It’s been a long time since I have written anything on here, and that is obviously my fault. I will be working to make this blog more reader friendly and easier to use. I’m hoping to have new and fresh content up here about some of the things I am doing in the world of Screenwriting, Politics, Internet Marketing, and life in general.

I can tell you that I have been promoted to Team Lead over my sales team and I just finished the month as the number one salesman. That’s pretty exciting news for me as I have been trying to get all of this figured out. My websites are taking off, and I am proud to say I’m seeing some extra income from my ecommerce  ventures. All-in-all, life is pretty good and I am looking forward to the next changes that happen to come along.

Please, don’t try to deny it. You know, as well as I, that you have often been watching a movie and thought to yourself ‘Pffff! I could come up with a better story!’. Let us look back to that time where you felt that desire to be a part of the motion picture industry. You know, that time when you wanted to become an alchemist of time, talent, and film in order to present your thoughts and inner desires to the world. Do not worry; we have all been there.

But I still have to think, “What the heck are you thinking Phil? Do you really think that you, of all people, will ever have a chance to live the dream of all men?” You see, there is something that you probably do not know about me: I am a habitual procrastinator and I have the self esteem of a sponge (at least when it comes to things like future success and dating). You would never guess that about me because I am also pretty dang good at putting on a show (I have often considered acting, except for the fact that I smile like a freaking idiot any time a camera is placed in front of my face).

The point I am trying to make here is that I, like you, am afraid to move forward with decisions I know will better my life. That is because I also recognize there is a lot of risk involved in those decisions. However, I implore you to do as I have: Ask yourself, “What do I really have to lose?” Our parents, because they love us, have sheltered us in one form or another. This is not necessarily a bad thing; it just means that in some areas of life we are afraid of rejection.

What is rejection? Another term for what we fear is failure. In my current employment, I do sales. One of the books I was recommended by a mentor is by Tom Hopkins. It’s called “How to Master the Art of Selling.”. In that book Tom Hopkins shares a secret I am striving to apply in my life “I will not be judged by the number of times I fail, but by the number of times I succeed. And the number of times I succeed is in direct proportion to the number of  times I can fail and keep trying.”

I love that. Too often in life we are shunned for being optimists. “The world is cruel,” the pessimist says, and sadly we agree. This year my goal is to achieve success in my chosen field of screenwriting. The entirety of my success will lie solely on my shoulders. This means that I have to take actual steps to succeed. As I continue my journey, I will be frequently updating this site to explain what I learn, how I learned it, and why it is important. I invite you to follow with me.

Now, this all boils down to me actually taking the plunge. What am I going to do to kick start my drive for success? Aside from making you read ridiculous information like this, I have been forced to take action. This last Saturday I read a tweet from someone I have followed from time to time on Twitter: @ScreenwritingU. This tweet may not have seemed like much, but it has had a profound effect on me. It was an invitation to listen to a free teleconference with Hal Croasman, the director of www.screenwritingu.com. I promptly signed up.

I prepared everything, with a downloadable PDF file prepared by Hal it was very simple. What happened next was a 3.5 hour dissertation that taught me more about screenwriting than all of the studying I had done in the previous year, and this was just about rewriting. As I listened to the presentation, I knew that now was the time to take action. I cannot wait another six months to learn how to write a sellable script. So I signed up immediately for his ProSeries that will go over in-depth screenwriting techniques from January 15th until July 15th of this year. And I am excited. My brief glimpse at the program showed me that I couldn’t wait. I had to take action, and I am ever excited to do just that. (He will be repeating that call in February, and I recommend anyone looking to improve their writing skills visit their website and take the course). The ProSeries starts this Saturday, he is offering a $350 discount until tomorrow night, and best of all, they finance if you can’t afford to pay it all up front. If you have ever wanted to write for Hollywood, you owe it to yourself to take this course with me.

If you are hoping to do something to improve your life, and you have thought frequently about that, I invite you to join me this year in taking the plunge. Decide today that you will accomplish the thing you want most, or seriously come closer to it. No one can change your life but you. I look forward to success with you this year.

Sincerely – Phil Hudson

Let me explain in a moment, first off, I just wanted to give this film the review it deserves. Most of you should know the premise of the film, but for those of you who have been under a rock the last few weeks I will explain.

The story is based on an incident that happened several years ago when an unmanned train sped toward a dangerous turn, loaded with toxic materials. With no certain way to stop the train from exploding, two conductors devise a plan to stop the train by catching up to it in reverse and pulling it the other direction.

