Briefings Additional copies: JOEL KURTZMAN / 1900 Avenue of the Stars, Suite 2600 [email protected] The Transcendent We Los Angeles, CA 90067 t here is we, the subject of this issue of Briefings, and then there is PARTING THOUGHTS PARTING the we that’s even bigger. You might call the bigger we ethereal, transcendent, awesome, rare, indescribable, cool. ✺ Don’t get me wrong, the feeling of we is very comforting. Why else would people put up on Youtube all those pictures of puppies and kitties snug- gling together on sofas and beds? We go where the warmth is. Circulation Customer Service: Reprints: Advertising: UT there are several different kinds plishments as a player, they were celebrating B of we. There’s we — as in, “we are his accomplishments as a human being — Tiffany Sledzianowski Manchester United,” or “we are the Oakland the values he embodied. Stacy Levyn Raiders,” or “we are the proud employees of That made the ceremony different. In- Dunder Mifflin,” indicating that “we” are stead of focusing on a team, it focused on the part of a pretty awesome group that’s sepa- game. Instead of a city, it was the country. +1 (310) 556-8502 rate from other groups. Much of sports is like Instead of divisions, it was about unity. that. We feel good because we are part of this Instead of differences, the ceremony focused +1 (310) 556-8502 +1 (310) 226-6336 team and not that one. That other team — on commonalities. that’s the one we hate. When the last hand was shaken and the But there is more. Something bigger. I saw last cheer let out, it was clear that there were that demonstrated a few weeks ago at — of all two sides to this drama. On the one hand, Red “There places — Fenway Park, the stadium where the Sox saluted their New York rivals on Red Sox is no us Boston Red Sox play. Even more odd, the turf. On the other, New Yorkers saluted their without game was the last for Derek Jeter, captain longtime opponents right where they lived. them, of the New York Yankees. These two teams You can’t have a game without teams. But in no me have a 100-year-old rivalry, and Jeter chose this case, the opponents knew they were part without to retire on Red Sox turf. That’s a little like of something much bigger — that higher we. you.” Russian President Vladimir Putin inviting This is the secret sauce of we that is hardly in in an environmentally responsible manner. P i TE FSC U.S. President Barak Obama to one of his ever talked about. It’s a kind of transcendence r ® N judo tournaments. that comes not from dwelling on one closely - certified certified paper and soy-based inks But here is what made things different. knit group’s hard-fought, hard-earned superi- d Jeter is a much beloved man — a hero of the ority over another, but by understanding that i N game in most fans’ eyes. Jeter is known for his each team is in it together. There are no win- T H E U . S . A . sportsmanship, his fairness and objectivity, ners without losers. There is no us without his love of his team and his interest in people. them, no me without you. You could feel that He’s a ballplayer to be sure, but he’s also a in the air at Jeter’s last game. philanthropist, and a role model. He’s the guy But then, when the ceremonies stopped w i t h s o l a r p o w e r , who jumps out of nowhere to shake the other and the game began, and as the Yankees took team’s hand when they do something really to the field, there was a pitch, a disagreement magical. Jeter is a class act par excellence. about a call and the game’s first boo. Hey, So there he was at Boston’s Fenway with even though this was one of those cosmic 34,500 fans in the stadium, many from New moments, baseball’s still a game. York, undergoing a ceremony to thank him © Copyright 2014, ISSN 1949-8365 for, well, playing. There were dignitaries Joel Kurtzman from politics and sports, entertainment is author of the new and other fields. They sang, read poetry and book Unleashing hugged him a lot. the Second k American Century. orn Ferry But what became clear was what they kurtzmangroup.com were celebrating. Instead of Jeter’s accom- 72 BRIEFINGS.