As the Republican candidates dismantle each other (long before the Democrats even have a chance) in the background lurks the proverbial elephant in the room that might or might not be caused by players who can control such things as high gas prices.
$5.00 per galleon is rapidly approaching.
Chevron made $26.9 Billion in PROFIT last year....and it looks like they plan on breaking that record in 2012.
Chevron, Exxon-Mobil, Shell, Union and Arco seem to have a nice hold on the retail gasoline business in America. In 2006 there were 167,000 stations and by all indications there seems to be less today....which is also really strange when you stop to think about it. You never see lines in Santa Monica and I know for a fact that there are fewer stations than 10 years ago.....
But I'm fairly certain that those companies mentioned above own a clear majority of the stations.
It wouldn't be that hard to control the price of their product....especially if there is only a small group making the decisions.
I guess now is the time to start asking if the CEO's are Republicans or Democrats.
Because really after everything is said and done, HIGH GAS PRICES might be the only real weapon that Republicans have in the upcoming election.
And if gas prices go to $5.00 a galleon ( or higher) than that weapon becomes a real bunker buster.
The President is hinting at using reserves to help control the prices. Can't he just ask the oil executives to work on a little lower profit margin?
JUST ASK....NOT DEMAND
TOO SOCIALISTIC FOR YOUR TASTE?
If he can apologise for the military accidentally burning copies of the Koran, than asking the oil companies to work on slightly less margins doesn't seen like that big of a deal.
I have a 30 gallon tank in my Yukon and IF I filled up in Santa Monica at my local Chevron station......it would cost me
$130.00.
IF is the optimum word.....since I don't generally fill the tank. No long road trips in awhile so therefore no fill ups.
Airline tickets are going to skyrocket and truckers expenses will rise and before you know it nobody will be filling their tank....because nobody will be going anywhere further than 5 miles from home.
And just a few weeks ago the economy looked like it was starting to show signs of life.
$5.00 a gallon gas prices will bitch slap that notion in a hurry!
AND THAT SLAP WILL BE VERY BENEFICIAL
TO THE REPUBLICAN
CANDIDATE
Michael Timothy McAlevey
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Book review for Christian soldiers and other such folk
I don't write about it very often, except of course an occasional tirade focused on the Nuns, but having been raised a Catholic I have definite built-in....quirks. Those quirks morph into quarks and then transform into patterns that lead to various questions that generally have no concrete answers.
My spiritual (non physical reality) awareness and knowledge is completely based on personal experience and has nothing to do with Catholic doctrine....even though the Nuns would probably debate that statement. After all, they are a feisty little bunch of devoted ladies and everyone knows that devoted ladies when they get together in feisty little bunch's can truly be a handful.
Every so often I'll come across a book, or a concept, having to do with Christian and Catholic ideals that will perk my interest but it's kind of like visiting the house you grew up in.....it seemed so much larger than it actually is. And compared to the reality of the Universe....those Catholic and Christian concepts are very very very very small.
The Lost Angel by Javier Sierra would seem like a must read to any Christian who has an interest in historical reference points. Which when one stops to think about it, actual Christian and Catholic historical references points seem to be limited to the Bible.
Other works just seem to be simply dismissed.
I have a broader interpretation of God's writing ability. I don't think God is a one or two book wonder. I think The Creator of a Universe can convey concepts and realities at any given moment.......including right now.
I think The Creator of a Universe can write amazing poetry, beautiful movie scripts, wonderful novels, engaging political thrillers and of course mesmerizing musical lyrics.
Limiting God's word to one or two or three or four or five books seems really really silly.
What Javier Sierra has done with his exceptional research is lift some veils that seem to have been smothered by modern Christian scholars. Smothering can consist of ignoring or altering for sake of discrediting.
I have never heard of the religious group called the Yezidi until I read The Lost Angel. In reality they might be the oldest known religious organization that has ever roamed the planet Earth.
Their anonymity is due to the fact that they have been classified by some Christan scholars as.....devil worshippers. They believe they descent from Adam and not Eve. They believe in reincarnation and the revere snakes.
John Dee is another new name I learned from this book and a very interesting historical figure.
who lived from 1527 to 1608.
The Epic of Gilgamesh is another new learning curve for me. Written 4000 years before the birth of Christ and found in Iraq, this story of a Sumerian king who is determined to find God's kingdom and reclaim man's right to immortality.
The Nuns never taught me about the Yezidi, John Dee or Gilgamesh because they were too busy teaching about their own stars.
If you are a devout believer in Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism or even an atheist I highly suggest reading The Lost Angel.
At the very least it will make you think of non-physical reality while introducing you to a new concept of what Angels might be, and how electromagnetic energy can play a role in the human experience.
