We give them money and then we advertise their brand.....

I've been perplexed by this subject for many years but I think this is the first time I've actually written anything because in the long run people need to identify with something and in turn be identified with something or someone LARGER than themselves.

For the last few years plastic bags have been banned from the market and if you need a paper bag they charge you 10 cents.

Yesterday they started selling reusable plastic bags for 25 cents with a very large PAVILIONS name on the side.  I asked the clerk why they were selling plastic bags and he smugly answered, "because they are reusable."

REUSABLE PLASTIC BAGS??????
WITH A VERY LARGE PAVILIONS NAME ON THE SIDE
and
THEY CHARGE US (not all of us) 25 CENTS TO WALK AROUND ADVERTISING THEIR COMPANY.

If it takes a 100 years for regular plastic bags to disintegrate...how long will a reusable plastic bag last?

I somewhat understand if someone buys a jersey with their favorite players name on it.
I almost get the secondary market that seems to exist when Jordan introduces a new shoe.
I never got the idea of a logo of a manufacturer on a shirt.
I understand when someone buys a country club golf shirt when visiting a special golf course.

I will never ever understand why someone would pay 25 cents for a reusable plastic bag that actually names the store responsible for creating a such a monster product.


They actually know how stupid people can be and they thrive on that knowledge.

https://www.theoceancleanup.com/great-pacific-garbage-patch/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsJqMmuFWO4

THE MAGIC QUESTION
How many people that work for Albertsons, which owns Safeway, Vons and Pavilions have actually watched the video's of plastic islands in our oceans?

What year was it that companies learned they could charge a premium by placing their brands on the outside of their product so that people could advertise their companies for them?

I assume NIKE might have been an early benefactor of this type of behavior.  Maybe they appear to be a major player in the beginning because their advertising campaigns were unique.

I think back to when Converse and Keds were the only tennis shoe players and neither of them capitalized on BRAND AWARENESS....mainly because there were no other brands unless you include Buster Brown.

Again I understand if someone wears a name of someone they admire, whether it be in sports, politics or entertainment.  What I don't understand is the symbolism of wearing a product that advertises a company so that other people can see how much money one spends on said products.

Walking around with a Rolex and wearing a shirt that says I'm wearing a Rolex is probably the next step toward this epidemic BRAND nonsense....and also a very good way to be the victim of a robbery....which by the way, happens with high priced sneakers.

Of course I will admit that I've never been the demographic that all the advertising is aimed at and have only asked four people in my life for an autograph.

Bill Buckner looked at me and said...."get a life."

Tommy Lasorda told me to fuck off once and then years later signed a ball.

Angus Young of AC/DC signed my Panama golf hat and tried it on and asked how he looked. And Jerry West signed a golf cap that is totally illegible.

I was standing in a circle one time around Muhammad Ali while people were handing him money to sign, but I just stuck out my hand and said..."the pleasure you have given me, I just want to shake your hand"  He looked at me, smiled and said, "Thank you very much," and then went back to signing the bills without looking at anyone.

It seems that Ali never really took advantage of the Brand dealio and it's odd because he might be the most recognizable person in the world.

I might buy a bag from Pavilions if it said Ali is the Greatest....but it couldn't be a reusable plastic bag.

Sorry Champ but my celebrity adoration only goes so far. 

The brand thing could end up, like my friend Tom said, with people walking around looking like race car drivers.

It's well on it's way to that level of nonsense.

I know it sounds silly but if someone wants me to advertise their product I expect to be paid.

And that will only happen if my art becomes more important than me....and truthfully speaking when you get to a certain age as an artist you fully have to accept that IT might be all about
LATER.

Much much much much later.....

Then again sometimes life just turns on a dime....and everything goes a different direction.

Maybe those suits that run Albertsons will wake up tomorrow and decide to help clean up the plastic island in the middle of the oceans.

Sometimes MAYBE and IF really have no meaning.....and maybe if a monkey flew out of my ass I could be on the Jimmy Kimmel show.

Of course it would be much more effective if the monkey had on a pair of Nike's, a pair of Levi's and a Dodger cap.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

People on both sides of the issue

What I've seemed to notice lately is how both sides of the coin have altered when it comes to viewing the current President of the United States.

The people who did not support him and thought the entire process of him running for President was just a publicity stunt and that there is no way this country would allow him to be the leader of the free world....now think the entire situation has been a joke and that he is an embarrassment to the office and to the reputation of our country. In other words those who didn't like him..... NOW really don't like him.  

They didn't really know him before and now that they have learned about him, their disdain has quadrupled.

On the other hand....the people who supported him and believed that a wealthy celebrity businessman could be good for the country are now positive that they made the right choice and they can't wait to vote for him again.  Those people look at the economy and see the stock market doing well and think he's responsible and they completely ignore the numbers
under the Obama administration 
when the recovery was actually taking place.

When a recession happens like in 2008 the recovery time table is completely unknown and during Obama's term the recovery was steady and has continued through the first year and half of the Trump term.

THE RECOVERY WAS AND PROBABLY STILL IS TAKING PLACE. IT STARTED IN 2009....LONG BEFORE OUR CURRENT LEADER EVEN CONSIDERED APPLYING FOR HIS CURRENT JOB.

