A R C H I V E

The triple punch of a global pandemic, political unrest at home, and a pending financial reset are indicative of a major societal change, a hinge in history if you will, or a Fourth Turning.

When the kinetic energy of the pendulum swings to the far side of the political center; when income equality is so vast, the wealth of three billionaires exceeds that of the lower half; when failed banks get Government bailout and favorable tax treatment, while the hard-working Main Street entrepreneurs are left to fail on their own in the name of “creative destruction,” then the pendulum's kinetic energy suddenly morph’s into potential energy, enabling the political Left to riot in the streets of Seattle, the political Right to storm the US Capital, and a new Occupy Wall Street crowd to use their digital pitchforks to take down billion-dollar short-selling hedge funds (see Steve Smith’s detailed review HERE).

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When we launched City Club in March 2005, our biggest obstacle was lack of experience and street cred, so folks were hesitant to join a community of which they knew little.

Ten years later, a select group of members met with me to express their concerns, suggesting in essence "this is now our community and an integral part of our social lives so, given your advancing age and your recent heart attack experience, might you give us some assurance about the continuity of our community after you pass on?"

My response at the time was, "I am not planning to go anywhere soon but, should a totally unforeseen event occur such that I were to be prematurely out of the picture, City Club would indeed die with me were it still lacking financial feasibility and significant work completion. But, I am hoping that by the time we execute on our third floor renovation plans to attract younger members, my son Dustin will be in a position to take over."

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Then what are elders?

They are wisdomkeepers

they are pioneers in consciousness

Serving as mentors,

they pass on the distilled essence

of their life experience

–Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi.

Rabbi Zalman who passed away at the age of 90 was a City Club Honorary Member. One of the things that made Reb Zalman unique was his commitment to living it, instead of preaching it. He was fully alive because he was able to face his mortality, and learn from it; he strived to morph from age-ing to sage-ing.

What’s your plan for aging? Since none of us take any of it with us, how are you planning to give back? Do you get frustrated reading the morning paper, or are you taking an active leadership role in society, however small, to make a difference?

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January 6, 2021 will go down in history as a terrible day for Donald Trump, and a great day for America.

This "Hinge in History” is marked by the current Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: a global pandemic, political upheavals, environmental devastation, and a pending economic reset.

Experiencing the greatest political divide since the Civil War, and the largest wealth disparity since the Rubber Barons of the Industrial Revolution ruled, the old system was no longer working, requiring the birth of a new system.

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Over the break, I had the chance to read Elon Musk by Ashlee Vance, and Elie Wiesel’s classic Souls On Fire, Portraits and Legends of Hasidic Masters.

I keep wondering what is the common thread among Rumi and Shakespeare, Mozart and Beethoven, Edison and Musk, who all seem to have connected to a source I understand intellectually but struggle to experience practically. Who are these people and what source are they connected to that allows them to live fearlessly and channel knowledge most of us are not tapped into?

Reflecting on these lives, I am reminded of Neil Diamond’s quote “It’s better to burn out than to fade away.” In fact, this is the essence of the classic Sufi analogy of the moth and the flame: get too close and you burn by merging into the flame; maintain a safe distance and you miss out on the essence of life.

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Last year is history; this year is a mystery; now is all that counts.

Since we are all tired of hearing how terrible last year was, and since it is not clear how much longer our personal and global pain and suffering will last, let’s take to heart Eckhart Tolle’s advice to focus on where we are now, and take appropriate action.

Faced with 40-to-1 odds against the British, George Washington, instead of worrying or complaining, crossed the Delaware River in the middle of the night, during the dead of winter, once again proving that courage does not mean we are not afraid. Instead, courage means we proceed despite being afraid.

Our City Club community is facing its fair share of challenges, but instead of freezing in the face of fear, we are building and expanding in anticipation of a bright future, launching what we hope to be a global institute, and offering to help any member who needs it in any way we can.

Best wishes for a healthy, meaningful, and prosperous year ahead.