It also made me conceptualize a story of how Marconi and Tesla waged a battle over the various waves of energy that can be captured and created....but of course that's another story for another day.
THE LOST ANGEL by Javier Sierra. Give it a go!
Michael Timothy McAlevey
My spiritual (non physical reality) awareness and knowledge is completely based on personal experience and has nothing to do with Catholic doctrine....even though the Nuns would probably debate that statement. After all, they are a feisty little bunch of devoted ladies and everyone knows that devoted ladies when they get together in feisty little bunch's can truly be a handful.
Every so often I'll come across a book, or a concept, having to do with Christian and Catholic ideals that will perk my interest but it's kind of like visiting the house you grew up in.....it seemed so much larger than it actually is. And compared to the reality of the Universe....those Catholic and Christian concepts are very very very very small.
The Lost Angel by Javier Sierra would seem like a must read to any Christian who has an interest in historical reference points. Which when one stops to think about it, actual Christian and Catholic historical references points seem to be limited to the Bible.
Other works just seem to be simply dismissed.
I have a broader interpretation of God's writing ability. I don't think God is a one or two book wonder. I think The Creator of a Universe can convey concepts and realities at any given moment.......including right now.
I think The Creator of a Universe can write amazing poetry, beautiful movie scripts, wonderful novels, engaging political thrillers and of course mesmerizing musical lyrics.
Limiting God's word to one or two or three or four or five books seems really really silly.
What Javier Sierra has done with his exceptional research is lift some veils that seem to have been smothered by modern Christian scholars. Smothering can consist of ignoring or altering for sake of discrediting.
I have never heard of the religious group called the Yezidi until I read The Lost Angel. In reality they might be the oldest known religious organization that has ever roamed the planet Earth.
Their anonymity is due to the fact that they have been classified by some Christan scholars as.....devil worshippers. They believe they descent from Adam and not Eve. They believe in reincarnation and the revere snakes.
John Dee is another new name I learned from this book and a very interesting historical figure.
who lived from 1527 to 1608.
The Epic of Gilgamesh is another new learning curve for me. Written 4000 years before the birth of Christ and found in Iraq, this story of a Sumerian king who is determined to find God's kingdom and reclaim man's right to immortality.
The Nuns never taught me about the Yezidi, John Dee or Gilgamesh because they were too busy teaching about their own stars.
If you are a devout believer in Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism or even an atheist I highly suggest reading The Lost Angel.
At the very least it will make you think of non-physical reality while introducing you to a new concept of what Angels might be, and how electromagnetic energy can play a role in the human experience.
It also made me conceptualize a story of how Marconi and Tesla waged a battle over the various waves of energy that can be captured and created....but of course that's another story for another day.
THE LOST ANGEL by Javier Sierra. Give it a go!
Michael Timothy McAlevey
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Going my way
Today is my first birthday in 66 years without my father and I planned on watching the Pebble Beach golf tournament and simply relaxing, with an occasional thought about the many times we teed it up together.
I woke up, walked Ollie Yoda, the dog, and then had Eggs Benedict while watching golf on the Golf Channel. At 11:30 the coverage ended and there was a half hour break before it resumed on CBS. I flipped the channels and just starting on TMC was the 1944 Best Picture....GOING MY WAY.
The first three minutes of viewing included a few very quick observations that resembled critical opinionated behavior that centered on certain thoughts such as......corny, childish, trivial, mundane and then one small scene with Barry Fitzgerald and Bing Crosby and instantly the thoughts changed to classic, timeless, wonderful and "why can't they make movies like this anymore?"
Within the next hour I found myself crying three different times and by the end of the film I was simply stunned at how my birthday had been reduced to a celebration of nostalgia and wonder.
Seriously......where are the modern day versions of Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald and where are the stories that simply appeal to a higher part of our nature?
I totally realize that that last statement puts me in the old foggy category but one must remember that I started the day by planning on reminiscing about rounds of golf with my dad while watching the Pebble Beach tournament.....which used to be called the Bing Crosby Clambake.....so any old foggy implications can actually be blamed on my father.
While watching Going My Way I also realized that they filmed it at St. Monica's which happens to be my high school and also sits about 300 yards from my front door.
In 1944 Americans were extremely ready for bad times to end and good times to begin, and it took another year before that actually happened....but a film like Going My Way really paved the way for a new attitude in the United States that would start in 1945. An attitude that would last until 1963.
An attitude of WE CAN ACCOMPLISH ANYTHING.
Going My Way was simply a preview of how people could recover from a tragic experience by working together, being kind and of course singing and creating new music.
The music that would be introduced from 1946 to 1970 changed the world...and it took a voice like Bing Crosby to get the ball rolling. Of course Elvis really got the ball rolling but Bing was also one of a kind.
