Next comes Warren.

And shortly thereafter Klobuchar.

Mayor Pete was the great centrist hope, after Biden faded in Iowa and New Hampshire. Pete was gonna bring us together, the overeducated reasonable one who was the voice of the future. But then instead of being warm and fuzzy he was mean and superior in the debates and then he got trounced in South Carolina. I mean come on, the guy’s only been the mayor of South Bend and there were huge racial issues there, did he think he could outrun this, did all the prognosticators believe this wouldn’t come up, that it would be forgotten if known at all?

As for Warren, she’s gonna get trounced in Massachusetts, her home state, she’s got to throw in the towel after that. Maybe, like Richard Nixon losing the governorship of California, she licks her wounds and then comes back four years from now, especially if Bernie doesn’t make it. She’ll only be 74, which is a spring chicken in today’s world.

And did you see the video of the Sanders rally in Boston today?

I know Boston is a huge college town, but this Sanders rally today… holy crap!!!!
pic.twitter.com/eOItYTv7Cy

— John Ziegler (@Zigmanfreud) February 29, 2020

The youth are on Bernie’s side. And they’re only minting more of them. As for the canard that young people don’t vote, that was yesterday, and now it’s a new day.

Did you read the story about income inequality in today’s “Times”? The guy paid a grand for a Yankee ticket but still was excluded from the club, because he wasn’t sitting in the first row.

“When It’s This Easy at the Top, It’s Harder For Everyone Else – America has always known haves and have-nots. But what was a tiered system is morphing into a caste system”

It’s not the same world we grew up in. Never mind the sixties, how about the economic run-up in the nineties? When Clinton cut welfare after believing everybody was moving to the center.

But all were not. Those with money did. How do they put it? “I’m socially liberal, but fiscally conservative.”? How many times have you heard that uttered by Democrats who’ve got too much money and don’t want to part with any of it. Or “independents” who say they’d vote for a Democrat but never do, because of the left’s fiscal policies.

Anybody with any money hates Bernie Sanders.

And most of the youth have no money and no opportunity.

As for Klobuchar, she’ll do well in Minnesota and hang on for a while, but then she’ll cave too.

Which will leave us with the three “B”‘s:

Bernie, Biden and Bloomberg.

Let’s start with Biden. He did well in South Carolina. But the state is dominated by an older African-American demo, and Sanders showed he could get people of color in Nevada. In other words, is all the hoopla of the last twenty four hours irrelevant?

Young people have no time for Biden, they don’t want to return to a past where they’re left out, or given crumbs.

So, Biden did a bit better than he did in the polls, he gave his candidacy some legs, at least in the eyes of the media and the DNC. But in the eyes of the people? No one is enthusiastic about Joe, they’re just afraid of Bernie, and so far fear has not played well in this primary season. Buttigieg tried to scare us about Bernie, the guy he used to laud, and that didn’t work.

As for Bloomberg, like Biden the polls are not in his favor.

But it gets worse, Bloomberg is not only tone-deaf in debates, but in public appearances too.

Read this article:

“Michael Bloomberg, a Billionaire Learning on the Job – He joked to a crowd in Denver that he would rather be at his house in Vail, and told people he was excited for ‘Super Bowl Tuesday.” But Mr. Bloomberg is getting a little better at this”

The more he talks, the more out of touch he looks. And despite his advertising campaign, he’s gonna have to talk more, and every time he opens his mouth his numbers go down.

Bloomberg was the candidate of the rich, of the whites of New York City, now that America has gotten a look at the man they just cannot understand what all the hoopla is about. Irascible billionaire who rolls his eyes when he doesn’t hear what he wants to, who said inappropriate things to women, who enforced stop and frisk…if you think this is a winning strategy, you’re one of those socially liberal, fiscally conservative Democrats I mentioned above. And the more that comes out, the worse Bloomberg looks. Come on, the rank and file are gonna support someone who endorsed Howdy Doody, aka George W. Bush? People’s memories are not that short, they remember Bush and his henchman Cheney, they want no part of that. Once again, Bloomberg’s pitch is he built a business and became a billionaire, so he can run the country. Why does everybody believe if you’re rich your skills translate into political acumen. No one believes a doctor makes a good lawyer, or an accountant makes a good hockey player, but somehow billionaires are jacks of all trades?

