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I started reading The Cult of the Amateur at the suggestion of a close friend. The main context of this book is that we as members of internet are somehow degrading the quality of external creative works like Music, News, and Movies. The author puts forth some interesting points, but mostly I disagree with his conclusions. His major argument is that free and cheap media will win out over the expensive expert media. I disagree. People will pay for quality. People would pay for better news if better news were available for a reasonable price. ...

I found out the other week that one of my many mentors throughout school has passed away. Father Thomas Martin O.S.A. was one of my college professors, who in my senior year, severely (in a positive way) changed my appreciation of the Catholic church. I chose to go to Villanova because of their strong academic and athletics program. I knew I wanted to cheer in college, and I knew that I wanted to be successful academically. It was important for me that the school I choose have both a strong academic program and also a strong sports program to pursue both of my interests. The one downside I saw to Villanova was that it was Catholic. I, my friends, am quite Jewish. I was apprehensive to say the least. I was afraid of the religious classes I had to take. ...

I thought it would be worthwhile to publish my expenses for my college team last year. This is useful for anyone who is interested in calculating whether or not you can afford to an open cheerleading team. I cheered for CheerGyms.com. They were a good team and I will talk about my pros and cons a bit lower, but first lets look at the expenses. Expense Cost Tuition and Competition Fees, including uniform costs $1,209.81 Nationals Hotel Bill $104.00 Gas Costs to travel to practice. Assuming 3 practices a month (to account for holidays and weeks off), cost of 2.50/gallon, and 20 miles/gallon on the car $405.00 Gas for nationals, same figures as above, traveling distance about 404 miles $101.00 Gas for local competitions in Sacramento $80.25 Total $1,900.06 This is just the hard numbers and I’ve gone a little soft on the miles and gas price. The point, however, is still relatively strong: I spent nearly $2,000.00 no an open team last year. I had a good time, but that is really expensive, so I’ve decided not to cheer again next year while I try to get my finances in order. ...