Starting International Business today!

We begin this week with the definition of international business and describe the benefits that accrue to the parties involved in international business. Furthermore, we consider international trade and foreign direct investment patterns and their implication on management decisions.

We will also study the international trade and foreign direct investment patterns and their implications (both positive and negative) on business and host governments. Assess arguments that balance the benefits of international business with its associated social costs.

Academy Awards tonight!

In 2006 I saw over 100 films in the movie theater. I definitely have a lot to say about this year's nominees...

Will Smith deserves to win the best actor category but he will not. Instead, Forest Whitaker is the heavy favorite. Last year people were shocked when Crash won Best Picture but I was not. There was something in the air that told me this category would have a big unexpected twist and it did. This year the big unexpected twist could be if Peter O'Toole (Venus) wins for Best Actor. He's been around forever, is a great actor, was great in this film and I don't believe he's ever won an Oscar. They may award him the George Clooney benefit-of-the-doubt Oscar this year.

Helen Mirren for The Queen but if anybody could give her a run for her money it is Dame Judi in Notes on a Scandal. Her performance was so carefully crafted and the movie so unexpected. Volver was fun and entertaining but Penelope Cruz isn't on the same plane as Helen and Judi. Of course Meryl Streep is Meryl Streep and she is always brilliant but being in a comedy here will not help her as the Academy Awards like to award people for transforming into dark and ugly people or tormented and inspiring characters. Kate Winslet is always great but Little Children was no In The Bedroom.

Jennifer Hudson and Eddie Murphy for Dreamgirls, though I am not a fan of Eddie Murphy's and am not convinced he should win. As for the Supporting Actress nominees, Adriana Barraza deserves recognition for her portrayal of the illegal babysitter in Babel.

The Best Picture category this year seems to be lacking although Letters from Iwo Jima was a great film. I think Clint Eastwood is a brilliant director. Babel was okay but it didn't knock my socks off and I am not a big fan of Brad Pitt's acting. The Departed was great and entertaining but a little too overrated for my taste, though I do love Jack Nicholson! Little Miss Sunshine was really sweet, smart and entertaining but certainly not the Best Picture of the year. Comedy is overlooked a lot by awards shows and Little Miss Sunshine was hilarious. The Queen was insightful and interesting.

Best Director comes down to Scorsese and Eastwood again. As stated before, I am biased when it comes to Eastwood but would be okay if Scorsese finally won.

Best Screenplay for me is between Little Miss Sunshine and Pan's Labyrinth.

Pan's Labyrinth for Best Foreign Picture, though Water could steal it.

I also thought An Inconvenient Truth was an important documentary.

Class coming to an end, week 7.

It is hard to believe that five weeks have flown by since I last wrote. We just finished week seven of The Ethical and Legal Environment of Business.

I really enjoyed the class, especially the legal aspect.

Here are some of the things we've studied:

antitrust law, ethics in organizations, ethical theories, product liability, product development, business torts and crimes, negligence, implied warranty, property law, intellectual property, trademarks, patents, copyrights, constitutional law, contract law, trade secrets, respondeat superior, agency law, administrative law, environmental law, securities law and labor law.

In our final week we will be discussing consumer protection, illegal vs. legal advertising methods and business organization.

My MBA in 2007

The current class I am taking is called The Ethical & Legal Environment of Business. We will primarily be focusing on The Case Method for the eight week session.

The Case Method
When applying critical thinking skills, the case method of analysis is a useful tool. Cases have a long history as a teaching tool and are valuable because they provide a common specific experience. Cases never include all the information necessary; they are a parallel to life. It is unlikely that, in any business decision, an individual will have all the facts and information he/she would like to have in order to make the best decision possible. Cases, like life, require that assumptions be made and articulated. The first model analyzes the case from the legal perspective, while the second model uses the ethical framework as a form for case analysis.

The outcomes for week 2 were:

• Formulate a working definition of business ethics.
• Identify potential ethical issues in organizations.
• Discriminate among three approaches commonly used in examining ethical issues in business; and identify strengths and limitations of each approach.
• Competently use the concepts and taxonomy associated with theoretical approaches to ethics.
• Formulate and apply an approach to making personal ethical decisions in business.
  

The cases we analyzed in the first two weeks were the Paul Cronan case and the Ann Hopkins case. They were both interesting and I am enjoying working on cases.