I fully understand the stretch taken with that last statement.....but seriously there's never been another Bing Crosby and I doubt if there ever will be. Life had to be represented in black and white and it had to be represented by kindness and simplicity and I'm sorry to say those two tangents are truly things of our past when it comes to modern film making.
Of course I could be totally mistaken....but it's my birthday and a little negativity is to be expected after watching myself cry over a movie that could never be made today.
The Black and White dealio has been given a shot in the arm with this year's Best Picture nominated film "The Artist," so maybe an occasional touch of the past can be experienced from time to time, but most likely that film is simply an anomaly.
Now that I've stopped being a baby and started thinking about things.....I realize that my favorite movie of 2011....MIDNIGHT IN PARIS.....is also an anomaly.
A FEEL GOOD MOVIE WITH AN INNOVATIVE THEME THAT SIMPLY COMPELS ONE TO WATCH IT AGAIN AND AGAIN.
I wonder how many times the average American, over the age of 60, has watched Going My Way?
I highly suggest getting a group of people together and make a party of watching it......and make sure you include some young people in the group because their observations will really make the experience worthwhile.
Or Not........
I truly have no idea but I have a feeling it will be a very interesting evening.
Make it a dinner party with Going My Way showing after dining.
Then have everybody sing Silent Night before saying goodnight.
What a fun evening!
Thanks for
Going
My
Way.
Michael Timothy McAlevey
I woke up, walked Ollie Yoda, the dog, and then had Eggs Benedict while watching golf on the Golf Channel. At 11:30 the coverage ended and there was a half hour break before it resumed on CBS. I flipped the channels and just starting on TMC was the 1944 Best Picture....GOING MY WAY.
The first three minutes of viewing included a few very quick observations that resembled critical opinionated behavior that centered on certain thoughts such as......corny, childish, trivial, mundane and then one small scene with Barry Fitzgerald and Bing Crosby and instantly the thoughts changed to classic, timeless, wonderful and "why can't they make movies like this anymore?"
Within the next hour I found myself crying three different times and by the end of the film I was simply stunned at how my birthday had been reduced to a celebration of nostalgia and wonder.
Seriously......where are the modern day versions of Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald and where are the stories that simply appeal to a higher part of our nature?
I totally realize that that last statement puts me in the old foggy category but one must remember that I started the day by planning on reminiscing about rounds of golf with my dad while watching the Pebble Beach tournament.....which used to be called the Bing Crosby Clambake.....so any old foggy implications can actually be blamed on my father.
While watching Going My Way I also realized that they filmed it at St. Monica's which happens to be my high school and also sits about 300 yards from my front door.
In 1944 Americans were extremely ready for bad times to end and good times to begin, and it took another year before that actually happened....but a film like Going My Way really paved the way for a new attitude in the United States that would start in 1945. An attitude that would last until 1963.
An attitude of WE CAN ACCOMPLISH ANYTHING.
Going My Way was simply a preview of how people could recover from a tragic experience by working together, being kind and of course singing and creating new music.
The music that would be introduced from 1946 to 1970 changed the world...and it took a voice like Bing Crosby to get the ball rolling. Of course Elvis really got the ball rolling but Bing was also one of a kind.
I fully understand the stretch taken with that last statement.....but seriously there's never been another Bing Crosby and I doubt if there ever will be. Life had to be represented in black and white and it had to be represented by kindness and simplicity and I'm sorry to say those two tangents are truly things of our past when it comes to modern film making.
Of course I could be totally mistaken....but it's my birthday and a little negativity is to be expected after watching myself cry over a movie that could never be made today.
The Black and White dealio has been given a shot in the arm with this year's Best Picture nominated film "The Artist," so maybe an occasional touch of the past can be experienced from time to time, but most likely that film is simply an anomaly.
Now that I've stopped being a baby and started thinking about things.....I realize that my favorite movie of 2011....MIDNIGHT IN PARIS.....is also an anomaly.
A FEEL GOOD MOVIE WITH AN INNOVATIVE THEME THAT SIMPLY COMPELS ONE TO WATCH IT AGAIN AND AGAIN.
I wonder how many times the average American, over the age of 60, has watched Going My Way?
I highly suggest getting a group of people together and make a party of watching it......and make sure you include some young people in the group because their observations will really make the experience worthwhile.
Or Not........
I truly have no idea but I have a feeling it will be a very interesting evening.
Make it a dinner party with Going My Way showing after dining.
Then have everybody sing Silent Night before saying goodnight.
What a fun evening!
Thanks for
Going
My
Way.
Michael Timothy McAlevey
Monday, February 6, 2012
Egypt is another one of those.....