The math favors Bernie. And he’s gonna do well in California. And the truth is most people are not paying attention to the media, which evidences Bernie hatred every single day, for fear that they too will lose if Bernie gets elected.

Everybody’s protecting what they’ve got. How about those who haven’t got anything? The people who are a paycheck or two away from homelessness, those afraid to go to the doctor to see if they’ve got the coronavirus because they can’t fathom the bill. Come on, you read about that guy who went to the hospital, fearful he might infect others, and it turned out he didn’t have the coronavirus, but he did have a $3270 bill:

Is This Coronavirus ‘the Big One’?

Timing matters.

Right now, Medicare for all looks mighty damn good.

As for the stock market, not only has that tanked, most of the economic run-up did not trickle down to the hoi polloi.

But the media keeps telling us Trump will win because of the economy.

But George H.W. Bush won a war and lost his job the following fall.

All these rules… This is just how the pundit class justifies its jobs. If the past is prologue at all, it’s Trump’s victory in 2016 that is illustrative. People were sick and tired and they wanted a change. But somehow this can’t happen on the Democratic side?

I don’t care if Biden wins the nomination, I’ll vote for him.

But really, he ain’t gonna make it.

And Bloomberg is toast, he’s just so busy spending money he doesn’t realize it yet.

Maybe Sanders won’t cross the delegate threshold to win the nomination. But Sanders is so many people’s second choice, so after everybody drops out, sure, the center will be solidified, but Sanders’ numbers will burgeon.

Of course I can be wrong. This is why you play the game.

But Buttigieg lost the game, as did Steyer with all his money, and Warren and Klobuchar are so far back they seem to be running in a different race.

The truth is, whomever is the President, the problems of this nation will not go away instantly.

And if it’s a Democrat and it’s not Bernie…what are you gonna say to all those young ‘uns? I wouldn’t think there’d be a third party, but when you’re pissed and all the doors have been closed you throw the long ball, that’s how Trump got elected to begin with.

If you want to know what is going on in this election, talk to the people, don’t pay attention to the media spin.

And be sure to talk to some young ‘uns. Ask them if they plan on buying a house, if they even plan to have kids. Ask who is paying attention to them.

When you hit an inflection point, you cannot have one leg in the past and one in the future, you’ve got to go all in. This has been the story of the past twenty five years, radical change, breakthroughs. It’s finally caught up with politics but the usual suspects are denying it.

Ask anybody in the music business. They’ve seen this movie.

But the rest of the world has no time for the music industry, it’s seen as the dumb and dumber, nitwits on parade, who should be ignored. But music trumps cable news, print news, books, it even affects more people than television.

Wake up and smell the coffee.

Or to put it another way, you don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.

Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep

“For What It’s Worth”
Buffalo Springfield

It’s gonna kill the concert business.

The good news? Many tickets are sold a year out, maybe more, especially to the most lucrative tours.

The bad news? Will promoters have to give all that money back when ticketholders are too scared to attend?

This will be a giant public relations problem, never mind the outright cancellation of shows.

Traditionally, shows are rain or shine, if the act can play, you’re SOL if you don’t show. Especially Broadway. But will the public put up with this?

The public is scared.

And disinformation is making people even more afraid. Especially in a world where facts take a back seat to emotions, where facts are fungible anyway.

I’ve got a compromised immune system. I didn’t think twice about it until all the nitwits in California decided not to vaccinate their children. They too are relying on bogus science, but it’s how they feel that counts, and they feel that only they matter, that they and their children are inviolate, living in a bubble, and the rest of society does not count. In other words, no herd immunity. This didn’t worry me until my doctor refused to give me the vaccine, since it is live. So if I go to Disneyland, if I go to your pre-school, I too could get infected and die.