The beauty of this film, however, is the human level of emotion portrayed by the main actors Denzel Washington, and Chris Pine. Let me just say, we all know the intensity that Denzel Washington can portray. He’s won two Oscars, and been nominated for who knows how many more. The performance I want to speak about it that of Chris Pine. I have enjoyed his work since his portrayal of the Neo Nazi Skinhead in “Smokin’ Aces”, and even more so as Captain James T. Kirk in “Star Trek”.  This movie in my opinion shows a side of Chris Pine I haven’t seen. He plays a struggling twenty something father, trying to make it in a world where he makes mistakes just like the rest of us.

The story is a little played up, and of course that is the job of an adaptation of a real event. However, the realistic roles played by these two actors, and especially the portrayal done by Chris Pine merits viewing this film. It’s entertaining, it will make you laugh, and it will make you wish you knew how to drive a train. I know I was tempted to bust out my old train track and figure out how to join up with the Union Pacific.

In the end, I gave it 3.5/5 stars. It was filmed well, it portrayed a compelling story, and it is a must see of the year.

Now, on to my next point: In that theater, there were probably only about twenty people. What does that tell me? That tells me two important things:

1. As film goers, our perception of a film is too heavily based in the trailer: The reason why I think this is such a big problem is that too many people place their interest, entirely misguidedly, into trailers. They think they can understand the complexities and inner performances of a film based entirely off of a two minute barrage of clips in no specific order. I would like to invite anyone who reads this article, to take a risk the next time they see a movie they dislike just based on the trailer. Go see it. You will most likely be surprised.
2. Our ignorance in understanding the film industry, the writing process, and film production limits our ability to see gems: I can’t tell you how many times I have heard people complain ‘They cut so much out of the book” As I started to study screenwriting as a craft, I stumbled upon many articles that discussed something referred to as “Adaptation”. People don’t understand that the contexts of a novel are completely different than that of a motion picture. You cannot maintain the same story, with everything in detail in the parameters of 120 pages in 12pt Courier. That being said, this is only one of those moments where I have to say a lack of education regarding how films are made can be detrimental to both the viewing experience, and the financial success of a movie.

That is really my main topic of discussion. Because we as humans are too lazy to really try to understand how or why something works. In the end, I feel that we should focus more on context and quality of work, not just qualms we have based on some ridiculous idea of how things should be done in our undereducated minds, myself not excluded.

For those of you who do not know, I live in a house in Provo, UT with three other guys my age. We are all over twenty-four years old and are pretty mature for being college age boys. There is, however, a big difference between being mature and responsible.

Now I understand you might be wondering what possible difference there could be between being mature and being responsible. They are synonyms after all. But what happens when you take a couple of twenty-somethings and put them in a four bedroom house with an eight week and a six week old puppy? Irresponsibility.

My good friend Payden Thompson is a wild land firefighter. That means for weeks on end he hikes around mountains digging trenches, clearing brushes and saving the rest of us from burning. Payden is a great man who has always wanted two dogs, a husky and a boxer. So he got the bright idea to get not just one of them, but both of them, and get them young so they can learn to love him from a young age. The only problem is he decided to do this during the height of fire season in Utah. So while Payden is hiking around the mountains battling thousand degree blazes of fire, I’m at home playing mom to two puppies who’s favorite habits are pooping, peeing, vomiting, and chewing anything they can.

I tell you, I feel like I am a single father caring for two newborn kids. I have to wake up at all hours of the night to make sure they puppies don’t pee all over my bed or anywhere else for that matter (they do enough of that on their own). One morning Sawyer, the husky, decided he wanted to over eat and puked all over the floor. And I’m not talking small piles of puke, I am talking big puke piles of half eaten dog food. All I could do is think to myself “I really don’t want to clean up vomit”. Luckily, I didn’t have to. Echo, the boxer, decided he would clean it up for me and ate the whole pile. Soon after he decided to make room for his food by taking a nice little dump right in the middle of the floor.

Yeah, I know that is graphic, but honestly I shouldn’t be the only one who has to deal with this stuff. I have cleaned up more urine in the last three weeks than I ever did when I had a bed wetting problem. That is a lot of urine, trust me and if you don’t feel free to ask my family.

