretive menace is itself a protection product, heightening demand for the mafia

Evidence

It might be supposed that discretion, when not directly related to the sale of protection, is maintained as a measure of prudence: were the law not so intrusive, secrecy would be relaxed. It is possible, however, that rather than serving any practical purpose, secrecy itself is relevant in part as a matter of style. The mere suggestion of a threat creates a menacing atmosphere, which increases both the need for protection and the effectiveness of intimidation. If one does not know where and when the blow will fall, anxiety and distrust grow more intense and fear becomes generalized. A heightened—almost paranoid—sensitivity to signals transforms the raising of an eyebrow into the most compelling of threats. — Diego Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia The Business of…, 338

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s framing: secrecy functions as a demand-generation mechanism, complementary to the supply-side coercion in Gambetta’s model and to Schelling’s theories on uncertainty as deterrent.
• SEED: Angle: ‘style as infrastructure’ — how public menace itself manufactures the insecurity that protection sellers then monetize, a dynamic visible in markets beyond the mafia (private security firms, cybersecurity vendors).