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Most of my day is spent pursuing theatre, graphic design, animation, web design (very geeky, I know).

I'm also very interested in economics, civics and political science. I'm an unapologetic liberal (with a few conservative leanings), and happy to share my views with anyone that wants to hear them.

My only New Year's resolution, in fact, is to do my part to raise the level of debate in this country. Too many self-styled pundits out there – and their readers – don't know seem to understand the difference between debate and derision. Calling someone a moonbat or a nutcase doesn't make an argument. More on this here.



My other interests include environmental protection and conservation, animal rights and sustainable living (which, in my mind, are all one thing).

I'm a practicing Buddhist (Tibetan Vajrayana), although still very young in my journey.

Lately, I've been listening to: Asobi Seksu, Camera Obscura, The Dears, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Magic Numbers, Say Hi To Your Mom, Vienna Teng, Carbon Leaf, Jem (can we get a new album, already??), Michael Stipe (in all contexts), New Order (reliving some fond memories), Tracy Chapman (I've been accused of being a lesbian trapped in a man's body), Iron and Wine, Finn Brothers, Rachael Yamagata, and others.

I've also been discovering some great music on MySpace, and across a wide spectrum: Roberta Swipe, Persia White (XEO3), Fuzzy Warbles, Jeannie and the Tits, Jenna G, The Postmen and more. Check my friends list.

Also, if you are an Orlando local, check out my good friends Los Diggaz. It's a great time.

My favorite recent movies are Thank you for Smoking, V for Vendetta (I love this movie), Little Miss Sunshine, Jet Li's Fearless, Superman Returns, Casino Royale.

I thoroughly enjoyed Superman II: The Donner Cut. The Salkinds were idiots to go with Richard Lester's campy crap.

Other recent Netflix favorites: Mirrormask, Joyeux Noel, Inconvenient Truth, Reds, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, House of Flying Daggers, Danny Deckchair.

All-Time Favorites (if it came on right now, I'd sit down and watch it): 28 Days Later, Amelie, Babe, Batman Begins, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Crying Game, Dances WithWolves, Fearless (Jet Li), Field of Dreams, Fight Club, FisherKing, Full Monty, Garden State, Harry Potter Series, Hero, House of Flying Daggers, Howl's Moving Castle, Incredibles, Lord ofthe Rings (if you haven't seen the extended versions, you haven't seen it), Lost In Translation, Magnolia, Mighty Wind, Million Dollar Baby, Mississippi Burning, Moonstruck, Motorcycle Diaries,Mystic River, O Brother Where Art Thou?, Ocean'sEleven and Twelve (yes, Twelve – watch it again), PrincessMononoke, Reds, Run Lola Run, Serenity, Sixth Sense, Spirited Away, Superman, Unbreakable, Unforgiven, Vertigo, Very LongEngagement, Wallace and Gromit, Y Tu Mama Tambien.

Other five-star ratings: 12 Monkeys, 21 Grams, 39 Steps, Adaptation, African Queen, Alien, Back to the Future, Beauty and the Beast, The Birds, Blade Runner, Bob Roberts, Boogie Nights, Brazil, Casablanca, Catch Me If You Can, Chicago, Chinatown, Chocolat, Clockwork Orange, Confidence, Constant Gardner, Dead Man Walking, Dead Poets Society, Ed Wood, Election, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Exorcist, Farenheit 9/11, Fargo, Finding Nemo, Fish Called Wanda, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Frida, Gangs of New York, Glengarry Glen Ross, Godfather I & II, Gone With the Wind, Good Night and Good Luck, Good Will Hunting, Goodfellas, Graduate, Harvey, Heaven, Hotel Rwanda, Hudsucker Proxy, Hustler, In America, Inconvenient Truth, It Happened One Night, It's a Wonderful Life, Jaws, LA Confidential, La Femme Nikita, Last Emperor, Lawrence of Arabia, Life as a House, Lion King, Monsters Inc., North by Northwest, Open Range, Pieces of April, Pirates of the Caribbean, Platoon, The Player, Pulp Fiction, The Quiet Man, Raising Arizona, Rear Window, Royal Tennenbaums, Rushmore, Seven, Shrek, Sideways, Silence of the Lambs, Sling Blade, Smoke, Sound of Music, Spider-Man, Spinal Tap, The Sting, Syriana, Talented Mr. Ripley, Taxi Driver, Tootsie, Toy Story, Traffic, Whale Rider, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Willy Wonka, Wizard of Oz, Wonder Boys.

Look for Karaoke King coming soon

Battlestar Galactica (best fracking show on TV) is my absolute favorite. I also watch Weeds, Lost (lame, lately), Bill Maher and Fringe.

Cancelled, sadly, but still a favorite is Firefly. Very often, a Jayne-ism will fly out of my mouth.

Heroes has been increasingly good, but I can't help but be wary of the inevitable shark-jumping moment to come. Maybe NBC will learn something from its SciFi subsidiary and pleasantly surprise me.

There's no place like Rome! Titus Pullo is my hero!

I've also been sucked into The Wire. It's bleak, depressing, heartbreaking and thrilling, all at the same time. Felicia Pearson (Snoop), in particular, is riveting.

We also enjoy good anime. My favorites are Full Metal Aclhemist, Samurai 7, Witch Hunter Robin, Last Exile and Evangelion (although both endings were weak)

My favorite title right now is The Sword, written by the Luna Brothers. It's brilliant. Also great is Kick-Ass by Mark Millar and Terry Moore's Echo

Also, I'm a sucker for anything by Neil Gaiman.

To be honest, I really struggle with the term "Hero."

As Americans, we cheapen the term by applying it to anyone for anything.

Are trapped coal miners heroes, or just unlucky fellows with a dangerous job? The Orlando Sentinel called the Florida Gators "heroes." For what? Tossing a ball around and patting each other on the ass? Maybe they said "huge mo's" and I just misheard them.

Bill Maher wrote in If You Ride Alone, You Ride With Bin Laden (excellent read, and an even better audiobook): A vicitm is someone who finds himself in harm's way, and a hero is someone who puts himself in harm's way.

By that defintion, there are lots of heroes out there, especially when you consider that harm is not limited to physical injury. Many people put their livelihoods in peril and subject themselves to attacks on their character.

Tens of thousands of soldiers in Iraq, firefighters (like my brother, Chris), police officers, teachers and others fit that bill.

Yet, we treat them so shabbily.

I continue to struggle with the term.