The sad thing is, I am a cat guy! My brothers all had dogs, I always had a cat. I didn’t have to do anything but scratch it for five minutes every other day and it was fine. Now I’m running around before and after work stopping the two dogs from fighting with each other, or eating another DVD or any number of other horribly ridiculous things they would rather be doing.But even after that, I still love the little fetchers. Let me introduce you to them:

The Husky:

Name:       Sawyer Thompson

Age:           10 weeks

Weight:     14.5 lbs

Height:      1’5″

Favorite Toy:

Sawyer loves to spend is  days chewing on his brother Echo. His favorite trick to do is grab Echo by the collar and politely thrash and drag him around in the yard. If Echo by chance gets away, Sawyer loves to surprise attack him by plowing him over at full speed.

The Boxer:

Name:     Echo Thompson

Age:         8 Weeks

Weight:     10 lbs

Height:    1′

Favorite Toy:

Echo like to spend his time urinating on anything he can. Be it floors, newspapers, grass, concrete, or carpet, Echo will leave his mark on any surface. Recently, he has expanded his fun to picking on his older brother Sawyer. He will hop on Sawyer in the middle of a nap and begin to growl as ferociously as his small boxer body can. This continues until Sawyer gets annoyed where he will begin to drag him across the lawn just prove a point.

These are my roommates pooches that have become kids of my own. Even if I don’t like it, you have to love these two fetchin’ dogs.

It’s fall, and in a valley with two major universities and the hub of social life for most single Mormon’s in the world, that means things are changing. You see, I’ve been thinking about this for the last little while and after today’s experiences I feel I need to write about. (That coupled with an insistence to write from @saintassassinx,  @craltom, @tsaltom, and @miwahall) Let me preface my remarks by saying that I love Provo, Utah County, and the fact that I’m LDS.

This started the other day as I was driving around Provo around noon. I found myself frustrated in a gridlock of the most retarded traffic I have ever experienced in my life. Now I know for a fact that anyone reading this, who has embarked to the local Macey’s between 10AM and 3PM knows exactly what I am talking about. The foray of vehicles in front of me was ludicrous. Every car was moving about 20 MPH in a 35 MPH zone, and they made the most ridiculous and random lane changes I have ever seen. I ended up riding my already grinding brakes because I wasn’t sure who was going where and when and all I could do in my frustrated state was groan in frustration and take a long way to my destination.

Why? Why on Earth would the fast driving, road rage filled Utah County residents move that slow and that stupid through the streets of Provo? It’s unexplainable, and it is driving me nuts. It wasn’t until Friday August 27th that I realized I wasn’t alone in my psychosis. I had just left the driving range with my friend Chris Evans and we encountered a similar struggle as we passed BYU. A flood of cars blocked the road at about 7 PM which is just absurd. Chris, being the bright kid that he is, pointed out that BYU’s fall semester is starting. Lights started clicking and then I realized why I had been having such a ridiculous time driving around Provo, and I calmed a little.

That was great, until today. If you think driving in Provo is hard, wait until you step into a grocery store on the Saturday evening before school starts. As I turn into park, I signal for my parking stall and a dopey looking guy and gal decide they want to walk between my car and my spot. That caught my attention, but I wasn’t frustrated until they decided they didn’t remember where they had parked, and decided to debate it for a good 45 seconds right where I was trying to park.

The two finally decided to leave and allow me to park. I finally headed into the store where I realized why there were so many people at this particular store. 4 for $8 12 packs of Dr. Pepper, 7 UP brand drinks. Now one of the reason’s I went to this particular location was to purchase bottles of water. Needless to say, I ended up leaving with an assortment of soft drinks en lieu of my H2O.  Now the point of this paragraph isn’t to elaborate on nor reiterate my love for Dr. Pepper. I wanted to explain the type of experience one could expect within the walls of the sacred edifice of a Utah County Macey’s. It’s mayhem.

The only thing I can think of to describe their behavior is this: If you want to judge a Mormon’s true commitment to a Christ like livelihood, watch them play sports, and watch them in a supermarket. That is just a little bit of humor, but I just wanted to give a list of things not to do in the supermarket, so here it is:

1. Don’t walk side by side at the pace of a snail talking about your relief society message.
2. Don’t stand in the middle of an aisle reviewing the products in front of you. No one can get by!
3. Don’t cut in front of someone’s cart just to get a better spot in line. It’s rude and you never know when that customer might snap and go all Columbine on you (not saying I’m that person).
4. Don’t stand in front of my parking spot. Why? I already addressed that earlier.
5. Don’t leave your wallet in your car, forcing you to leave your groceries in the line and fetch your wallet from the opposite side of your Kia (that’s what I did after complaining about all of this stuff).

