First, Annotations are EVIL incarnate! Use ONLY when necessary.

Second, AOP can be done without annotations through properties files. This is actually better than annotations because they can be:

• shared
• reloaded
• cached
• synchronized

… across the entire architecture

Once you have BOUND that annotation to your function, that is where the data resides and lives. All other external services must now SYNC to that data.

Thus an architectural cross cutting concern.

This is why I say AOP can be done without annotations AND annotations are evil! :)