About eight years ago, I woke up from my surgery, groggy and hazy. The beeps from machines sounded distant. The voices from the corridor outside the small private section of the intensive care unit at the UCSF were muted. I could hear the heavy rain against the window. I was thirsty. And yet all I can remember seeing a much younger President Obama declare victory in Iowa, though I couldn’t hear a single thing he said or even make out the screen clearly. I fell asleep again. I wouldn’t wake up for a while again, but I was sleeping with the idea that America could have a black president, one many thought didn’t have a chance to make it to the White House.
Yesterday, I was lying in bed, body aching, throat hurting and fever above the century point, watching Bernie Sanders make his speech – dignified and very clear about his reasons why he wants to be president. I have no idea if he will be the winner, but despite my own beliefs, I like people who have moral conviction. “Listening to Sanders’ speech tonight, struck by how similar crowd looked to Obama’s crowds in 2008: Young, diverse, and highly energized,” tweeted Jeff Weiner, CEO of LinkedIn. Well said! And maybe history will repeat itself. A rank outsider might represent the country’s rank and file in the whitehouse? Who knows!
After a really rough night, I woke up this morning and while making tea, came to a conclusion that the real losers in Iowa were media. I mean they obsessional covered Trump’s blowhard buffoonery and ignored a guy who got almost half the votes in Iowa. “Now the airwaves are cluttered, there are too many messages, and in a Tower of Babel society we all focus on that which everybody else does,” wrote Bob Lefsetz in his newsletter today.
Tweets, Facebook likes and all tools of social amplification take attention away from what matters. I think the problem with media herd is that no one wants to actually standout on their own. I mean, people in press decide that Hillary Clinton is the best choice. Or that Trump’s hatred is good copy. If the media doesn’t actually try and keep the focus on what matters, we will have a political discourse that is tweets!
Politics aside, rest of the day was spent on emails and attending our weekly True Partner meeting on the phone — I love my trusted old flip phone for conference calls. As the day winds out, I feel tired and winded, but the throat is feeling less scratchy, fever has subsided but eyes are heavy & tired.
This evening is no work — just watching Australia and New Zeland play a one day cricket match. I am tuning in to see Brendon McCullum, one of the best cricketers in the world — he hits harder and faster than Marc Andressen’s tweetstorms. When I was young, the only way to learn about these games was a day later in the morning paper. Now, I can simply switch on my iPad.
But before I go, many thanks to all of you who sent their wishes, and suggestions on how to prevent from getting sick.
February 2, 2016, San Francisco