In the end, I’m one of those morons that I’m complaining about. I’ll just come out and admit it. But the beauty of being non-objective is that I don’t really have to admit that very often. I lapse like everyone else into moments of cliche stupidity. All I can say is I’m working on it. And if you know what I’m saying, you should comment because now I’m feeling pretty stupid. Yeah I can suck at times, but just be glad you have not seen me playing sports. If you have any thoughts, or advice, hit me up on twitter @phudson. My name is Phil Hudson, and I’m just like you.

Red Dead Redemption

All of my life I have loved video games. From my first touch of an Atari Joy Stick, to the blisters on my thumbs on a Super Nintendo, I’ve enjoyed it. In the past, we were told our minds would melt, or our vision would get blurry the more we played video games or stared at a TV screen. We now know that isn’t true, it’s just a common step in the aging process due to your skull getting bigger and your eyes staying the same size (ask your optometrist).

The point I am trying to make here is, we live in a different world. What used to be common place novel reading has now turned into electronic storytelling. Video games are not just a medium of mind wasting flashes of light, it is storytelling post 1965. It is a medium growing faster than any other, publishing dipped to $23.5 billion dollars, but the gaming industry brought in $19.66 billion last year. Compared to the film industry, $10.6 billion in 2009 (US).

That’s huge. And what’s my point to explaining all of this? Well if you can’t guess by the giant cowboy at the top of this post, I’m writing a review about Red Dead Redemption. Bringing the old west, and a little bit of Clint Eastwood awesome, this has my vote for game of the year so far.

I’ll be honest, in my fight to be something in this world I’ve temporarily sworn off video games, but Red Dead Redemption got me. There are few titles that get me to break my solid drive to be a screenwriter, Assassin’s Creed, and GTA IV did it two years ago, The Force Unleashed got me last year, and this is the title that got me this year.

The story follows John Marsten, a former outlaw in the old west. Times are changing, the FBI is being formed and they are trying to do the job of the old cowboys and gunslingers. With the reach of the government hitting the settlements on the new American frontier, life for old outlaws are changing. In the story, John Marsten’s old gang members are terrorizing the adjacent province of New Austin, and the government thinks John is just the man to fix the problem. They kidnap his family, and force him to chase down his former family. The game starts with you showing up at an abandoned fort over run with one of the gang members. As he approaches and tries to talk him down the gang opens fire, leaving our hero to die.

As John lays there, a group of farmers stumble upon him, heal him and get him back on the road to revenge. The fight now becomes personal as this is the second time that John has been left by his gang with a bullet in him.

The chase begins all over the territory, the Mexican border, and the northern territory. John is forced to team up interesting characters to fulfill his mission and get his family back, including a slick “elixer” salesman, a grave digger, a drunken irishman, a rebel leader, a mexican general, a cocaine addicted scholar from Yale, and even the very lawmen who hold his wife captive.

The scenery is beautiful and dangerous. Coyotes, wolves, bobcats, cougars and even bears roam the land and are willing to kill anything that crosses their path. Learn how to handle your guns, master quick draws, learn to gamble with the best of them and stake your claim at becoming a legend in the Mexican west.

All-in-all, it’s my pick for game of the year. Not sure still? Grab a copy and start playing, you’ll find yourself wanting to steal horses, and shoot anything that moves around you. I know I did (but I didn’t actually do it).

I felt inspired to write today because something fantastic happened. I was retweeted by none other than the Dr Pepper Corporation. That may not mean much to you, but to me that means the world. I have been a long time fan of Dr. Pepper. I love it, my father loves it, and his father loved it. We’re fighting at least three generations of addiction, and for a Mormon, that is a pretty big deal.

My family is English, Irish, Danish, Native American, and pretty much any other nationality you could possible think of. We’re mutts, but one thing is sure, we have addictive personalities from all of those groups of people we’ve descended from. In my religion we abstain from addictive products such as alcohol, tobacco, or illegal drugs. I’ve never tasted alcohol, other than cooking ingredients or medicine, but I’m sure that I’d be the most addicted alcoholic you’ve ever met in your life. Dr. Pepper fills that void for me. It does for me what exercise does for someone else. It provides that small moment of happiness in a stressful day. It makes me who I am.

I love the taste. One of my favorite things to do on a hot summer day, is pop open a Dr. Pepper and feel the carbonation bubble on my upper lip as I swallow some of the crisp goodness inside. Just the sound of the can bursting open, followed by the fizzy goodness of the refreshing beverage inside is enough to make my mouth water.  Just imagine the chilled goodness sliding down your throat (or if you are like me, let it foam in your mouth before depositing it in your stomach). From Dr. Pepper Jelly Bellies, to Dr. Pepper Chap Stick, I’ve tried it all and it all tastes great!

