What do they say, sports are a metaphor for life?

I was only behind by two, and then Felice threw two through the hole and pummeled me.

Greetings from Los Angeles, where there’s a nip in the air but it’s nowhere near as frigid as it is on the east coast. Actually, it always gets cold after a storm, don’t ask me why, but that’s the science. I learned this from being a skier. You’re thrilled the flakes come down and you’re eager to hit the hill the next day, and then it’s in the single digits if not below zero and…

I always go out anyway. I’ve got the frostbitten skin to prove it. On the east coast you only go out for one run, you feel like you’ve beaten the elements, by time you’re down your feet are already frozen and you go inside for hot chocolate and you sit in your warm clothes and feel cocooned against the elements. That’s another thing that’s been lost in the wiring of society, that feeling of aloneness, alternately off-putting and rewarding. We humans need to be together, but we also need the concomitant time alone to let our brains process the thoughts, come to conclusions, think about where we’re going, ponder the human condition, marvel at the vastness of the world.

I went out for a hike in the rain last night. The key is not to slip, but without my music, unwilling to get my electronics wet, I was reminded of my past, being a Boy Scout, hiking. I was miserable but happy. I know, a conundrum. I was singing songs in my head, like I used to do in the pre-Walkman era. I had “Jesus Christ Superstar” stuck in my brain, I’m not sure why, other than it came out at this time back in 1970, one of the best ski seasons in Vermont, the winter of ’70-’71.

But now I do my skiing on the western side of the country and when we go to Vail in the summer the place is littered with cornhole boards. I hate to admit it, but my mind thought it was a scatological reference, but it’s probably just the farm, the bags filled with corn.

Anyway, after playing so many times in the summer, Felice bought us our own set.

It reminded me of growing up, when our garage was filled with sports equipment. Badminton nets… Remember trying to unroll those in the spring? All kinds of balls and bats and rackets… We set them up in the backyard where they stood all summer in the rain and the heat and got sun-bleached and those were the carefree days, are kids still as untethered today, or have electronics captured their brains like those of their parents?

I don’t know.

But Felice set up the cornhole boards and…

The instructions said 27′ apart. That seemed kind of distant to me. Then again, are the rules important? I must say, I’m a stickler for the rules, there’s no Free Parking money when we play Monopoly. But I learned that scoring is the difference between the two players, that was new to me, that was in the instructions, so we started to play and…

I’m not sure whether we’ve got a cheap set or it has to break in. The bags just didn’t slide. Maybe they will after the board gets shiny. Or maybe it was never supposed to be. And Felice got lucky and put one through the hole and then she was wildly missing…

We were just rallying, as they say in tennis.

But then we decided to play a game.

At first to 21, but when it was tied at 8, Felice said we should go to 11, that seemed fair.

Whereupon she put two in the hole and blew me away. There was no way I’d come back, she ended up beating me by five.

I can handle it. It’s not like we’re professionals.

But playing the game in the backyard today brought me back to who I once was. The thrill of competition, when you can think of nothing else, just focus on the game. The feeling of triumph when you put one through the hole. The exasperation when your body does not do what you want it to. When you realize this is all there is, some movement and the good times.

So the fam is coming over later and we’ll probably have a tournament. Someone will refuse to play. Someone will deem themselves the champion. And we’ll talk about the contest into the night.

Ain’t that America.

It’s all about the little things, the endless life continuum. It’s one long thread I tell you, and every once in a while you’re reminded of that.

Like today.

Democrats need a bold agenda. Here’s what they should do in the first 100 days of Congress.

I’m kinda weirded-out.

Yesterday Angelica died, and she was full of life. We met nearly twenty years ago, when she worked for Atlantic Records. I went through my e-mail last night and found one from last spring where she detailed the treatment for her cancer. Hard to think someone’s gone when they’re so fierce on the page.

And one thing Geli e-mailed me about consistently was Bernie Sanders. Not that I made the connection last night, but I did today. After reading Bernie’s piece in the WaPo.