The outcomes for week 1 were:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the differences and similarities between law and ethics as guides for behavior in business.
• Identify tension points between law and ethics when applied to business conduct.
• Articulate the benefits of, and demonstrate the value of, critical thinking.
• Discriminate among the characteristics of critical thinking.
• Demonstrate the process of ethical case analysis.
• Use the case method for both ethical and legal analysis.
• Understand the significance of the Rule of Law and the Nature of Man.
• Distinguish between law and justice.
• Distinguish between natural and positive law.
• Explain the operation of the American legal system.
• Explain the assumptions of capitalism affecting the legal system's operation.

The Pursuit of Happyness - a brilliant movie!

I recently saw a terrifically moving film with Will Smith called The Pursuit of Happyness. I see a lot of films every week in the theatre, usually at least two films or more. This one begs to be seen by all. It's a really touching film and I would recommend it to everybody. Fathers and sons might find it of particular interest, but it is not limited to just fathers and sons.

It was a private screening and Will Smith was kind enough to talk with us about the film, along with the Italian director Gabriele Muccino, who was amazing! I learned a lot from both of them and feel this is Will's Academy Award winning performance. It was that great. I didn't see any of Will Smith's larger than life persona in the film, that is how good he was and how magically directed the film was.

Go see it and tell me what you think!

Life and the pursuit of the MBA

Another 8 week session and class in the MBA has come and gone. This week I began my third session in the MBA program, this class is called The Economics of Management and the coursework has already been piled on. We have several articles, several books and one paper to write by Sunday night. It should be another grueling session. I must say that I do of course look forward to taking a closer look at Economics. We spent a few weeks on it during the summer but this in depth intensive session should clear up any confusion I experienced during the summer.

I was a little sad to see that most of my classmates for the first two terms are not in this current class, I guess they are in other sections. There are only 4 of us from the previous group and I will miss our weekly homework chats!

The past few weeks have been extremely grueling for me with school work, business work and personal matters. I am so swamped and am really working toward reducing some of my goings-on. We’ll see how it goes as I am currently going full tilt towards production of this horror short I am directing and producing. We have auditions next week and then we shoot about ten days later. I am up to my ears in learning child labor laws, etc. We have really been thrown for a loop with this shoot because the amount of hours we can have a minor child work is very limiting. This makes our budget skyrocket which is no fun!

I have also started reading this blog (daily) called IamFacingForeclosure.com about a 24-year-old real estate investor who ended up way in over his head. Since I am interested in real estate investing and have done a little myself, I find it fascinating to see how big a mess he has made. I also find it kind of sad that people have nothing better to do but write to this kind and be cruel to him.

I want to get back to writing in my blog at least once a week.

Time just keeps flying!

It seems like just yesterday that we were beginning week 1 of our second MBA term and now here we are with this second term half way over!

The first three weeks we were bombarded with Accounting. It's taken some time to figure out where to put debits and credits on the financial statements but I am getting there. Lots of readings, and problems. I must say that I fell behind on some of the readings and it has been tricky to catch up. Fortunately I find myself getting back to a more balanced place. We began Business Finance this week and I'll write more in a few days with my thoughts on what this all entails and how it has affected me.

I find myself getting caught up in some of the research for class discussions...I always seem to be on a fascinating new website that I can't take my eyes off of. Ideas are constantly flowing in and out of my severely overwhelmed brain.

Busy Times

It's been so busy that I have hardly had any time to write in.

As for the MBA, we are in the middle of the second week of Accounting and there is just so much information being thrown at us at such a rapid pace I find myself trying to stay on top of all of the readings, lectures and homework assignments.

This week's discussion involved businesses that had new commercial flops. It was interesting to look at what failed and why. The links that illustrate new product failures are:
http://www.newproductworks.com/product_poll/hm_favorite_failures.html
http://www.newproductworks.com/product_poll/hm_failures.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_product_failures#Food_and_drink_flops

I am excited about some new ideas I am working on. I'll write more soon about how Accounting turned out.

Little Miss Sunshine

I saw this great little movie called Little Miss Sunshine. It was original and very funny. I find myself really attracted to character-driven ensemble films. This is one of them. I think the movie is particularly appealing to audiences because of the family aspect. Let's face it we all have family that have angered or embarrassed us at times and we still love them. We fight over trivial matters and come together when the unspeakable happens. I thought it was sweet film...you should see.

and oh yes, it is set in Albuquerque...but I swear people in Albuquerque do not live like these people do!