Every time I indulge myself with a Dr. Pepper, I am reminded of childhood memories, fun times with friends, late nights at IHOP, dates both good and bad, and much more. You see, Dr. Pepper for me is more than just a beverage. It’s a lifestyle, a keepsake, and memory tool. It allows me to enjoy the best parts of my life, while remembering there really is more to it.  From the classic commercials of yester-year with the construction worker lifting the Dr. Pepper truck off the ground so he could get a soda, to following their sponsored MLG team Str8 Rippin, Dr. Pepper has had an impact on my life. I’m just happy it’s a good one. So do us all a favor, go buy yourself a Dr. Pepper (even if it’s caffeine free), take a sip, remember some good memories, and spread the love.

As for me, I’m on my way to buy another one, as a salute to an American Institution, the Dr. Pepper Corporation. Follow them @drpepper and remember to ‘Drink a Bite To Eat at 10, 2, and 4.”

I guess the best place to start is with an explanation that can’t be refuted by anyone: I love the United States of America. I always have. Not once have done, said, or acted in a way that could degrade the love I have for this country. As a member of the LDS faith, that love is magnified, though interestingly enough our own church history proves that immigration laws aren’t necessarily what is best for the people whom they concern.

We live in an enlightened time. We have grown so much over the last two hundred years. We’ve abolished slavery. We’ve desegregated our schools. We’ve given women the right to vote. We’ve provided equal opportunities for all races, religions, ethnic backgrounds, and lifestyles are ‘protected’ inalienable rights that make each individual in America who they are. There is no question in my mind, nor would I say the mind of any intelligent and open minded person on the face of the planet that those are all good things. My religion, which is my moral compass, dictates to me that freedom of choice is the most protected right we have. No one should be able to take that away from us. That doesn’t mean we won’t have to pay the consequences for our actions, on the contrary we should embrace those consequences because they mean we live in a society where we can truly act for ourselves. This moral stand I must take, has done more to shape my moral, ethical, and political views than any other sole principle. The need to protect such a right given to all men everywhere without question of their intelligence, color of their skin, age, or sex (etc) has forced me to ask a strong question: What is ‘Freedom’?

Freedom in essence is ‘the right to choose’. People have the right to do that and we can’t take it away. I agree their are punishments necessary and due for people who violate the rights and civil liberties of someone else. I will back, 100%, any law that stops people from doing ‘bad’ things. But the next question, when discussing freedom is understanding what ‘bad’ really is.

I served an LDS mission in Tucson, Arizona which stretched all along the Mexican border to El Paso, Texas. On my mission we were faced with the question of ‘Baptizing Illegal Immigrants’. Elder Lance Wickman, of the Quorum of the 70, and the chief Legal Officer of the church came to visit our mission where my Mission President, Douglas Farr Higham a lawyer from Southern California,  had a chance to talk to him about the church’s stance on that subject. In a Zone conference, my Mission President, spoke to us about this subject where he taught us a valuable and life altering legal rule. A rule by which most laws and punishments are predicated. It’s “Malum en Se VS Malum Prohibitum”. In English, that means “Bad because it’s bad VS bad because it’s prohibited”. Carnal sin. Something that is just truly BAD because it is exactly that, BAD. That’s the difference we need to look at when we discuss something as being bad. Murder, Theft, Sexual Deviance, etc. are all examples of malum en se. They are just BAD things. Driving without a seat belt isn’t a BAD thing, it’s bad because it’s prohibited. Speeding is another example. Now I pose a question: Is it BAD to be born on one side of a river, or is just bad?

Immigration, more specifically illegal immigration, is bad because someone put up a fence. It’s not a BAD thing to born in another country. It’s not a BAD thing to come to the United States to provide for your family. I strongly believe this line is skewed and masked by a deeper seated hatred and racism that has always existed. I’m not saying everyone who disagrees with immigration is a racist. Not by a long shot. What I’m saying is that deep down inside, the reason we support removing someone from our country that ‘doesn’t belong’ here is motivated by a belief that we are better, or they are inferior. That, by definition, is prejudice and prejudice begets racism.

Let me also clarify, I’m not for illegal immigration. I don’t condone breaking the law. I in no form support lawlessness because a society without laws and punishment for breaking those laws isn’t a society. We must all be responsible for the same lifestyle as the next man. But we should also understand not all men are given the same opportunities to achieve. Why are you and I here in America right now? Because someone left another country a long time ago looking for a better life. That, in no way, is a BAD thing. None of us would say “Curse you forefathers for coming to America and changing my life for a better one!” No, we praise and thank them for their resilience in crossing oceans and walking miles to come to a land where they could have a right to worship and act according to the dictates of their own conscience. We have a holiday where we remember them, and most of us (especially anyone belonging to the LDS church) have such strong ties we spend hours researching our family history to get to know these pioneers in our own lives.