I know, I know, you’re not supposed to discuss politics, or religion, on Thanksgiving. Even worse, you can’t really change somebody’s mind. Furthermore, I get the WSJ, which is like a disinformation society, topsy-turvy, electric cars bad, Russia didn’t interfere in the election, and if you let the corporations run free all issues will be solved.

And I’m open-minded, I read what the writers have to say, but then I turn to the NYT and the WaPo and get a completely different take. And in an era where even a right wing Supreme Court Justice has to stand up to Trump, it’s hard to be optimistic about America. Then again, Roberts saved health care, sometimes people do the right thing.

But not often these days. Like Facebook. Protect yourself at all costs. The Street is your boss. Deliver profits and forget about the proletariat.

And that’s how we ended up with Trump to begin with.

I know, I know, now they say it’s racism. Then again, how do you feel when other colors eclipse you? It’s all rolled up in one ball of wax, and it’s hard to trust a media that got America so wrong to begin with, that couldn’t see Trump coming.

So every day I wake up and get on my phone. I have a folder with all the news apps. I see the insights from “New York” magazine. I go to the L.A. “Times” last, the paper being an illustration of what cutbacks to protect your margins leaves you with, close to nothing.

And when I got to the WaPo this morning, I saw this headline, “Democrats need a bold agenda. Here’s what they should do in the first 100 days of Congress.”

The media missed Bernie Sanders too. And if the socialist from Vermont had started earlier, he’d be President today. We thought it was an outsider run, making a point, but it turned out Sanders captured the mood of America best, and his agenda was positive, unlike Trump’s negative. Sanders was all about truth, justice and the American Way. And we’re looking for a Superman to solve our problems, to lift us above this crazy world full of strongmen and people voting for them, America used to be a beacon for Democracy, the country you could count on helping you out.

No more.

But Bernie is too old and…

By gosh, I’m reading his words today and they resonate, I want to throw my fist in the air, he’s unafraid, he’s leading, he’s direct, he makes sense and…

That’s been the problem with Democrats for too long. They’ve been playing defense, they’re on react. They let the Republicans define the game and then they play it poorly. Bernie wants to bat first.

The middle class has been eviscerated. Income inequality is a huge issue. We’re supposed to venerate the winners, but the victors are duplicitous turds with blind spots who oftentimes got a leg up upon birth and are out of touch with the issues confronting the hoi polloi.

Who doesn’t want better wages? Who doesn’t want the guaranteed health care the rest of the western world offers? Who doesn’t want to help our seniors? And if you take prescription drugs and you’re not horrified each and every time you go to the pharmacy, even with insurance, you’re rich.

These are the things Bernie Sanders is standing for. This is a positive agenda. And he’s talking about Democrats, he’s not an outsider independent, but one of the team.

You remember teams, before we were all in it for ourselves? You can’t win without a team, ask Serena Williams, who got signals from her coach illicitly during the Open.

Without optimism we die. Living in our silos we die. That’s what the internet has wrought, a Tower of Babel society. And no one seems to want to combat it. Whether it be the famous wankers wanting to use the system to promote their wares or the individuals looking to garner fame and attention. The music business has been broken by too much music. Didn’t they say the internet was gonna make it so no one wanted to make music anymore? Another negative viewpoint from those refusing to accept the present, never mind the future.

I want a better world. One of harmony, where you love your brother and sister. Where you believe you have a voice. Where injustice is not tolerated. That can get on the right course and continue to succeed.

And what impressed me most in Bernie Sanders’s screed, was the focus on climate change. You’ve got to tackle the big issues. And acknowledge facts. Without facts you’ve got chaos.

And in this era of chaos, politics reigns supreme. Because it is focused on the people. For far too long, government was in the background, life was free and easy, like in the nineties. But things have changed, and too many refuse to change with them. Like those right wingers that want to jet back to a past that didn’t exist in the first place.

The future is here. We need leaders. We need optimism. We need truth.