End of MBA first term

It's been quite sometime since I last wrote and life has been rather hectic. I worked tirelessly into the morning last night to complete my marketing plan for class. I must say that there was a lot of research I enjoyed doing for the motion picture industry. I also wanted to recommend the "Marketing Myopia" article to anyone interested in marketing or business. It was an influential piece of writing in the 70s and still very relevant today.

We've begun the first of three weeks of Accounting. I just hope we don't have long drawn out problems like we had in Statistics. I love looking at things from a financial perspective but I don't want to just keep plugging in formulas...I am happy to have made it through my first MBA term will most of my sanity intact. I realize how over-extended I am. My ambitions keep me very busy...and sometimes it's too busy for my own good but I'm really working on maintaining a balance that keeps me busy but less stressed out.

Being in business school has really nurtured and encouraged the entrepreneurial part of me! I have another half dozen great business ideas I could implement tomorrow. It’s such an invigorating process to sit and talk with Erica about the feasibilities of new business and to hammer out the kinks in our current ventures. I’m launching a new business with my mom and encouraging everybody else I know to examine what they might be interested in. In reality, most people are more comfortable showing up to work with a purpose instead of creating their own luck. It’s too hard, or there isn’t enough time when in reality I think that people always make time to do what they want. People spend countless hours on the telephone, playing video games, or going to the movies.

A week or so ago I had a good mid school friend come to LA and we had a lot of fun. We went to Disneyland, which is a great place to eat bad food and laugh! We went to a professional soccer game, which was more fun that I thought it would be. I played soccer when I was younger and just don't like watching it on TV but in person is great! I'd love to see another one!

Unfortunately we ran out of time before she had to go back to Albuquerque but it was good fun. Spending time with this friend reminded me of how precious people are...

Over the last year a few people I held in high regard have come in and out of my life. Some of it has been truly devastating in many ways. How could I be so wrong about somebody I thought I was close to for 10 years? In life there are no certainties and I have found a way to embrace that. It's tricky at times but I think I'm stronger today than I was last year! I'm committed to success and happiness and don't really want people around me who don't bring something to the table. I think this is something most people forget to ask for. Anyway, I guess that's enough psychoanalysis for now.

The U.S. indirectly funds the Mexican economy...why?

Yesterday I was reading some of the news headlines on CNN and came across the article below. It made me wonder why nobody else in the U.S. is talking about the fact that remittances from Mexican migrants living in the U.S. are the second largest source of income into the Mexican economy. While our healthcare system continues to unravel, the Mexican economy continues to take valuable dollars from the U.S. That's a lot of money that never counts toward change for the soil on which it was earned. It almost seems like they(Mexico) are entitled to U.S. money but the U.S. is not allowed to mention issues such as border security for fear of offending the migrants living here. We don't need another "si se puede" march because we(U.S. citizens) want to address the issues created when a million or more immigrants cross our borders each year...so what are we supposed to do?