How is this any different? A lot of us might ask how it could be, but if you go back far enough in your own history, I guarantee you will find an illegal immigrant. Whether you were a stow away on an Italian vessel, Mormon banned from the US because you practiced Polygamy, or the Irish who fled tyranny and oppression to much the same degree Mexico is facing now. We are an immigrant nation, an to deny that is ignorance to your own state.

I am not a parent, nor am I married. But I can’t imagine, with the love I feel for strangers, ever thinking that I would not do whatever I needed to in order to provide for my family, short of something immoral or unethical. I can promise that any man, who can call themselves that, would do the same.

Now, I want to make my stance very clear on the passed Arizona law, and the proposed legislation to stop “Anchor Babies”.

1. Arizona’s Already Passed Immigration Law – I will admit I am somewhat biased because of my time in Arizona working with illegal immigrants and seeing them struggle. In a very special way, I have connected with these people as I am a child of poverty. The only reason I have an education and the ability to go to school, work, and grow as a person is because I live in America. Hands down, the lifestyle I grew up with would have been unrealistic and unbearable without the support of government security plans, welfare and the fact that my Church believes in taking care of their own. Many of you do not realize this but my father has has Cerebral Palsy his entire life (he can’t use his legs). My mother is diagnosed with a form of Schizophrenia that stops her from being able to take care of or for the most part interact with any of us for prolonged periods. I was not meant to go to college, nor was I mean to have the opportunity to pursue, actively, any career or field other than manual labor. That’s just the plain and simple truth. Because I have lived that life, I am empathetic and strongly support anyone, regardless of nationality for trying to do the same. Those are the people that I saw every single day in my mission. They don’t come here to take advantage of the United States and the benefits it gives. They come here to work, for the most part, two full time jobs doing work most of us would sneer at. They work hard, and long, and love life. They throw parties with family members on the weekends, they enjoy music and dancing and drinking beer. They are happy to have the little that they do, because it is so much more than anything they have back in Mexico. Those are the people that I love.

Now, I have read the bill. I understand what it says. I also understand, in a very realistic way, that bills can say one thing, but what people do is entirely different. Other than my moral objection to the bill, I feel that it has many flaws and faults which infringe on “God Given” rights given to ‘All Men’, not just American Citizens.

• Hispanic neighborhoods are notorious for high crime rates. I know for a fact, this is due to a fear that they will be deported for calling the police. Before this law, they weren’t allowed to ask about someone’s legal status, as it is not their job nor is it their responsibility. Their job is to enforce their local laws, and protect the civil rights of the people within their judicial boundaries. After this law passed, you have groups of already scared people who won’t call the police because it could get them sent out of the country. That has done more damage to the justice system than it was ever worth to stop “drug cartels” as the law states.
• Arizona has given a responsibility of the Federal Government to a state organization. Police officers do not have a right to protect or enforce immigration. There are federal organizations set up to enforce these laws, and a state cannot override the “supreme law” of the land. Now, I also understand that since the law has passed most people are quick to jump the ‘conclusion’ that federal government isn’t doing their job. And yes, Bush tried to apply some things back in 2005-2006, but nothing was ever followed up on. Let us be very realistic for a moment, you cannot focus on immigration reform at a time when you are tied up fighting two unnecessary wars, trying to save a sinking economy, protect the rights of Americans by enacting laws that help save American lives here in America, and amidst the largest man-made natural disaster the world has ever faced. It’s no secret that I like President Obama, but honestly, cut the man some slack. He’s done, and tried to do, more for American citizens than any president has in my lifetime.
• Economically, and I’m no expert that’s why I have my friend Chris Evans, it’s just a bad move. I manage a restaurant, and the fresh produce we receive weekly comes from Mexico, or from border states where Mexican immigrants (mostly illegal) plant, grow, and harvest the food you and I eat. That, and every other major service industry profits off of immigrants. If someone is complaining that immigrants don’t pay taxes, they obviously have never done payroll for a company. Any company, that follows the US guidelines, takes taxes out of every workers check. That money is not returned to them, as they are not citizens and cannot file a tax return. That means billions (thats $1,000,000,000′s of dollars) for the US and State economies. We don’t want those jobs, we don’t want our kids to have those jobs, so someone has to work those jobs or you and I pay more! I don’t want that, and I know you don’t either. If someone is paying ‘under the table’ they are in direct violation of federal laws that require those taxes to be paid. Go after the employer doing that, it’s him that is making you pay more in taxes, not the immigrants!
• Healthcare – By now you should all no my stance on Health Care reform is based on my childhood and life and I admit openly that I am bias. I know because of my life experiences, that there is and was a need for reform. Mexican’s cannot get free health care. They pay just as we do if we don’t have insurance. They don’t get medicaid or medicare. Their kids might, if they were born here. But guess what, that’s the beauty of America! American’s get the benefits they need and deserve in America. And anyone who says a child, immigrant or not, doesn’t deserve health care needs to take a stern look in a mirror, contemplate their life and moral guidance and make the appropriate changes because they are on the quick path to Hell. I will end this point by pointing out, that illegals can get free health care at a hospital, but so can Americans. They have to help you to the best of their ability if it is a life threatening issue. And honestly, that’s why we have the service, not business, of health care.