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

So, should we buy masks or not? Instinct says to, the surgeon general says not to, he says they’re useless for the uninfected. But you want insurance, you want to wear one anyway, what difference does it make. And do you trust him? Or is he just trying to stop panic.

But panic is happening.

I just flew out of LAX. Masks were rampant. People got on the plane and immediately wiped down the armrests and tray tables, and during the flight the first person in the U.S. died, after Trump said no one would.

Let’s make it about Trump. Not his re-election, which is what Fox and Limbaugh are talking about, but the lies. We now live in a land where the law doesn’t matter, especially if you’re wealthy, and science is out the window, and you wonder why people are getting behind Bernie Sanders.

And at least Bernie Sanders is promising a better future, whereas all the rest of the candidates, and Trump himself, want us to jet back to the past.

And I live in California, which Trump abhors. If Newsom takes action independently, Trump/the government will sue the state, just like with auto emissions. And the car companies didn’t know which side to take. Because they wanted clarity, they wanted to establish a roadmap for the future, and now that was up for grabs.

I could envision dying in a car accident, getting cancer, skiing into a tree, but I never thought of dying by pandemic. And it’s not how I want to go.

But I grew up with a mother who didn’t believe in illness. So I’m not curtailing my activity, but how long until public places start shutting down, before concerts are canceled?

But it gets worse. There’s a cascade down the drain.

All those venues have employees, who are suddenly laid off, so they have no money and they cannot buy anything, certainly not luxuries. And the economy runs on consumer spending, and when people have no money, it crashes. Billionaires and the rest of the rich can only buy so many cars, can only go to so many concerts.

And the music business has completely flipped. Used to be the tour was the advertisement for the record, now the record is the advertisement for the tour. In other words, most acts make their money on the road…but there might not be a road.

So they won’t be able to meet expenses. Not only will they not tour, they’ll lay off their band, their crew, there will be no stage construction, no tour buses needed.

And with no shows, the promoters lay off people. Maybe not at first, but if the crisis sustains…

And we have no idea what will happen. One thing’s for sure, it’s not going away very soon, like Trump said.

And like me, no one wants to die of disease, something they have no control over.

So people start hoarding supplies, like masks, because it’s every person for themselves in America today. And then there are not enough supplies to service the sick.

And we’ve heard since Reagan that government is the problem, and costs have been cut because the free market reigns… The government is unprepared and the free market will make it so that companies will upcharge, like the Uber surcharge when traffic is heavy.

It was a distant story.

First it was in China.

Then overseas, Italy and Korea.

We heard stories but it couldn’t happen here, because we’re the United States and we’re immune, and we can conquer any problem immediately. Like spam? It’s been twenty five years and your inbox is still cluttered with junk.

Which reminds me of the environment. Do we turn a blind eye figuring science will have a solution, or try to solve the problem now, or be like Trump and say there is no problem, and that if we can just get the stock market back up everything will be groovy.

But most people have no savings. So, soon they will not be able to pay their mortgage/rent, food will become a priority. And the homeless problem will increase. And uncovered medical costs are gonna shoot through the roof, because of the uninsured and the underinsured. Who’s gonna pay? You! Yup, that’s where your tax money is gonna go. But you think you’re entitled to 100% of your income, because the government wastes money. Or that you could distribute it better. Are you gonna kill the coronavirus single-handedly?

Somehow, all the talking points of the last four years, of the last four decades, have come alive with the coronavirus. It’s your worst nightmare. And the rich are not immune. They’re part of society just like the rest of us.

So everybody stops flying. They’re already holding sporting events in empty venues.

Or maybe you believe you’re immune, that it can’t happen to you, that you can’t go bankrupt because of medical bills. And then, just like with AIDS, someone you know dies. And you could solve that problem by refusing to have sex. But at least there’s pleasure in sex. Now you can just be going about your business and lose your life.

So, you stay at home.

But food still has to be delivered. Were those people infected?

I have no idea where reality is on this. Whether a few thousand people get infected and only a handful die or whether millions pass away. We just don’t know.

But we do know everybody is afraid, paranoid.