Drug violence, political unrest mar Mexico tourism
Industry struggling in some areas
Friday, August 4, 2006; Posted: 1:05 p.m. EDT (17:05 GMT)
MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AP) -- A human head washes up on an Acapulco beach. Protesters hassle visitors at makeshift checkpoints in the colonial city of Oaxaca. And in Mexico City, leftist demonstrators turn the tourist draws of Reforma Avenue and the Zocalo plaza into sprawling, ragtag protest camps.
Growing political unrest and drug violence are making foreigners think twice about visiting Mexico, where the $11.8 billion tourism industry is the country's third-largest legal source of income, after oil and remittances from migrants in the United States.
Mexico has been struggling since last fall, when Hurricane Wilma hit the country's biggest tourism moneymaker, Cancun.
No tourists have been reported hurt in Mexico City, Oaxaca or Acapulco, but hotels are being hit by cancellations of thousands of reservations.
In Mexico City alone, hotels, restaurants and stores are losing $23 million a day, according to the city's Commerce, Services and Tourism Chamber. Some businesses have threatened to stop paying taxes unless the government cracks down on the demonstrations.
Protesters in Oaxaca, claiming fraud in the state gubernatorial race, have taken over the picturesque downtown to pressure Gov. Ulises Ruiz to step down. They forced the cancellation of an ethnic festival, and tourists must pass through checkpoints to reach the arch-ringed main plaza.
Protesters want to use the unrest to "force the population that relies on tourism to pressure the government," said Jose Escobar, head of the Oaxaca employers' federation.
In the Pacific resort of Acapulco, drug gangs are battling for control of lucrative smuggling and sales routes. Human heads have been dumped in front of government offices and in the glittering resort's bay. There have been gun battles on the streets.
In Mexico City, supporters of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador have taken over streets to press election officials for a re-count in the disputed July 2 presidential elections.
And tourism officials say things could get worse.
"If this goes on for a week or 10 days more, some hotels are going to be in a desperate situation," said Carlos Mackinlay, director of Mexico City tourism promotion.
Double-decker buses no longer tour the tree-lined Reforma, which connects the city's Chapultepec Park to the historic center but is now closed to traffic. Museums, restaurants and hotels stand largely empty.
Tourists who brave the demonstrations must skirt rickety gas cookers and duck under ropes holding up tarps as they hike back to their hotels. Mayor Alejandro Encinas said Thursday that city officials would guarantee access to hotels.
For now, helmetless motorcycle "taxi" drivers offer white-knuckle, 15-peso ($1.35) rides on the backs of their bikes, navigating past lawn chairs, cots and tents.
Korean businesswoman Sophia Noh, 28, paced outside the blockaded stock exchange building Thursday, wondering how she was going to get in for a meeting.
"This has made things harder," Noh said. "I think both sides should begin to negotiate."
Across the street, 60-year-old tourist Elvira Gotuzzo of Buenos Aires, Argentina, was trying to rent a car to get out of town. She and her family were too scared to sightsee in the city's 7-century-old downtown, which is occupied by demonstrators in ragged tents.
"This is a crime," Gotuzzo said. "It's such a shame!"
Despite growing calls from President Vicente Fox and even Lopez Obrador's own supporters, city officials who are allied with the leftist candidate have refused to take action.
In Mexico City's financial and cultural heart, loudspeakers blare salsa music and harangues about alleged vote fraud.
The protesters claim the presidential election was tainted by fraud, giving conservative Felipe Calderon a narrow lead. The case is before an electoral tribunal, which has until September 6 to declare a president-elect or annul the election.
Things aren't likely to improve soon.
"This is only the first step," said protester Fernando Martinez, helping block a downtown office building. "Next, we're going after the airports."

Economics ends MBA week 5!

This past week covered an introduction to Economics including Porter's Five Forces, and supply/demand in elastic/inelastic markets...

It was a welcome change from the monstrously long statistics problems we were dealing with for three weeks.

The week 5 assignment had us analyzing an HMO medical contract for a theoretical Dental office. Most people tend to shy away from topics like statistics and economics but if you look closely you'll see that they are particularly relevant to everything that goes on in any kind of business anywhere. I find myself better equipped to discuss some of the issues that have come to mind because of my new and improved vocabulary.

I can't believe that I'm two thirds through my first MBA semester!

Is Oprah too powerful?

I've been meaning to post this blog bit I read on the Huffington Post website. It was written by Bill Robinson and I thought it was particularly interesting. Not sure I completely agree/disagree with it, but it did make me think...what do you think?

07.09.2006
How To Sell Your Soul for the Cover of Vanity Fair!
Like most people, I don't often think about Hilary Swank. Or her husband Chad Lowe. I've met them a couple times in the course of work, and they seemed lovely. So it was surprising when my computer started insisting I read about their marriage. Suddenly, I couldn't even check my email without dodging pop-up windows, teasing me with the promise of their tawdry secrets: "Hilary Swank tells all about Chad's substance abuse problem!" I mean... Seriously? Putting aside the obvious question of who fucking cares, there was the sadder feeling of a two-time Oscar winner ratting out her ex-tv star ex-husband (whom she forgot to thank in her acceptance speech) after dumping him. Why would she do such a graceless, tacky thing? Then it all clicked: she wanted the cover of Vanity Fair. And she got it.