Second, is the proposed legislation to remove citizenship rights from people born here, with illegal parents. This is flat out wrong, and unconstitutional. No one has the right to go against a federal law that has applied to all of us and our status as an American Citizen. That, is hateful, racist, and ignorant. It can’t be done, or you revoke our rights to citizenship in the Unites States as well. I honestly don’t believe anyone can argue that point.

America to me, means freedom to express myself, freedom to grow, and freedom to become the very best person I can with as much success as I am willing to put into it. Mexicans can be just as bad as Americans, and vice versa. A border does not make someone inferior. But if you still disagree with me, please list your reasoning in the comments below. I don’t write this article to argue or combat with anyone. I’m simply stating my reason for believing the way I do.

I will end by sharing a last thought, that I would ask all who read this to ponder: Imagine watching a crying child cry for their mother and father, as men in suits push them into the back of small caged truck bed. Think of what that child is thinking as they take the hand of a stranger in a business suit taking them to a group or foster home where they may never see their parents or brother’s and sister’s again. That might not mean much to you, but to me it does. I’ve been that child. I’ve been through the foster home system, I know what it feels like to be taken from your parents because someone else feels they are ‘unfit’ to have you. Those emotions are real to me, because I have experienced over two years in those group and foster homes. They are breeding ground for troubled youth, angry kids, and the downfall of our society. Think about those families the next time you smile at a border patrol bust. Let’s reform immigration, let’s make it possible for people who want to work to get here, and make it harder for people who want to drug deal and murder to stay out. Let’s just do it in the proper way, through the proper legal and moral means.

I wrote the story, filmed, directed and edited this music video. Forster performed and sang, and our lovely actors were my good friends Mike and Nikki Hall. Chris Evans helped me run the shoot as my Assistant Director. It was a good three hour shoot plus an additional two hours of editing. I was happy with it considering we had no tripod, no professional lighting (just two hardware lamps with photo bulbs) and a pressed time schedule. I’m just excited that it’s now on my website theycallmephil.com

For me, a Sunday usually consists of waking up ten minutes before church starts, throwing on a shirt and a tie, sitting through three hours of religious instruction (which is spent with me wishing I could play Tetris on my iPhone), and rushing home to gorge myself on anything I can find in my fridge. But today was different.

This afternoon I found myself sitting at my desk, attempting to plug in as many lines of dialog and scene description into my most recent screenplay as possible. That, unfortunately, was interrupted with the arrival of my brother and his fiance. They wanted to take a nap and I took that as my excuse to end my miserable attempt at writing this particular screenplay.

My thoughts turned to chocolate, and the small portion I stole from my brothers cupboard to satisfy my intense sweet tooth. Sad news, it didn’t. So as I sat there, thinking about this chocolate I remembered my sister Rachel had just returned from Canada, and brought with her a Wunderbar. Now, there is one thing you have to understand about Phil Hudson, I love chocolate. It’s quite frankly instant happiness for me. It really is. My friend Mike calls me the “Truffle-uf-agus” because we spent January 2009 sitting in our living room watching Battle Star Galactica and eating truffles we got from Kara Chocolates.

Needless to say, I called my sister (one of those rare occasions which she adores, I’m sure) and she happened to be at a BBQ. To make things short, I was invited to go over and I thought ‘Heck, I’m not doing anything anyway, and my brother’s making out with his fiance right here in the same room’, so I headed for Provo.

