Lefsetz: We Don’t Need Your Stinkin’ Rams

I just don’t care…

I never go to the movies and I’ll never see the Los Angeles Rams play live.

That despite media telling me I need to pay attention. The truth is I’m on my own subliminal trip to somewhere, as is everybody else – it’s the 21st century condition.

Used to be entertainment was scarce. And those who got to play in the sandbox took their jobs seriously. We hung on every word, these artists defined the culture. But today the public defines the culture, Instagram is more important than any movie at the multiplex, including “Star Wars.”

Kind of like Adele’s “25.” Have you heard anybody discuss the music? When was the last time you heard the music? Is anybody even listening? You can dazzle me with sales figures, but on YouTube Adele doesn’t rule. Media tells us she’s the biggest thing in music, but she’s not really that big at all.

I haven’t got any time. Not only do I not make it to the theatre, I don’t watch the flicks when they come to TV. The hype has evaporated and there’s always something new, I can barely keep up with the present, never mind catch up with the past.

As for Stan Kroenke moving the St. Louis Rams to Inglewood, I’ll watch a bit of the playoffs, go to a Super Bowl party, but I’m not dedicating months of my life to sitting in front of the screen watching men maim themselves for life. And the truth is, I’m on the bleeding edge. Boxing died, football has already peaked, the owners and the inane Commissioner have lost touch with the public, they think it’s all about the money, that the audience just can’t get enough. But even Depeche Mode can’t sell out stadiums anymore.

As for movies, chasing foreign bucks they lost touch with the American mind. If I want a comic book, I’ll read one. And I’m an adult and I don’t want one. That’s what happens when you chase the dollar, you lose your soul, and then the public wakes up and walks. Kind of like baseball, so-called “America’s Pastime.”

I’ll argue it shot itself in the foot when it put the World Series on at night.

Too late for young ‘uns to watch and no longer special. They stopped respecting the game. And then we did too.

Live long enough and you can see the arc, you can see that most things are fads, hell, even American auto manufacturers no longer dominate, I’d never buy any of their iron, I want my investment to last!

Then again, anybody with a buck is leasing, because they want the latest and the greatest all the time. Kind of like with smartphones. But Apple’s stock has tanked because after you’ve got LTE, do you really need the latest iPhone? When does good become good enough? No, that’s not the issue, when does the mobile phone become a commodity, when you can’t tell the brands apart and the manufacturers can barely make money. That’s right, look at all the TV dropouts, those who no longer make sets, the mobile area is coming next.

Unless there’s innovation.

But it turns out everything hits a wall and then the public moves on to something new. Seemingly nobody under 21 goes to Facebook anymore, Zuckerberg is smart enough to diversify, but if the big Kahuna can’t last, what’s the chance anything else will?

And the truth is we’re all so overwhelmed that we’re doubling down on our own lives, our own activities, our own friends. Sure, some want to get famous on social media, but the truth is we want to connect with our circle of friends, who are known only to us, that’s who we want to impress.

And we’ve got the tools at our fingertips. We love being in charge. The record companies don’t want to let us remix, talking about antiquated rights, not realizing it’s all about public participation in the new era. Take Taylor Swift off of YouTube and her career goes in the dumper. Not only do people watch her videos for free, they do their own versions, they lip-synch. And after doing this and checking out the work of their peers do they have any time to go to the movies?

Well, some teens do.

But the rest of us wrote off the flicks long ago. We used to pay attention because we wanted to belong, have starting points of discussion. But now we just talk about apps. And the media is hung up on the election but the truth is the rank and file have given up on Washington, it hasn’t done anything for them lately, so they’ve tuned out.

Or are angry. Hell, at least Bernie Sanders is a real person speaking the truth, what a breath of fresh air. And Trump ping-pongs in his message, but his lack of b.s. is appealing, in a world inundated with b.s.

Like with the Oscars.

I don’t even watch anymore. I don’t care who wears what and I’m sick of the insider attitude. Life today is about the big tent, including everyone, that’s why tech is so successful, it scales.

The movies no longer scale. People talk about TV.

As for the NFL… Why not put a game on every night, why not burn the franchise out completely in pursuit of greed.

But the truth is the rich, and this applies not only to sports and entertainment, are living in a bubble, out of touch with you and me. They want us to believe they count, they create jobs, without them we would die. But the truth is we have a cornucopia of tools and information at our fingertips, and we like to play. We’re sick of being dictated to.

The story isn’t how white the Oscar nominees may be, but how the whole show and organization became unmoored from popular culture years ago. Want kids to watch? Have it hosted by PewDiePie!

As for color, Killer Mike‘s endorsement of Sanders is more meaningful than nominating another entertainer bitching about recognition. You earn your status in the trenches, not on the awards shows, and we respond to honesty, truth and smarts, which Killer Mike demonstrated on Bill Maher, check him out, he made me a fan nearly instantly:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuntEJl8okY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bz9uQ6ehujg

That’s today’s world. Not the triangulation of the Clintons, not adjusting your message based on polls, but being authentic, human, just like us.

And then we may embrace you.

We don’t need a football team in Los Angeles.

Hell, without one we get better games on TV.

And the only person I know who’s seen all the Oscar nominees gets the screeners from their next door neighbor.

Something is happening here, and it’s plenty clear, if you pull your head out of your rear end and walk the streets, surf the net. The people may not have the money, they may not run the corporation, but they own the culture. They’re creating it every day online. That’s where the action is.

We don’t need your stinkin’ entertainment!