I’m sick and tired of everybody pulling punches, putting their finger to the wind before speaking, afraid of angering some potential constituency. Honesty is the best policy. Didn’t you learn that in the first grade?

When people speak the truth it resonates.

We’ve got a war for the soul of our country right now.

This past election illustrates that despite gerrymandering more people are upset about where we’re going than aren’t.

Let those who abhor life reside in their backwater. Trumpeting their main streets and albums and buggy whips. Until you acknowledge where we are now, you can’t solve the problems.

I’m thankful that Bernie Sanders surprised me with his spot-on piece today.

That’s the power of the individual, that’s the power of the word.

Meanwhile, we’re more together, more alike than projected by the press.

Watch the parade on TV, watch the NFL which has been revolutionized by passing, as a result of trying to save hits to the passer. Eat turkey. And talk. Talk is the highway to the future. And listen. And know that although you cannot change someone’s mind on the spot, you can plant seeds that will grow in the future.

So now I’m contradicting myself. Now I’m evidencing hope. I’m pro-engagement. Because I just can’t help myself. I want a better America. I want a better world. I want to take care of others. We can’t make it alone.

But we can make it here.

Not every leader is a celebrity with a clothing line and a perfume. Some rely on their essence to make it. Whether it be Neil Young in music or Bernie Sanders in politics. Be who you are. Let your freak flag fly. Know that you are enough and we can make it if we really try.

I am trying.

I know you are too.

Here’s to a better tomorrow.

Over and out.

Tune in today, Tuesday November 20, on Volume 106, 7 PM East, 4 PM West.

Phone #: 844-6-VOLUME, 844-686-5863

Twitter: @siriusxmvolume/#lefsetzlive

Hear the episode live on SiriusXM VOLUME: HearLefsetzLive

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“No one gives you power. You have to take it from them.”

Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Pelosi’s Last Battle

“You have to skate where the puck is going, not where it has been.” Wayne Gretzky’s statement could be the most famous aphorism of our lifetimes, yet still many ignore it.

That’s why Irving Azoff continues to win. He can see where the puck is going. He’s always two steps ahead, ask anybody who knows or deals with him, not the rabble rousers who talk crap about him, those with power learn to ignore the haters, otherwise they cannot succeed.

Yet the media is littered with commentators saying we must stop Facebook. But the truth is we must stop Instagram and WhatsApp, both ironically owned by Facebook, both where the puck is going.

Unless you live in the U.S., or China, you’re aware that the de facto messaging platform is WhatsApp. But it’s more than text, it’s more than iMessage, it’s got groups, you can live your whole live on WhatsApp, and misinformation on WhatsApp was one of the reasons Jair Bolsonaro was elected in Brazil, but American citizens hew to Trump’s nationalism, believing the rest of the world does not count.

But it does.

Mark Zuckerberg could see where the puck was going, that’s why he purchased WhatsApp and Instagram. Snap stayed single, it’s in the process of dying. Sometimes you have to sell. The skill is knowing when.

So the world is divided into two groups, those seizing power and those refraining from doing so. The latter believe they’re entitled to a fair deal, or have given up and are pessimistic. But the individual can change everything, like Alastair Mactaggart, who nearly single-handedly got California’s new privacy bill passed. Congress holds hearings, Mactaggart gets things done.

Kind of like Pelosi.

I know, I know, she’s been demonized by the right, give Republicans credit, they’ve been playing a long game. Most notably with the Federalist Society. When the left turns on itself, after Elizabeth Warren takes a DNA test that shows she’s a smidgen of Native American, the right circles the wagons and laughs. It’s a skill to get people to turn on their own leaders.

But Pelosi is not backing down, and the Democratic cabal that is attacking her…has no candidate. This is like saying you’re gonna win a game without fielding a team, or win a boxing match with no fighter, you not only lose the contest, you lose ground.

Now today’s artists have got it all wrong. They believe power is playing the business person’s game. But the business person is duplicitous, the artist’s power comes from truth, embodied in their art. And there’s this concept that that power is immediate, when the truth is it’s also a long game. Bob Dylan was making records long before he was an icon. But he never would have reached the heights without Albert Grossman. You see artists need business people to do their dirty work, and to aid them in their vision.