We, The United States of America, have always been extremely generous with our foreign aid and quite often that aid comes in the form of military supplies. One of the ways it seems to work is that we give certain countries cash, and then they turn around and buy their weapons from American suppliers of such items. Often times it doesn't appear that we analyze future behavior on the part of certain countries and simply settle for the quick deal.
Egypt apparently is the latest one of our benefactors that could prove to be a nightmare.
One-third of all foreign aid goes to Israel and Egypt. We generally know how a democratic Israel will respond in times of crisis but we have no idea what will happen in Egypt. We were banking on the fact that a President, such as Mubark, would lead Egypt into the modern age of democracy and diplomacy.....but after 30 years that comfort zone has quickly evaporated.
If extreme Muslim leadership assumes control then suddenly all of our benevolence simply becomes stupid decision making on the part of multiple administrations and hundreds of congressional figures.
It's hard to blame the corporations who manufacturer the weapons because they just want to wheel and deal. It's up to the government (elected officials) to make sure who they wheel and deal with....and Egypt now appears to be one of those countries that makes OPPS the optimum word when considering the deals that have been done over the last 30 years.
Egypt is one the greatest tourist attractions on the planet. But making sure they have modern weapons might not be such a grand idea.
Just once during one of the mass gatherings of Egyptians I would like to see a woman's face.
Just one female face in the crowd.
Another country where woman are dehumanized but weaponry is world class....thanks mainly to the United States.
It seems we should have rules in place regarding the treatment of woman and the ability to buy weapons....because wherever there appears to be erratic mass behavior, there also seems to be a deep mistreatment of the females species.
That seems like a fixable problem.
Don't sell weapons to dickheads.
Amen
Michael Timothy McAlevey
Egypt apparently is the latest one of our benefactors that could prove to be a nightmare.
One-third of all foreign aid goes to Israel and Egypt. We generally know how a democratic Israel will respond in times of crisis but we have no idea what will happen in Egypt. We were banking on the fact that a President, such as Mubark, would lead Egypt into the modern age of democracy and diplomacy.....but after 30 years that comfort zone has quickly evaporated.
If extreme Muslim leadership assumes control then suddenly all of our benevolence simply becomes stupid decision making on the part of multiple administrations and hundreds of congressional figures.
It's hard to blame the corporations who manufacturer the weapons because they just want to wheel and deal. It's up to the government (elected officials) to make sure who they wheel and deal with....and Egypt now appears to be one of those countries that makes OPPS the optimum word when considering the deals that have been done over the last 30 years.
Egypt is one the greatest tourist attractions on the planet. But making sure they have modern weapons might not be such a grand idea.
Just once during one of the mass gatherings of Egyptians I would like to see a woman's face.
Just one female face in the crowd.
Another country where woman are dehumanized but weaponry is world class....thanks mainly to the United States.
It seems we should have rules in place regarding the treatment of woman and the ability to buy weapons....because wherever there appears to be erratic mass behavior, there also seems to be a deep mistreatment of the females species.
That seems like a fixable problem.
Don't sell weapons to dickheads.
Amen
Michael Timothy McAlevey
Friday, February 3, 2012
The defining moment and The Definer
I really wish I had more recent pictures to share.
And that most likely sums up the entire scope of emotions.......I really wish I had more recent pictures to share.
18 years........18 years......and Sean will forever remain the definer......
His shortened physical reality continues to define the very essence of my life....and of course his mother's life and probably his sister's life and from time to time his friend's.
It's one of those pages in the universal yearbook that haunts who we are.
And to be be completely honest......I'm never going to be comfortable with the physical reality of the situation.
We learn to create compartments and various storage units within our memory banks, and then we place certain experiences in those compartments and hope they stay out of our way while we attempt to conduct the business of living day to day.
Sean's life is impossible to place in one of those storage units but the experience of February 3 1994.....is.
And on this day 18 years later, in 2012, I am reminded with extreme intensity of how horrible that day was. Then, without the slightest bit of effort, I simply recall all the days that followed and the years that have ensued and the pain that will never go away.
I really wish I had more recent pictures to share.
Last week our family said goodbye to the 92 year old dude (sorry Dad) who started the California McAlevey experience. The Celebration of Life was just that......92 years and a complete and comfortable endeavor because that's the way it should be....even though I would have liked to tee it up with him into his late 90's.
Today I am reminded that life can cause extreme damage on the physical level....and I'm reminded by that defining moment 18 years ago.
I am also reminded that Non-Physical Reality (NPR) is a creation of an even bigger DEFINER.
The soul of Sean Maximilian McAlevey is eternal, as is the soul of every single human being that has participated in this physical reality.
Neo-Illunimation #5......The thread of life is eternally attatched to your soul
and it didn't get there by accident.
It's just hard to take snap shots of the soul and
I really
really
wish
I had
more recent pictures
to share.
Michael Timothy McAlevey
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