— Sina.

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Such a memorable year! A deadly pandemic, riots in the streets, shootings by police, a contested election, and a harsh economic climate, all added up to make this a memorable year everyone would rather forget.

Adopting the adage that there is opportunity in adversity, when the pandemic hit in March, we chose not to be ruled by fear; instead, we decided to launch two major projects that may influence who we are and what we do for decades, if not generations to come.

Built 130-years ago as a state of the art elementary school, Highland was an abandoned and dilapidated shell when we bought it 42-years ago to convert it into a luxury office building. Fifteen years ago we started City Club on the south side of the basement, but the building always had the feel and function of an office building until four years ago when we renovated the top floor into a Shared Workspace.

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Winter descends. The nights are long; the days are cold; the pandemic crests.

Before Madison Avenue marketed the season as one of indulgence -- to eat, drink, be merry and celebrate by shopping, folks used this sacred time of the year to slow down, take refuge, eat less, think more, and reflect on the past, while planning for the future.

Philosophers, mathematicians, economists and religious leaders all remind us of the cyclical nature of the universe. What goes up, must come down. Joseph interpreted the Pharaoh’s dream by saying, Egypt will have seven years of prosperity followed by seven years of famine.

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Last week, we received a variety of feedback on the topic of Good & Evil, so I would like to expand on it.

Black and White, Masculine and Feminine, Liberal and Conservative, Yin and Yang, Genius and Madness, Joy and Sorrow are all opposite sides of the same coin, and the essential building blocks of the universe.

While it is important to strive for unity by overcoming duality, the reality is, it takes two to tango as One. E pluribus unum.

I can continue waxing poetic on the topic, but instead, I will let Kahlil Gibran, one of my favorite poets, more elegantly make the case using Joy & Sorrow as an example.

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It’s a jungle out there. It’s a dog eat dog world. Kill to eat, or you may wind up as someone’s lunch.

Humans harbor the capacity for unimaginable evil. Read Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables; Read Victor Frankel’s Man’s Search for Meaning; Read Howard’s Zinn’s People’s History of the United States. To this day, children are born, live, and die on the streets of Kolkata. From Stalin to Mao Tse-tung, from Genghis Khan to Hitler, history is full of people believing "one death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic."

Knowing this, how is one to stay sane and function effectively amongst such cruelty? How did Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, and Gandhi do it? What’s the best strategy to survive, and thrive in this seemingly unjust, bat-crazy world?

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By Leondard Cohen:

If you are a dealer, I’m out of the game

If you are the healer, it means I’m broken and lame

If thine is the glory then mine must be the shame

You want it darker

We kill the flame

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“Without Tradition we’d all be as shaky as a fiddler on the roof.”

Tradition is the bedrock of every culture and religion. We celebrate America's independence every 4th of July and let freedom ring, not only during the easy times, but even when we are faced with unprecedented internal and external challenges like we are today. And so it is with Thanksgiving, we adopt an attitude of gratitude at this time of the year even when it seems hard to find something to be thankful for.

And so it is this year. Call it what you will -- "A Hinge in History" or the classic "Fourth Turning" -- all around us we see a looming Coronavirus threat, foreboding climate change, profound economic disruptions, and impotent politicians putting their own interests ahead of our country's.

My personal credo is centered around the adoption of “ An Attitude of Gratitude," first when it comes to health, second to family, and all else in succession, continually focusing on the many things I am thankful for, including the privilege of living in the United States of America.

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What a year this has turned out to be!

In January, none of us expected 2020 to be the year of a deadly pandemic, street riots, impeachment, unemployment, contested elections, earthquakes, hurricanes, fires and murder hornets. I am keeping an eye on Boulder Creek to see if the water turns red, in which case we'll know we are dealing with historic changes of biblical proportions!

But are things really that bad? Are we not enjoying our basic human needs like food, shelter, and security? Do we not feel more alive today despite all the challenges we face, or are we acting like a deer in headlights, killing time while time is killing us?