The fact is, spilling an ugly secret is the price of admission for the cover of Vanity Fair. And it's corporate policy. Just ask Teri Hatcher, who tried to peddle "I got dumped by Clooney and/or Seacrest" and ended up having to go with "my uncle molested me" to get the cover. Anderson Cooper revealed "for the first time" the tragic details of his brother's suicide, and became one of the few men to grace the cover. Jennifer Aniston practically subjected herself to a full cavity search to get the cover. And of course there's perennial fave Nicole Kidman, who has really mastered the art of giving V.F. readers emotional, in-depth interviews that reveal absolutely nothing. In fact, other wanna-be cover victims should take a page from Nic's book; she's great at gaming the system.
But I don't really blame Vanity Fair for the current pop culture of confession. In fact, I blame Oprah. She legitimized and encouraged the notion that celebrities have to reveal hideous secrets to become human, and humans have to reveal hideous secrets to become celebrities. It's probably not a coincidence that a woman like Oprah, who was raised reciting scripture in Mississippi churches from the age of three, would become the nation's pastor, hosting afternoon confessionals. Every weekday afternoon, she leads her flock of 25 million into one side of the sacred booth, to hear what co-opted guests will whisper through the partition.

But even Oprah's raising the stakes. No longer is it enough to kiss and tell. Any of J.Lo's husbands could do that. No, Oprah now wants to actually possess her victims. Recently, of course, there was Jennifer Aniston, the modern role model for all victims who would like to cash in personal sorrow for fame vouchers. She literally moved into Oprah's Santa Barbara ranch, sensing no safer place for a woman wronged who's eager to spill intimate details in front of a camera.

Then Oprah had Anderson Cooper actually drive with a camera crew to show us the spot where his brother hit the pavement after jumping to his death from his apartment balcony. He hadn't been there in a long time. He choked back tears. Oprah wasn't with him of course, she's far too busy to actually participate in the orgiastic confessional ritual from which she profits so handsomely. But she did arrange to have Anderson's mother listen in the audience as he recounted the tragedy. Oprah then had mom recount her version, while Anderson listened, framed in the tightest close-up possible with current technology. That, my fellow Americans, is the price of doing business with Oprah.

So, too, is punishment by Oprah. Fake drunk author James Frey had to get ambushed, not because she cares about the integrity of her book club, but because there is no greater offense in Oprah-land than a false confession. And just a couple weeks ago, she started gunning for guest Meg Ryan when Meg wouldn't play "poor me" in response to Oprah's baiting questions about how hard it is to be famous. "I don't think many people can relate to that problem, Oprah. I'm here to talk about the CARE organization in India." Oprah looked like she was going to kill her.

According to Christianity Today, Oprah's "effect extends beyond media. She is a force that has permeated the way we think about culture and interpersonal communication." The Wall Street Journal coined the word 'Oprahfication' to describe "public confession as a form of therapy." Jet magazine uses Oprah as a verb: "I didn't want to tell her, but. ... she Oprah'd it out of me." Politicians now hold "Oprah-style" town meetings to gauge the mood of their constituents.
Like many, I respect the hell out of what Oprah has done to make the world a better place. And I guess I shouldn't be surprised that a woman whose rise was fueled by her own confessional stories of child molestation, incest, and teen pregnancy would believe there is healing power in revealing all in front of a devoted congregation. But the inevitable bastard child of such ethics is the cover of Vanity Fair, and people like Hilary Swank selling loved ones down the river to get there.

A while back, I had dinner with an Oscar winning actress who had been unceremoniously dumped by an Oscar winning actor, so he could marry a younger, more famous Oscar winner. "Vanity Fair called," she told me, "they said they'd put me on the cover if I gave them dirt on (her ex)." I knew this was a real dilemma for her, as her acting career could use the boost such publicity would bring, and her venom for her ex was still running hot. The opportunity seemed too tempting to turn down. "I'm not gonna do it," she said, surprising the hell out of me. "Really?" "Yeah. I think Jackie O. had it right, you know? Keep your fucking mouth shut."

End of MBA week 4

I never thought I was going to get done with all of the statistics. Boy am I glad that is over.

Next up--Economics!

I'm a little more than exhausted right now so I'm cutting this short.

The good news is that the weather here in LA has been so nice for a change. I love cooler temperatures and will savor them for as long as I can.

I'm back in LA!

After getting tired of the horrific heat wave going on in SoCal we headed up North to San Carlos to cool off. The first three days were terrific and cooler than LA but on the fourth day all hell broke loose and temperatures soared to over 106 degrees for the rest of the week and into the weekend. When you are not used to this kind of weather it is a killer.

It was so hot up there that a racoon stumbled out of the woods and begged me to wet him with the hose...he was insistent that he get wet. We also noticed 20 deer sitting on a family's lawn seeking an escape from the heat!

