Wealth, power, fame.  They all matter.  Don’t listen to those who say otherwise.  They are dishonest.  What they shouldn’t be are end goals for their own sake and selfish reasons.  Also one should be aware of their acute limitations as well as their ability to impact others.

This one is about influence – the real game.

So I ask, why isn’t there an Asian American Supreme Court Justice?  No need to answer.  It’s pretty obvious.  This isn’t a game that can be played and won currently but perhaps one day.  When I was a DA, I made a call to the National District Attorneys Association and asked (politely) how many Asian elected prosecutors there were in the US.  Zero.  The same grade percentage I once had in my high school programming class.  I told my team leader and he sounded out some lane, defensive excuse.  Just guilt talking.

But that is all just an aside and MacGuffin.  I didn’t understand this fully until my detective friend pointed it out.   The wining and dining one of my commissioners did was to be a mover and shaker.  Thankfully, I don’t think he played it all that well – not enough of a gangster.  You gotta be able to make offers one can’t refuse or roll the hard six, not just take shortcuts or give empty orders.  The key is to see the strings in order to pull them.  It’s stunning to see how many can’t do this well.

One class that I didn’t have a zero percentage in high school was history.  The Richelieu’s, Bismarck’s, Metternich’s, Cao Cao’s (more on him to come) were the real power behind the throne.  That’s how to play the game.  I also can’t believe I said one of the classic lines by Don Corleone at a staff meeting – that someone who was an empty suit was a pimp while it was someone else who was the real threat.  That was surprisingly well received and understood. 

I now think on where real influencers come from.  Teachers of course but also artists of every kind.  That’s where a lot of the hidden power is found. 

But would be nice to have an Asian Supreme.