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In 1859, before he became president, before the Union tore itself to pieces, Abraham Lincoln gave a speech at a Wisconsin State Fair, sharing the story of an Eastern king who asked his wisest court philosophers to provide him with advice that would be true regardless of the situation.

After 244 years and 58 often difficult and uncertain elections, once again our country is bitterly divided; our forests are burning; a new virus is humbling us, damaging our economy, and making us question the strength of the foundation our country is built on.

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To manage and maintain a large functioning civil society, we must have laws and enforce them; unless they are unjust, in which case we must change them. Not enforcing laws because some think they are unjust leads to lawlessness and the breakdown of civil society.

In the mid-19th century, Boulder was settled along the shores of Boulder Creek near our current downtown commercial area. Since then, our city and its core have gone through many economic and political cycles, continually reinventing itself in accordance with the times.

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The American Civil War, and the two World Wars taught us there is no prospect for peace and reconciliation until the enemy formally surrenders.

In the arduous path of life, if we are lucky, we eventually realize we have met the enemy, and the enemy is us. In that case, who do we surrender to so we can experience peace? How do we own and then integrate our own shadow?

Islam literally means surrender. Every religion and spiritual path tells us control is an illusion. We will find peace when we find a force, an idea or a cause greater than ourselves to surrender to, or when we find a guide, mentor, or guru we can trust…

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For the past six months, we have been blessed with access to our spacious gardens, allowing for natural social distancing to avoid Covid-19. However, with the arrival of Fall, the garden season coming to a close, and in anticipation of moving inside, we are launching a new phase in service beginning Monday, October 19th.

To set the scene, we have reduced the number of seats in our Dining Room to allow for proper social distancing, and we are serving lunch in other areas of the Club such as the Grand Room, Library, various Conference Rooms, and the new Carrara Marble Table on the First Floor. In addition, we will once again utilize glass and china.

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Next time you cross the covered bridge into Highland, look up to see, perched atop the townhomes, a massive sculpture of “Simurgh,” a benevolent mythical bird in Persian literature, made by local artist Will Kohler using rusted tractor parts.

Nearly eight centuries ago, Persian Sufi poet, Attar of Nishapur, a contemporary of Rumi, wrote a poem called “The Conference of the Birds”. In the poem, the birds of the world gather to decide who is to be their sovereign, as they had none. The hoopoe, the wisest of them all, suggested they should find the legendary Simurgh. The hoopoe leads the birds, each of whom represents a human fault which prevents human kind from attaining enlightenment.

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Did you watch the first presidential debate of this election season?!

Being at war used to mean fighting an enemy in uniform, dodging bombs and bullets, and dealing with food scarcity. After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, we could no longer even identify the enemy, let alone figure out how to defeat him. Instead of using bombs and bullets, today we fight our wars on multiple fronts: biological, trade, currency, cyber, space and military.

The Fourth Turning posits that every eighty years humanity spirals to a higher level in the aftermath of a major war and technological innovation: think American Revolution and the advent of the steam engine; Civil War and continental railroads; WWII and aviation.

Today America is at war again. With our country more divided than at any time since the Civil War, we are fighting a global pandemic, re-drawing the map of the Middle East, continuing to fight the Cold War with the remnants of the collapsed Soviet Union, and standing up to China to say ENOUGH!

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Let’s assume there is no such thing as absolute reality. Let’s assume we are masters of our own universe, capable of creating the reality we want. How then should we go about creating our reality?

Let’s start by looking at the glass as half full, instead of half empty. Let’s assume one is innocent till proven guilty; good till proven otherwise.

Instead of saying I’ll believe it when I see it, let’s start saying I’ll see it when I believe it. In the midst of the doom and gloom of the Coronavirus, social isolation and a pending economic collapse, let’s adopt the attitude of gratitude for all that we have, instead of all that we must have to be happy.

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