I went from being ahead with business and school work to losing my lead and sweating like a pig...it was still nice to get away. Hopefully thing will cool off here as I've been to every store up and down the coast and everybody is sold out of fans and air conditioners.

Week 3 done, week 4 in full swing

I finished my week three assignments early and am happy to say that I have just one week left remaining for Statistics...it's just not my favorite topic to study. Of course this week has three times the readings, lectures, and homework, but I'm gearing up to get it all done ASAP....

NOT everybody can read my blog

It turns out that not everybody has access to my blog. One of my favorite friends who happens to live in Pakistan was trying to access my blog and couldn’t. Apparently the only thing she could read was the title of the blog. It’s unfortunate that my free speech is being censored for her but that will not stop me as I am going to email her my blog entries anyway.

It all just makes we wonder what else is being restricted in other places?

And how unfair is it that people are not allowed access to my lovely social commentary?

End of MBA week 2 and halfway done with week 3

It’s been quite a process working with Statistics over the past couple of weeks. I am OFFICIALLY living at my computer now. The word problems go on forever and I think I am going to install a shower near my desk!

Week two sped by quite fast and I managed not to get too confused with all of the histograms, time plots, mode, median and standard deviation talk…

Week 3 has already begun and I am happy to say that I am ahead for the week. I thought some of the problems in week 2 were long but then came this week’s study of linear correlation coefficient and I find myself doing 12 step problems that take an hour to complete by the time you plug in all of the numbers to the formulas! I do believe that my strong mathematical background in high school and college have helped allay some of the busy work. It’s also been helpful that I’ve gone away from LA for the week to a much cooler airy locale!

I’ll write more by the end of the weekend.

Tales from the MBA trenches!

Over the past few years I have created a few different businesses that I am currently working on expanding, etc. During this time I have spent a great deal of time working on business plans and private placement memorandums along with marketing and advertising and dealing with the various personalities that one must deal with here in LA. It's been an interesting challenge and it's reminded me of how much of an entrepreneur I am. Having said all that...

The last degree I earned (2004) was my MA in screenwriting/ mass communications. I must say that film school sped by so quickly and I had a blast refining my screenwriting skills that I hardly felt like I was in grad school…

As some of you may know I have been interested in getting my MBA for some time now. While I do have access to USC and UCLA here in LA, I realized that I wasn't particularly interested in setting foot inside the classroom. So I began my search several months ago for the university that would fit my needs and that had a stellar online program. I narrowed my choices to 3 schools and then decided on one of them. I applied and was accepted and have recently completed my first week of my MBA program!

The excellent school I chose is Regis University. Regis is a Top Tier Western University. Founded in 1877, Regis University is located in Denver, CO, on a picturesque 90-acre campus overlooking the Rocky Mountains. Regis University is regionally accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and is one of 28 Jesuit colleges and universities nationwide - others include Georgetown University, Boston College and the University of San Francisco. For more information you can visit www.regis.edu or www.mbaregis.com

The first week was filled with lots and lots of spreadsheet work and business plan reviews and creation. I spent about 7 hours working on spreadsheets Sunday night. Fortunately for me Erica is also getting her MBA too, so I am not alone in the trenches. Together, we'll be even better equipped to put all of our ventures on a much larger scale.

I find myself most interested in two areas: marketing and financing. After much thought, I've decided to get an MBA in Marketing. The bottom line is that a business will never succeed if you do not know the market and how to reach your potential clients. Everything in Hollywood is about marketing...long before the cameras start to roll we're thinking about marketing.

How do I learn online? Well the program itself is a year-round three semester MBA which takes two years or 6 semesters to complete. Each semester is broken up into two 8-week sessions. There is a fast track option which allows you to complete your MBA in 16 months if you double up on classes. I am strongly considering this as time goes on. I find myself far too busy to want to linger in the program for the full two years. I'd like to get done sooner.

I've found that online learning will deter lazy people who are used to showing up at class and not contributing. There is absolutely no way to fake it here. If you do not participate in online discussions everybody knows it. This I like. It means that my peers must be disciplined, committed and prepared.

Each week consists of the following: streaming video lectures, lots of reading, various assignments, and additional work and research for a marketing/business plan. All assignments must be turned in to the professors on the designated days, in addition it is mandatory to participate in class discussions on the message boards and to communicate with others about the current issues. I feel challenged and I like sitting down to do the work. But at times, I feel like I am not leaving the computer which I already spend a lot of time at!

