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This one was on film

The word just came down that the officer, it should be officers, involved in the death of Eric Garner will not have to face justice. I would like to say that I am surprised by this ruling, but I am not. This story has been played out too many times. The recent decision in Ferguson not to indict Officer Wilson, the death of 12 year old Tamir Rice in Cleveland, the murder of Akai Gurley in a Brooklyn stairwell while coming home with his family is a clear indication that police in the United States are out of control. It is also an indication that large sections of the public does not care about these injustices if it does not impact their own communities.

President Obama has called for police throughout the nation to wear body cameras in the hopes of restoring public trust. I am not Continue reading “This one was on film”

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Super Power Beat Down: Batman vs Darth Vader

I am probably the world’s biggest Batman fan so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that I didn’t agree with the outcome of the most recent Super Power Beat Down fan film pitting the Dark Knight against the Dark Lord of the Sith.  However one of the things that really ticked me off was how good the production was for the film. I was visually stunning. It was probably the best fan-film I have seen since Batman: Deadend.

One of the problems that I had with the video is that Bats had plans to the Death Star and the location of a lightsaber, but didn’t come up with a contingency plan on how to disrupt Vader’s force abilities. Keep in mind that this is a man so paranoid that during the JLA: Tower of Babel (or Justice League: Doom movie) storyline Batman developed contingency for neutralizing his closest allies in the Justice League. In the Vader scenario, Continue reading “Super Power Beat Down: Batman vs Darth Vader”

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Webinar: Leveraging Social Media

This past Monday I conducted my first webinar on how individuals can leverage social media to achieve their personal and professional goals. In truth, I was more than a little nervous about the event since this was going to be my first live streamed lecture. The fact that we had a few hundred attendees sign up for the live stream also added to my anxiety. Maybe I shouldn’t have worried about it as much as I did, because so far the responses and feedback that I received Continue reading “Webinar: Leveraging Social Media”

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No Justice, No Peace

This song is over twenty years old, and sadly in light of grand jury decision in Ferguson, it is even more relevant today. The way Michael Brown was killed is one thing, but the way the entire case has been handled from the beginning is like having the system stick a gigantic thumb in the eye of the black community:

1. Police and paramedics let Michael Brown’s body lay in the street for hours.
2. Officer Darren Wilson was not arrested, or even forced to give a public statement on the incident.
3. The prosecutor Continue reading “No Justice, No Peace”

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New Media Tech Info Session

This a short video excerpt of a discussion on the field of digital development and the upcoming changes to the New Media Technology program at LaGuardia Community College. Last year I was tasked with the responsibility of conducting the Periodic Program Review (PPR) for the New Media Technology program at LaGuardia. In drafting the PPR I was forced to research the current status of the industry in which the program was preparing students to enter in the hopes of developing a plan to assess the effectiveness of the major and improve student outcomes.

Based on the information discovered during my research, I Continue reading “New Media Tech Info Session”

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UFS Conference on Assessing Online Instruction

Yesterday I trekked up to John Jay College and took part in a panel discussion on the Virtual Classroom and assessing online instruction. The discussion was held at the CUNY – University Faculty Senate (UFS) Conference on Online Education.

There were breakout sessions on numerous topics dealing with the future direction of online education. The new Continue reading “UFS Conference on Assessing Online Instruction”

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CUNY SPS – Big things may be coming!

Dean of CUNY SPS - John Mogulescu

We received the announcement today that the School of Professional Studies (SPS) may become a self standing college within the City University of New York system. Some people, actually many people, are unaware that SPS is actually run under the auspices of the CUNY Graduate Center. The new announcement means that big changes are going to be on the way. The new Chancellor of CUNY is an advocate for online and instruction and technology. I am hoping that this means that as CUNY’s premiere online degree granting institution, these new developments will be extremely positive.

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NY Cine Video: Recap of the Marvel film lineup

Last week I had the opportunity to co-host the New York Cine Radio podcast on the upcoming Phase 3 movies to be released by Marvel Studios. The team at NY Cine Radio asked me to fill in for one of the regular hosts, Ken Powell, who is finishing up his last semester at college. I was slightly nervous about having enough to talk about, but luckily Marvel and DC had made a number of announcements about their movie and TV plans through 2020. The nerd world was in a total uproar over announcements Continue reading “NY Cine Video: Recap of the Marvel film lineup”

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2014 NYC Marathon – Run girl, run!

I have started to lose count, but I think that my wife just ran her 13th or 14th marathon. I am not sure any longer. All I know is that this just one of the many times that I have stood out in the cold November weather cheering her on as she runs the NYC Marathon. The first time I stood in the crowd screaming her names was back in 1996, before we had the children. Since then the kids have joined me on the sidelines holding signs and shouting. Now it seems that watching marathons, and looking for my wife in the crowd of runners, has become a regular part of our routine in recent years. Maybe it is getting a bit routine for my wife as well. She almost ran right past us this year.