Isn’t that what all the Democratic candidates other than Bernie are preaching? If you don’t elect them, bad things will happen, only they can solve the problem.

But now we don’t even trust the vote, never mind empty promises.

And suddenly, it’s the educated elite who will save us, the ones the people on the right despise.

This is why Trump is afraid, this is why Fox and Limbaugh are getting out ahead of the story. Unlike the disorganized Democrats, the Republicans get on the same page and spin a story as it happens, before it happens. They control the dialogue. They blame the left to neuter it. And then the left cries amongst itself, whining that it’s unfair as the right rolls right over it.

We no longer have faith in facts. And science. And government. And we believe that capitalism can solve all problems. What if this isn’t true?

This is the trickle down effect. The corporations did not rain money down to the hoi polloi, but the inept government that Grover Norquist believes should be drowned in the bathtub exacerbated the coronavirus problem.

So, once again, you’re on your own.

Going broke is one thing.

Dying is quite another.

No one can calm you down. You trust no one. And the news is contrary. So you’re freaking out. Especially now that people are dying.

There will be economic consequences.

It’s more about thought than action, although plenty of people are shot and beat-up.

But it all comes down to this…do you want to be a cog in the system or control the system?

This is the issue confronting America today. Used to be the cogs were well-taken care of. They had high-paying jobs for life. With good health care. A line worker for GM could own a boat and go on vacation.

Not anymore.

Now no one believes the corporation is on their side. And the biggest winners are thieves, even though they’re lionized.

Like Bill Gates.

He charged for Windows even if you didn’t put it on the machine. Which dented Linux. Which ensured Windows’ triumph in the marketplace. But now he is lauded as a humanitarian.

What is that aphorism, “behind every great fortune lies a great crime”?

The only difference between Mexico and the U.S. is that in the U.S. it’s done under the appearance of legality, whereas in Mexico the corruption is visible right up front.

So, Felix Gallardo has a plan. He wants to unite the plazas and then stand up to the Colombian cocaine cartel. He wants to end internecine warfare and then stick it to the man.

The only problem is he can’t keep the plazas (i.e. regional cartels), in line. They’re all cowboys. Fighting each other. Like in the Democratic primary.

And one of Gallardo’s lieutenants ultimately says the price Felix extracts is too high.

So, you need to pay off the police. Pretty easy to do. Actually, Felix Gallardo started out as a policeman. You ultimately give them no choice. Corruption is better than death.

And then you pay off the politicians.

Gallardo is stumped when the new candidate won’t take his money. EVERYBODY needs his money.

Finally the real story outs. The new President plans to privatize much of the nation’s industry and the people he’s delivering for are fronting his campaign. AND IT HAPPENED! Before there were only three Mexicans on the Forbes list, after there were double-digits.

And you wonder how everybody got so rich.

The public has had enough. So a clean candidate is drafted and then the PRI, the party in control, rigs the election. It’s Felix’s idea. The key is to promote false results from Mexico City initially, so the voters in the rest of the country will become demoralized and not even bother to vote and the PRI candidate will win legally. When the subterfuge surfaces, the cartels just change the results, ensuring the new regime’s fealty to Felix.

Sound far-fetched?

Can you say “hanging chads”?

Can you say “voter suppression”?

Can you say “Iowa caucus”?

Forever America has convinced itself that it is the best, that it can’t happen here, but it has and continues to do so.

Kinda like the Donald last night. Stopping the coronavirus through his voice. And then, today, a whistleblower came out and said that the possibly infected returnees were greeted by government workers sans protection, who subsequently flew on planes all over the country:

U.S. workers without protective gear assisted coronavirus evacuees, HHS whistleblower says

When she raised her hand, she was reassigned! And why would anybody be a whistleblower anymore anyway, after impeachment. Trump was exonerated and then cleaned house, just like a drug lord. You can no longer rely on the rule of law.

Now if you want the definitive story of the Mexican drug war, read Don Winslow’s “Power of the Dog” trilogy. It’s fiction, but it nails it.