This week and the next few weeks we will be knee deep in Statistics. I fear I may have more spreadsheets to do!

I will be chronicling my time with the MBA weekly so please feel free to ask questions and follow along.

Creative Financing!

Over the past year and a half I've been searching for long-term funding for my production company. The good news is I've found what looks to be a plausible situation but I need at least $10k to cover getting packaged and obtaining the collateral! This is a HUGE deal for us and we're moving closer to our 5 year plan being funded and putting Highway 101 into production.

Know anybody who wants to donate (we'll give a tax-deduction) or invest in a dynamic company?

I'll listen to all scenarios.

Congress is selling out the Internet

Do you buy books online, use Google, or download to an iPod? Everything we do online will be hurt if Congress passes a radical law next week that gives giant corporations more control over what we do and see on the Internet.

Internet providers like AT&T are lobbying Congress hard to gut Network Neutrality--the Internet's First Amendment and the key to Internet freedom. Net Neutrality prevents AT&T from choosing which websites open most easily for you based on which site pays AT&T more. BarnesandNoble.com doesn't have to outbid Amazon for the right to work properly on your computer.

If Net Neutrality is gutted, many sites--including Google, eBay, and iTunes--must either pay protection money to companies like AT&T or risk having their websites process slowly. That why these high-tech pioneers, plus diverse groups ranging from MoveOn to Gun Owners of America, are opposing Congress' effort to gut Internet freedom.

You can do your part today--can you sign this petition telling your member of Congress to preserve Internet freedom?

Click here:
http://www.civic.moveon.org/save_the_internet?track_referer=706%7C3240860-GHro6L6Z7sqxuzgs_DfzAQ

I signed this petition, along with 250,000 others so far. This petition will be delivered to Congress before the House of Representatives votes next week. When you sign, you'll be kept informed of the next steps we can take to keep the heat on Congress.

Snopes.com, which monitors various causes that circulate on the Internet, explained:
Simply put, network neutrality means that no web site's traffic has precedence over any other's...Whether a user searches for recipes using Google, reads an article on snopes.com, or looks at a friend's MySpace profile, all of that data is treated equally and delivered from the originating web site to the user's web browser with the same priority. In recent months, however, some of the telephone and cable companies that control the telecommunications networks over which Internet data flows have floated the idea of creating the electronic equivalent of a paid carpool lane.

If companies like AT&T have their way, Web sites ranging from Google to eBay to iTunes either pay protection money to get into the "fast lane" or risk opening slowly on your computer. We can't let the Internet--this incredible medium which has been such a revolutionary force for democratic participation, economic innovation, and free speech--become captive to large corporations.

Politicians don't think we are paying attention to this issue. Together, we do care about preserving the free and open Internet.

Please sign this petition letting your member of Congress know you support preserving Internet freedom. Click here:
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Crazy writers!

Sometimes I get my entertainment from Craigslist...the list that follows was something somebody wrote in response to all of the the freak-out posts writers post...

ENJOY!

10 tips for better posts in the CL writer's section!

Here are some tips to ensure a great and effective post here in the writers section, based on previous posts written here:

1. If you’ve written a script, you deserve an agent. Even if you’ve written as many as three, you should demand an agent. Since lit agents are constantly perusing this forum in search of new clients since they hate getting them by the normal process, you can pretty much be guaranteed of getting representation. After all, you’ve written a script. Simply write that you’ve written a script and now you need an agent. It’s just that easy. The stupid suckers sending out query letters and submitting to contests and festivals are suckahs.

2. Need an idea for script but aren’t talented enough to come up with ideas? Simply write that you’re a production company and steal! No one needs to see a company url or cares that you post from a yahoo address. Simply write a post claiming you’re a production company and you’re going to produce the next big movie and for people to send you scripts. Then read the scripts you like and steal them! Normally actual production companies will have a website to refer people to and will email from their company’s email address and will even have people sign a release form. Screw that.

3. Your life story NEEDS to be told! Your parents divorced when you were 12 and your grades suffered because of it. You had an abusive boyfriend. Your car broke down on 5 on the way to Sacramento once. You had to borrow money to pay your rent and you couldn’t pay for your root canal. This is a unique and amazing story that the world needs to know about. Writers will be jumping over themselves to write this astonishing story. Get it out there!

