Anthony Dean-Harris

So lately, I've been seeing this commercial on TV from Jack in the Box. Apparently, this is a follow up to a commercial in a similar vein two years ago. Who was at the ad agency for putting these things together? Who was batting around ideas with the creative department and finally just saying it, the notion just teeming inside for half an hour? " We make food for stoners! Why do we keep dodging this?! For crying out loud, we offer both burgers and tacos! " And because of that guy who just couldn't hold in that all too important fact, Jack in the Box is running a campaign that's essentially... Jack in the Box: Don't Pretend You Didn't Know I know my demo

I need to make it a point that whenever I write something for another publication, I should post it here as well, or at least link to it. I'm currently looking for work now since I'm not on other endeavors so I should have more time and energy to write. I have clearly been slacking but I want to keep writing here and hopefully anyone who shows up here would want to read what I have to say. Recently, I've been freelancing for San Antonio's community newspaper African-American Reflections . Until I can work with the publisher of that paper to ensure that posted stories have more longevity, I'm not sure about the stability of linking articles I've written there, but I'll give it a shot anyway. Last month, I attended a Ramsey Lewis concert that I thought was quite good and have said so in print . In addition to that, I also attended the James Carter Organ Trio concert that same weekend. The link to that died, so I'm going to post the unedited article he...

Yesterday, I was reading the New York Times website when I ran across this article on the front page about how the current economy is making a great renters' market . It was an interesting read and it's sort of reassuring for me to see what it's going be like out there when I finally leave my parents' (clearly not for New York though with that cost of living), but what really sort of got to me was the mention of Clark Hassler . Hassler isn't a celebrity. I mean, not really. He may be known in his field (I'm not sure since it's not really my field, I hardly put any time into the research that is life experience). He may be a celebrity in skateboarding like Tatsuya Ishida is a celebrity in his field. Not huge, but he could be big enough. But is this publicity really doing anything for him or is this some weird thing on the side that just comes up? Was this piece in times about renting apartments at a cheaper upgrade moving for Hassler's career or ...

Since I've been back in San Antonio, I've been to the Riverwalk more often. When I was younger, my family was never keen on walking through that tourist den, but now that I get out a little more, I often find my way there. In my many walks down the river, I've noticed the touring river barges change from the Yanaguana Cruises I remember as a child to a company called Rio San Antonio Cruises . At first, I thought Yanaguana still existed and these two companies were battling out who could give a better tour, something that really would have befuddled me. But after a little bit of research, I found Rio San Antonio is just the company that exists after the death of Yanaguana. This confuses me even more. How can a company die and another one take its place if they offer the same service (identically, down to the color scheme) at likely the same price? What will stop Rio San Antonio from suffering the same fate? When this company came up, what did people ask them? "He...

Hypothetical: You have fallen out of love with America. You have grown to despise the United States and you never want this country to see another cent of your money again. You know that the best form of protest is to boycott this country. You aren't giving it any more of your efforts and any more of the representation of your efforts (as Rand would say). You are going to do as you've been mulling over all along and you're moving to Canada. Here's the conundrum. There is no way for you to go anywhere in your protest against the US of A without conceeding for a while until you leave these borders. Don't believe me? You intend to buy a plane tickets? There's tax on the ticket. You intend to drive? There's a gas tax. You need food for your journey? Sales tax. You run into the same story when you're buying clothes for the cold weather. This nation is taxing us at every turn. It's necessary to keep the country running but it makes it awfull...

My computer has crashed recently and I'm still without my own computer so I hope this explains why I haven't written anything in a while. Because I have lost my computer and means of writing, I have also lost inspiration for mostly everything writing related until now. Since I'm at work with a task that annoys me, I am writing now in procrastination. The nature of celebrity has always been something that has interested me a great deal. It's a different kind of relationship with people. A person with whom the masses are familiar feel a connection with that distinct individual. This connection is technically an inorganic one, but is organic in its own sense of artifice. The thing is, as our media continues to grow, levels of celebrity. Comedienne Kathy Griffin refers to the plateau of celebrity on which she exists as the "D-list." I personally believe the Emmy-winning reality show star is underestimating her success but her commentary on the echelons of success ...

In the film, Little Miss Sunshine , Michael Arndt makes an overarching commentary about the American idea of success . The ever present epitomization of these ideals is the childrens' beauty pageant. A smaller point he is making is that of the sexualization of children in these gaudy displays. Arndt hyperbolizes this ideal in Olive's routine: (pardon the clip I found, it's in French) It appears Arndt is saying the next possible step in these shows is an eight-year-old performing a striptease. While the main point of the film is the elimination of the pure dichotomy of success and failure, leading the individual to be himself/herself, Arndt is also asking what has become of our culture. Little girls are sex objects in the auspice of beauty and success. In America's drive to stay on the cutting edge, one must ask what's next when little girls are flaunting themselves in foundation and glitter. The Hoover family seems to live and breathe on the conflict of succe...