The Street News Saga : Part Two

Poverty is an industry worth billions and the poverty pimps protect their business

I sold papers for only a day or two after speaking with Hutch inside the sales center. The man was so sharp I experienced that rare sensation that he could see right through me when he was talking to me. I noticed his friendly manner and saw the hard edge he had right underneath that was pure leadership material. I knew from the military the combination of qualities that make for good leadership. The majority of modern people we see in our leadership roles don’t have any of those qualities at all. Recently they have begun to speak about the role of “empathy.” Congratulations, millennials. The ability to connect with subordinates on a spiritual level and make them adopt your vision as their own is critical to leading others. To do that you’ll have to convince them you respect them and see their worth as people. Without it, you’ll end up with pathos exactly like we have in the United States right now. It is obvious why Trump connects with his base in a way the bad guys only wish they could.

It is really worth saying that Hutch was so tuned in to what was going on around him, he could speak to some weirdo who was the brightest prodigy on the Eastern seaboard who was living in a train tunnel and sweep him right onto Team Street News in only a few minutes. You cannot underestimate the charisma of somebody who could do that. Out of the millions of people in New York city, Hutch was able to enlist me in his crusade with only a couple minutes of talking to me. Astounding.

Where the military could not interest me in the proposition, I had a strong desire to become this man’s lieutenant. I had a feeling if I hitched onto his wagon I would soon find a way out of my learned helplessness and get the opportunity once again to prove myself a very competent person in my own right. After talking to Hutch only a few minutes, that powerful sensation of Deja Vu I get sometimes that I have just gotten back onto the right rails in the Matrix was overwhelming. I was supposed to meet this guy. I had something very important to do in his organization. Win, lose or draw I felt instinctively that I would not regret giving a damn about this particular enterprise.