4. Have a great idea for a script but can’t write it yourself? Have someone here write it for you and split the profits! No one in this forum has their own ideas. You’d think a group full of writers would have writers with hard drives of scripts and concepts, but no! Not here. Pitch your unique idea of a “cop whose partner is killed and he must avenge his death” and watch the offers to write it pour in. Then sit back and count your money when it’s sold! Even better, offer to pay them on the back end. After it's made and is a box office hit, they will get paid! This way you can reap the benefits and not give that guy anything since the idea is so great, it's going to get made for sure and he won't see any money until long after you've made millions!

5. Claim your script will make a certain actor or agent millions of dollars. Generally, agents and actors don’t know how the business works, so if you tell them you’ve got a script that will surely make them millions, they will jump on such an offer. If you also note that the script will surely win Oscars, you can pretty much start looking for a new home in Malibu; you’ve assured yourself of a huge sale. In fact, guarantee a certain actor will win an Oscar or that your script will place high in the Nicholl Fellowships or you will up your agent’s pay 33%! This is how the professionals do it.

6. Get a date under the pretense of needing a “writing partner” or “assistant.” Simply claim you need a writing partner, but ask for a photo. This way you can weed out the uglies and respond to the hot ones. Of course in reality if you were looking for a writing partner, there would be no need for a picture, but a writing partner is the last thing you need, right? Try to squeeze in a question about boobies if you can do it slyly.

7. When looking for an actual writing partner, be as demanding and hostile as possible. Ask to see a resume (despite the fact most people in this group don’t have “writing resumes”). Ask to see numerous writing examples and demand they be great. Write that you won’t take shit from anyone and demand perfection and be as hostile in your request as possible. You will have so many responses, you won’t know where to start!

8. Can’t get noticed in this town? Ask for a writing partner who is already connected, then ride his coattails! Write that you’re looking for a partner and prefer someone who already has representation and connections. Despite the fact you bring nothing to the table and there is literally nothing in it for that guy (who already has all his own scripts, ideas and has been paying his dues to get where he is), this forum is all about what you can get, not the other person! He will partner up with you and you now have all his connections! It’s like winning American Idol, except for writers! It’s as simple as that!

9. Who needs spelling and grammar? Produsers and directors will be even more impresssed if you have a complete lack of understanding of writing and grammer in your post!! In fact they will be impressed that your so bold as to not care how to speel things write and use grammer or anything that they will probabbly by your scripp right up! This is a writers groop. We all know grammer allready so actually using it isnt’ nessissary.

10. Brag about your meetings and sales. People in this group will be very impressed if you constantly write how you had meetings with big name producers and have all kinds of sales. They will feel privileged that such a successful writer is actually still perusing the writers section of craigslist. Having a poor writing style on top and lack of spelling skills will impress people even more! It shows that an uneducated person can still make it big!

Hollywood is Melting!

At long last Hollywood has begun to melt. Well actually it's me that is melting and since I am here in the land of bitter, broken dreams I too am melting. The sweltering heat wave came out of the blue for me. I thought somebody was playing a prank on me when they announced that it would be at least 100 degrees on Saturday. When that happened I decided to take cover at my local AMC theatre. I managed to watch two films and stayed away from home for about 6 hours. Upon returning home it was the same hot hell I had left hours before. Several hours after darkness fell it barely started to cool.

The bad news is that today's temperature is supposed to reach 104. I'm currently creating an escape plan for the day that doesn't involve movies (I've already seen them all) or eating!

I am off to experience the beauty that is air conditioning in the car. The a/c here at home is not that good.

An Inconvenient Truth

Yesterday I saw Al Gore's new film about global warming called An Inconvenient Truth. It was particularly interesting to watch the man that should have taken up residence in the White House lead the crusade to educate people around the globe about the dangerous consequences of continuously abusing our Earth's resources. I have to say without a doubt that this film is a must see...

The film didn't paint a picture of hopelessness; instead it presented facts that SHOW how each of us could work to reverse the effects of dangerous pollution and eradication of the Earth's atmosphere. We have TEN years left to AVERT catastrophe.

If you could care less about Al Gore and more about the planet please also visit www.climatecrisis.net to see what you can start doing today to reduce your carbon emissions and ultimately become carbon neutral.

For the more politically minded people out there, there was a blog on the Huffington Post yesterday about how six years of having George W. Bush in the White House makes one realize just how much of the "real deal" Al Gore was/is. You can visit the Huffington Post here.

Welcome to my blog!

I hope you find this informative and entertaining.