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The Hurt Locker

Posted on 09 March 2010

I saw The Hurt Locker when it was first shown in Manhattan. Present were the Director, Kathryn Bigelow and writer, Mark Boal. It surprised me that there were some empty seats in the theater and it surprised me further when the picture could not find an audience. Apparently many people in the movie industry felt the same way when they voted it the best picture of the year. I wrote this on July 8, 2009.
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Technology

The E-Book is Here to Stay

Posted on 26 February 2010

I’ve just attended a three day conference in Manhattan, titled “Tools of Change”. Its objective was to bring interested parties together to assess the impact of e-books on the future of publishing. I have been attending various meetings of this sort for the past ten years, ever since I committed my authorial presence to the technology of reading on screens. Ten years ago, through rights reversals, I put all my previously published English language books on every digitized platform I could find. Continue Reading

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Politics

Ethics on the Killing Field?

Posted on 24 February 2010

The plight of a Marine K Company slugging it out in Afghanistan under hardships and conditions of which we sitting here comfortably in the States haven’t a clue, puts me in mind of another Marine K Company, cited in one of the greatest combat memoirs ever written, With the Old Breed by E.B. Sledge. Sledge’s account of his ordeal as a nineteen year old combat Marine in the bloody battles against the Imperial Japanese Army while taking the islands of Pelelui and Okinawa in the closing weeks of World War II offers startling insights into the bloody nature of war and the horrific sacrifices required of those we send into battle. The comparison of then and now is essential if we are to make any sense out of what the “new breed” of Marine must face in the baffling revised rules of combat. Continue Reading

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Books

When Will the E-Book Tipping Point Arrive?

Posted on 19 February 2010

One need not be some egghead visionary to predict the future of the publishing industry in this age of technological revolution. Think of it this way. Every time a dedicated reader buys a digitized reading device whether it be a Kindle, SONY reader, Vook, iPad, the upcoming Google device or others crowding into the marketplace, the big box stores and small hard-pressed independents selling hardcover or paperback books lose one customer. That one customer, if he or she is a truly dedicated reader, can be counted on to buy at least one book a month. Continue Reading

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Technology

Skinning the Cat

Posted on 16 February 2010

If you Google “How Many Ways to Skin a Cat?” you will get nearly five million entries. At first I was somewhat surprised by such an abundance of information since my reason for Googling the idiom in the first place was to illustrate the point that the Internet is a vast cloud, hawking information in various guises in infinite incarnations, most of it of dubious value. Continue Reading

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Life

Coping with Life’s Little Annoyances: The Person Who Talks Too Much (First in a series)

Posted on 16 February 2010

How many times have you faced the dilemma of the monologist? You have begun a conversation with someone expecting a dialogue and quickly discover that the alleged partner in this dialogue is instead engaging in an interminable monologue. The discovery, while being an affront to your patience, is also a challenge to your essential understanding of the rules of politeness. Continue Reading

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Technology

The iPad. Not For the Dedicated Reader

Posted on 29 January 2010

I have my doubts that the new Apple iPad will be the panacea for traditional publishers who have been seeking ways to stem the engulfing tide of the e-book revolution that threatens to overwhelm their bottom line. Continue Reading

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