The Sopranos - Patsy and Burt failed extortion attempt at "Starbucks"

amigomac · 4M views · 2014-08-31 · 1:38

Open on YouTube ↗

If playback is restricted in your region, try opening the original video. Use Mark watched to add it to your marked videos.

Overview

A scene from The Sopranos in which two old-school mobsters try to extort a Starbucks and learn that electronic payments leave an indisputable record of sales.

On Hacker News

HN posts it jokingly in threads about payments, taxes and cash, as a funny illustration of how digital transactions make low-level shenanigans harder.

Discussed on HN; no positive recommendation is recorded in this export · HN mentions 2020–2026

Topics

Film & TV clips Stand-up & sketch comedy

What people said

mrandish · 2026-05 · Joke / meme
I guess I'm just surprised they even bother trying to mask an obvious shake down under the euphemism "insurance" when it's such a trope. Obligatory Sopranos clip of old school mobsters trying to sell "protective insurance" to a Starbucks: [VIDEO]
Read the original HN comment ↗

mindslight · 2023-12 · Joke / meme
I don't really know what you're referring to from history, given that this level of technological development and fine-grained agile government/corporate perception/control is a pretty recent phenomenon. Our society isn't really kept in line any longer by force projection from small arms wielded by groups of humans, but rather surveillance tech, dispatchable forces with scaled-up weapons, and the economic advantages of cooperation/specialization. [VIDEO]
Read the original HN comment ↗

lotsofpulp · 2022-03 · Joke / meme
I am not sure what wiring to different jurisdictions allows you to do, but I was referring to the parallel books for the purposes of underreporting revenue for tax purposes or stealing from other business partners. The card processor always has your sales amounts available so come tax time or audit time, you will not be able to hide revenue, as seen on 1099-Ks. [LINK] This is always a funny video clip about electronic payments making low level shenanigans more difficult. The game nowadays is to do it legally, and getting involved in the political machinery. [VIDEO]
Read the original HN comment ↗

Sources

Video by amigomac, played through YouTube.

HN Library · Source license

Data and selection notes

HN summaries and labels may contain AI errors. HN dates refer to discussions, not video publication.

HN Library: HackerTube export (2026-10-31) and open-index/hacker-news. Upstream summaries and classifications may contain AI errors.

Views, duration and playback status refresh separately from the published catalog. When an update fails, existing data remains visible.

Selection checks

SaaS & AI candidates: Topic keywords do not match
Editor-approved picks: Editorial review is required

Rule matches identify candidates. They do not guarantee video quality or financial results.

About the library and its sources