Now, to understand something about Provo on a Sunday, most people just walk around in their suits and ties and a rather elegant pair of flip flops and white tube socks. They’re all clean cut,  with freshly gelled hair and glowing with spirituality. I, on the other hand, am wearing a retro Star Wars Empire Strikes Back t-shirt, some jeans with holes in them, my blue Sperry Top Siders and a 1983 Chicago White Sox hat. My beard is scruffy, my hair is unkempt (hence the hat wearing) and I felt like I’d just woken up from a much needed nap (yeah, it was much needed but it didn’t happen).

I step out of my car in the middle of Suburban Provo, walk up the sidewalk to a house bubbling with BYU students and see my sister sitting with her roommate (whom I would offend completely about four hours later with the admonition that I am a registered Democrat). We greeted each other, and we started the long awkward process of introductions to half the people in her BYU ward (religious congregation). First of all I’m bound to feel out of place because I’m an uninvited guest at a social gathering where everyone knows everyone. Secondly, my being there was like a Lion walking onto the Serengeti where a pride of lion’s is bored and ready to kill something. I’m competition. No matter what, if I speak to any females, no matter who they are, I’m crossing a metaphorical urine stain marking some other jungle cat’s territory.

In the end, I’m a sitting duck for conversations with awkward girls, angry guys (yes, I know this is starting to sound cynical, but it’s not), and yes even those occasional bright stars of BYU that make everyone feel welcome.

I enter the circle of chairs. I take my seat across from my sister. Some dude pulls up a chair, rupturing the structural integrity of this social convention I’ve chosen to enter, he begins to speak with my sister in depth. I’m all alone. The food is just being served so it isn’t long before I’m surround by my sister’s roommate’s and ward friends. They all begin to converse, while I sit back and listen.

One thing I have always loved doing, is people watching. Just take a moment to observe the people around you. Whether it’s nose picking, washing their cars with the window squeegee’s, or picking their crack you can see some pretty awesome things. So naturally, a BYU BBQ is the perfect location to do so. I start by absorbing the conversations around me. I listen carefully for tones, laughter, anything important. The conversation’s range from the benefits of ballet versus a rock concert, majors, minors and everything in between and even roommates. I continue to absorb personality types until my ears finally settle on one person. A blond sitting across from me in the half circle I’ve been left to squander in.

Somehow, the conversation has embarked on a path toward Disney movies (odd yes, but nothing entirely out of place for a conversation taking place at BYU). This particular blond begins to discuss Disney princesses, in particular who everyone’s favorites are. I state very bluntly that Belle has had my heart since I first met her. Another girl says, “I like Ariel because she’s a red head like me”. Another, Aurora, Snow White, etc. That’s when I over hear her start discussing the secret meaning of each princess. “Guy’s who like Jasmin like sluts. Belle is the intelligent one, that means you actually care about a girl’s intelligence” (Not going to lie, that makes me proud).  She continues to rant about the deeper meaning of the Disney films, “Ariel can disobey her father and he will sell her soul to save her” on and on.

Then the conversation switches to Ninja Turtles, I firmly believe you can tell a lot about someone based on their favorite Ninja Turtle. I’m a Donatello fan, I want to be cool, but in my heart I’m a nerd, Leonardo fan’s are natural leaders, Michelangelo fans just want to party, and Raphael fans are strong willed and slightly moody. Everyone agrees with me at this point, and she says “Yeah, I guess that does describe me, but I also liked him because the Si was my show weapon in Karate.

This is the point where my eyes bulge with mixed emotions. Frustration, annoyance, and awe that this twenty-something year-old girl quite literally has an opinion on any and everything I could ever bring up. She continues on and on for another twenty minutes discussing  the necessity for everyone to know self defense and then be prepared even if you know how to defend yourself. She even goes on to say “I was almost raped and I’m a 2nd degree black belt”.

All-in-all, I’m amazed. Desert arrives so they end up breaking the circle and I’m stuck with two guys, 1 of whom brings up Health Care Reform in a negative connotation (anyone who knows me knows that I have a very strong and loud opinion on this one) and I end up shutting him down with a couple facts he apparently wasn’t aware of. I have a good conversation with the other guy about the film industry and the future of the health industry in America.

All in all, it’s a good day. And by now you’re probably wondering why you even read this long post on my ridiculous website. All you need to know, is you understand where I’m coming from. The world is an interesting place. Look at the people around you, pay attention to the little details they share about themselves and the hidden desires that drive them. That will allow you to communicate better and enjoy life more fully. And wow, sometimes we should just keep a few of our opinions to ourselves. It can drive a man nuts!