Back in 2013

Ted Sarandos said of his company, Netflix:

"The goal is to become HBO faster than HBO can become us." - GQ

But in 2023, that seems to have changed.

To quote the Home Box Office:

Slim Charles, The Wire, "The thing about the old days, they the old days."

And these days, things are changing fast.

Way faster than the old days.

CNBC has an article & video both April 23, 2023:

Apr 23, 2023 : CNBC How HBO and Netflix have evolved away from each other in the past decade

Apr 23, 2023 : CNBC Why HBO's Next Move Is Critical

Hollywood Reporter has two, May 5, 2023.

MAY 5, 2023 4:06AM: Warner Bros. Discovery Swings to $50M Streaming Profit, Says U.S. Streaming Business Will Be Profitable for 2023

MAY 5, 2023 6:45AM PDT: David Zaslav: Striking Writers Should Be “Compensated Fairly,” While “Love for the Business” Could End Impasse

And this morning 605 am PST: Hollywood CEO Pay: Big Checks, Ugly Optics Amid Strike

• it cites another article from 2022: The 9 figure club, Hollywood CEO and Executive Pay Revealed for 2021 Compensation - The Hollywood Reporter

• Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav ($246.6 million)

• Endeavor’s Ari Emanuel ($308.2 million)

Amazon CEO Andy “Jassy saw nearly all of his $212.7 million pay package arrive via a stock grant tied to his elevation to CEO in July.

The Amazon chief is “an interesting case, since while I’m sure Amazon’s media branch is doing well, they consider themselves a technology company and benchmark against other technology companies…” Georg Szalai THR

It is almost impossible to keep up with the changes in media and technology, telecom. Media and tech moves very quickly.

You simply must remain Stoic and try to learn what you can, about what is going on today, but also what went on in the past.

Focus on what you can control, not what you cannot control.

So let’s try and learn together and answer:

• why is the WGA striking in 2023?

• what if I am not Guild?

• How should I spend my time in uncertain times?

Q: Why WGA Strike in 2023?

The strike is layered with concerns, including better pay, streaming residuals, mandatory staffing and safeguards against artificial intelligence. -Sophie Flay, ABC

Q: What if I am not Guild?

Do not be a “scab.”

Stage32: Screenwriting : WGA Strike. What happens to scabs? by Scot Michael Walker

A "scab" is someone who crosses a picket line and replaces a union worker. It's almost impossible for a writer to be a "scab". Writers rooms on TV series will close down, not be filled with "scab" writers.

So I would not be working alongside some scab writer after the strike. If during the strike a signatory producer buys a script from a non-guild writer I would be far more upset with the producer than the writer. The non-guild writer is not violating an agreement, the producer is.

- D Marcus

And of course I went to Reddit

But querying managers? Querying agents? Networking with managers or agents? That's fine.”

https://www.reddit.com/r/Screenwriting/comments/12ay3vv/will_a_wga_strike_affect_writers_breaking_in/#

But querying managers? Querying agents? Networking with managers or agents? That's fine.” - TeenFilmGirl

Q: How should I spend my time in uncertain times?

Writing.

Studying.

Exercising.

Traveling. ✈️🚗🚌🚊

Laughing.

Living.

Loving.

Make plans with friends or family.

Follow through on them.

Then, when you feel catharsis, resume war.

The Mahabharat war was fought between Pandvas and Kaurvas for 18 days.

Bhagavad Gita contains only 700 verses. Every year at Gita Jayanti devotees in Mayapur sit together and chant all 700 verses. It takes less than 2 hours - Murari Das, Quora

Yeah, 2 hours out of 18 days is the Gita.

The war is much much much longer than that.

Do not worry, soldier, about a hard battle. Get your rest and go back to war.

This is the way.

This past weekend, my friend Jesse visited me in LA and stayed in my apartment for a few days before he going to Seattle for work.

Saturday 5/6/23, my Apple Watch says my daily total was 9.21 miles.

Through Runyon Canyon, food at Sunset Grill, then Malibu, which had a low tide that day.

Jesse and I got to walk through a bunch of rocks on the beach usually underwater, at Matador and Point Dume.

Incredibly therapeutic.

I will end this blog by sharing some pictures of my weekend.

It feels cleansing to share this with you.

I hope you find clean sources of energy in these uncertain times.

I have a full beard right now. You’ll see.