So where does this leave you?

You’ve got to decide, are you a leader or a follower. And today, more than ever, followers get screwed. Unions have been decimated, there is no long term employment. If you’re putting your faith in others you’re the ball in the pinball machine when you want to be the flippers.

Not that everybody can be a leader. Then again, the U.S. is a giant pecking order centered around a greased ladder.

But, you must know who you are, you must be a student of the game, you must know when to risk.

That’s what the techies really talk about when they say failure is a badge of honor, they walk into the wilderness without a net, with no guarantee. Most people are afraid of doing that, they’re worried about moving backwards on the game board of life.

And it’s also why the scions of the powerful rarely are powerful themselves. They grew up in a cushy environment, removed from the action, they have not learned the rules, they’re unaware of the people their parents killed to succeed.

I’m speaking metaphorically, but if you’re not willing to hurt another’s career or business, don’t become a leader.

And a leader is about loyalty. If you read the above article about Pelosi you’ll see she insists on it. And you may criticize her for it, but she’s playing a long game, she wants to get her legislation passed, it’s all in service to the goal. The route may be ugly, but in politics the end justifies the means.

And you want to be loyal to the powerful of your choice. That’s why Irving is loyal to Rapino. Rapino holds the purse strings, you don’t want to alienate those who pay, those whose choices you depend upon.

Furthermore, you must be willing to raise your voice, make a stand if you’re powerful. Notice that all the powerful tend to be colorful characters? You just wish you could be like them, but you’re afraid of the blowback, you just want everybody to love you,

Meanwhile, the powerful are not self-deprecating. Don’t play that game, the powerful are supremely self-confident. When someone is making fun of themselves they take themselves out of the game. Then again, there is a style in which it succeeds, but that’s a deeper lesson.

But Americans can’t handle the truth. They don’t want to learn the lessons. And they alternately admire and denigrate power as they’re whipsawed by those who have it.

Furthermore, the powerful are rarely brought up in the system. They tend to be outsiders. That’s one of the reasons the music business is moribund, almost nobody involved ever had their own money at risk. Except Irving, Rapino and Jay Marciano. They understand the game, and power. It’s visceral when it’s your own money on the line.

And Chance the Rapper. Sure, he did it outside the system with a backer, but still it was a huge risk. Taylor Swift was never going to go to Spotify, that’s inane, she needs the label team to deliver press and spins via their ongoing connections. But this is not a story, she’s now on the downswing, nobody lasts forever, and despite most of her tour doing well, her album did abysmally, certainly regarding expectations, so those who think this is a story are not Wayne Gretzky, certainly not Irving Azoff. As for extracting a promise that Universal would split Spotify stock proceeds with artists regardless of their royalty position, that’s like Kirsten Gillibrand saying she would not run for President in 2020 and then reversing course. Meanwhile, Spotify’s stock is now in the dumper, Universal’s not selling now, if ever, by owning that stock they have impact, you never ignore such a big stockholder, owning a piece gives you power. Yes, Lucian Grainge knows how to play the power game.

And the truly powerful stay out of the press, or utilize their PR people to trade horses and spin stories. Because they can deliver access, and without it you’re doomed.

That’s what you want, access, to the powerful, so you can see how the game is played. And if you don’t want power, you’re going down, not up. And one of the reasons artists today are so powerless is because they’re uneducated and from the lower classes. The middle class that used to inhabit the chart understood their power, and learned their most powerful asset was the ability to say no. That’s right, no to the sponsor, no to the candidate, no to the label, no to the promoter. Your power is worthless unless you exercise it. But don’t employ your theoretical leverage if you have none.

Now the weak and uninformed will e-mail me about Nancy Pelosi, painting a negative picture. They missed the point. Too many people miss the point.

That’s right, don’t look where the puck is, but where it’s going.

And then strike at the right moment and seize power.

Then you’re truly in the game.