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Early Childhood Education Prevents Future Crime

Growing up, my late grandmother used to tell me that the first seven years of a child’s life would determine the way that person would behave as an adult — this idea has been explored extensively by television and film director Michael Apted in his Up series of films, which revisits a diverse group of individuals around England every seven years since they were seven years old — they are now all close to fifty.

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Favorites of 2010

This was a spectacular year for me, all things considered. While I didn’t particularly watch a lot of television, or see too many films, it was definitely one of the best years of my life if not the best year thusfar. Let’s see why — starting with my favorite things of the year and then moving onto why I really loved the year.

Movies and Television
I didn’t go out to the movie theater too many times this year. It wasn’t a matter of not having any interest in the films being played, but rather of having my time being taken up by actual living, so to speak. When I did get to the theater, it was only for a couple of films that I really wanted to see. A bit of a contrast with, say, the summer of 2004 when Elizabeth and I somehow managed to see practically every movie playing in the theaters.

The two films that I distinctly remember seeing in theaters were the Woody Allen film You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger and Toy Story 3. I particularly liked You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger though, predictably, it was panned by many critics. Was it a film of tremendous substance? It certainly was not — even the film admits it in a roundabout way as it opens, referencing Macbeth who said that life was “a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing…” Nevertheless, this tale was a fun one to watch.

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Why the American Musical Theatre Must Have an Aesthetic Morality

The American Musical Theatre needs to have an Aesthetic Morality — because it does not yet have any sort of directional mandate for excellence — other than the annual, presumptive, parade of giving out incestuous Tony and Drama Desk awards to their own for shared masturbatory adoration.

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Favorites of 2009

The year was an interesting one, to say the least. It saw me relocating to a more permanent place of dwelling — my futon surfing days are over. It also saw me finding new interests in the music field, including a re-ignition for my passion for vinyl.

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Harry Potter Shenanigans

Odd things were afoot last night when I went to see the new Harry Potter film – Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. From the sudden blockage of access to the toilet at Starbucks to a queue that was invented — and then became very real in the minds of its followers to the attempt to orchestrate a “classic” Potter fandom son — it was a strange evening that didn’t end until nearly four in the morning.

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2008 Favorites

Another year, another list of favorites, and another year of my still not being Oprah – on the bright side, you know you won’t see any mentions of the va-jay-jay, after that one of course.

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The Nature of the Producer

The nature of the producer is to provide money for a creative project and manage the schedule for getting things done.  The best producers are invisible.  The producer’s essence is felt, but their being fades into the background to support the vision of others.

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