But “Narcos Mexico” is essentially true. You keep pinching yourself. Can this really happen?

And you recognize some of the names, like El Chapo.

And the elite of our government are in cahoots with the Mexicans, undercutting the agents in the field. And the DEA and the FBI are at war.

And it’s all about loyalty, just like with Trump.

And everyone needs to be taught a lesson, to stay in line, which is where Trump’s purge comes in.

Now I see these Mexicans in Vail, the resort is famous for it. They’re all wearing the latest fashions, even the children are wearing Bogner. And there are stories how some fly home and leave the clothing behind, the money doesn’t matter! Corruption sowed so many of those fortunes.

And there’s corruption here. It’s rampant. But the IRS has been hampered and it seems like almost all of the Wall Streeters get off while they extract cash from our economy and give nothing back. Wall Street used to build things, now it’s a business unto itself.

But in a country where we’re all in our own silos, we can’t unite and stand up to the man and the corruption.

Meanwhile, the news is a disinformation machine. Trump and Fox have made facts fungible, while decimating the reputations of other media, which rarely stand up to the man, they print false equivalencies.

And just like Trump is a vapid TV star, whose CV is shaky, what about all those people on TV news? Tune in. There’s no reporting, just bloviating. All the reporting is done by the NYT and the WaPo, which are quoted constantly.

As for the NYT…it’s on a single-minded mission to prevent Bernie Sanders from winning the nomination. Believing that the media can sway the mind-set of the people. But less than ever before. Bloomberg is spending all that money and he hasn’t won yet.

But he might.

And if he does, it’ll be just like Felix Gallardo. The strongman keeps the peace, the man with the money does it his way.

If Bloomberg wins it’ll be because people want protection, not because they believe in him. After all, he’s really a Republican.

Now the cartels are run like Mafia families, you don’t cross ’em and you can never get out. Which is why Trump’s cronies pledge fealty…they want the spoils and they’re afraid of what will happen to them if they go against the grain, I mean look at Vindman.

Everybody knows the story of Pablo Escobar, but he’s dead.

Once you move on to the Mexican drug-lords the story is more murky, if for no other reason than it’s still going on. We hear all about the opioid manufacturers. What we don’t hear is the Mexicans move in and sell cheap heroin to help the addicted with their fix, they’ll even deliver it to your house!

But most people don’t know this.

Most people don’t know much, and they’re susceptible to lies.

So, “Narcos Mexico” is a learning experience. Only one man (or woman) can be on top. It’s a fight for that spot. And you always have to be on guard, you can never relax. And keeping your organization in line is a full-time job, and you do it via violence, no one wants to die, then it’s over, done deal.

This is business today. All over the world. One person’s will herded over others, squeezing out the competition.

But they cover it up with their philanthropy, just like Pablo Escobar and these drug-lords.

So in Mexico you can’t stand up to the man. You literally get shot. You read the news, don’t you?

But it’s turning out that way in America too. You may not get shot, but they want to make sure you get no power. This is Bernie’s mission. Who cares what he’ll do in office, we want one of ours in there, who hopefully won’t be corrupted.

Because we’ve lost faith.

America is run by drug-lords just like Mexico. Only they hide behind names like Facebook and GM and…play your cards wrong and you lose power, like GE.

And there’s only one metric, MONEY!

Which is what the Dow is all about.

Come on, it doesn’t mean anything to you, right?

But to the big swinging dicks it does, this is how the keep score, this is how they gain entrance, this is how they raise money at low rates.

So, we’ve got a lack of sophistication crossed with strongmen, and they are mostly men.

Education is given lip service, but there’s no money for it.

Taxes have to be lowered so money can trickle down like a drug-lord builds a soccer field.

We were supposed to be different.

I’m not sure we are anymore.

Emilio Castillo is the only person who’s been in every iteration of Tower of Power. It was a joy talking to Emilio, hearing how he formed the band, their various record deals, rehab, marriage, Bill Graham, Ted Templeman… Even if you think you’re not interested in TOP you will love Emilio’s stories, learning how he went from there to here.

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