But the people who support him don't look at the big picture because if they did they would see how dangerous his EPA policies are and throw his ass out the door.

BOTH SIDES SEEM STRONGER THAN BEFORE

THE DIFFERENCE IN THE PREVIOUS ELECTION AND 2020 RESTS WITH THE PEOPLE WHO DIDN'T LIKE HILLARY CLINTON AND SELECTED THE OTHER CANDIDATE AS A PROTEST VOTE.

THOSE PEOPLE NOW ARE THE DIFFERENCE MAKERS.

My instinct tells me that a large percentage (30 to 40%) of those people will not vote for Trump again....and are sorry they did in 2016.

That 30 to 40 percent and the new registered voters should be enough to offset a second term for DJT.

Of course the opposition party will have to present a candidate that people know and trust will conduct business in a dignified and honorable fashion.

In my world that seems to be a regular Joe kind of guy.....in fact a regular Joe guy named Joe.  I'm not concerned about the age factor because within the last few years age has become a non-issue with me.  

Experience matters.

Of course getting older will always contribute to the increase of that type of awareness.

The UNITED STATES of AMERICA needs a Joe Biden type of personality to follow the Donald Trump type of personality.  

IT SIMPLY JUST MAKES SENSE.

I'm not certain if Joe wants to do it but since he's spent his entire life trying to make a political difference it seems that one last episode of doing the right thing is the right thing to do.

He might need some encouragement....like maybe a little push from Lizzy Warren when she promises to be his running mate.

Does anyone have his cell phone number?

Let's get the campaign rolling because if you haven't noticed the other guy is in full election swing mode.

GO JOE!

Michael Timothy McAlevey

Listen to the voice

 "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" is a song which was written by Roy Turk and Lou Handman in 1926.

(Wkipedia)
In April 1960, after Elvis Presley's two-year service in the United States Army, he recorded the song at the suggestion of managerColonel Tom Parker; "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" was Parker's wife, Marie Mott's, favorite song. Its release was delayed by RCA Victorexecutives, who thought the song did not fit Presley's new (and publicized) style. When "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" was released in November 1960 it was an immediate success in the U.S., toppingBillboard's Pop Singles chart and reaching number three on the R&B chart. A month after the song's release, it topped the UK Singles Chart. Presley's version was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in 1961 and upgraded to double platinum in 1992.

This is the original recording 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cS5aCozhcA

Listen to the talking portion of this song.  It was 1961 and his diction is so "unique.

I'm not sure unique is the best word to use 
but 
if you listen a few times
it's pretty easy to understand how he got the title



THE KING


As I introduce Elvis to my 14 month old granddaughter I realize that the voice is so compelling and then as she watches him she appears mesmerized....


The Celine Dion/Elvis Presley make believe video is a must see for anybody...especially for those younger folks who have not listened to The King.

https://www.littlethings.com/celine-dion-elvis-presley-if-i-can-dream/

The Voice could be his nickname.......

It turns out President "Biff" is a genius CONSTRUCTOR

I've finally come to the conclusion that if you can confuse EVERYBODY all the time 
then you probably can be considered a genius
IF
of course you have the resources
or
the power.

CCPS 
Building a completely camouflaged personality structure allows someone to actually do and say whatever they want, at anytime, because they have figured out the ultimate answer to what people will and will not pay attention to.

The constructor of said personality knows for certain that the more confused people are the less they pay attention to details.  That constructor also knows that the people who are confused will follow mindlessly because they think that the person creating the confusion must know what is going on.

Engage the people who are confused (Trump fans) 
with a strong media presence (Fox)which continually pontificates the benefits, however abstract or non-existent they are, of said constructor and crowds will form and signs will appear....and elections will be won.

The people who aren't confused and continue to view the past 18 months with disdain and anger and shock appear to be diminishing.

WE CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN

The time to start campaigning is NOW because the CONSTRUCTOR is campaigning and has been since he registered his reelection papers the day after being inaugurated on Jan 20 2017.


Of course at the present time there doesn't seem to be an opposing personality who can verbalize, organize and realize the task at end.

THE TASK AT HAND IS TO MAKE SURE DONALD J. TRUMP, better known in the Mind Jazz world as President "Biff" DOESN'T GET A SECOND CHANCE to continue displaying his weird and completely self-centered driven personality.

Presently we are experiencing his attempt to fulfill promises from his unprecedented election campaign of 2016.

He vowed to pull out of the Iran treaty stating that it was the "worst deal ever made."

DOES ANYONE REALLY THINK IN 2016 THAT DONALD J. TRUMP READ THAT TREATY?

He made comments at the time that we "gave" Iran $150 BILLION to make that treaty a reality.

WE DIDN'T GIVE THEM ANYTHING.  WE RELEASED SOME OF THEIR MONEY THAT HAD BEEN FROZEN SINCE THE 1979 REVOLUTION.

The amount we released varies considerably....and it's very hard to get a definitive answer to that question....but it was and is their money.

This goes back to the ability of the CONSTRUCTOR to confuse and alter facts.   I read the other day that since he started running in 2016 the constructor has verbalized 3,000 incorrect statements.

3,000.

THE MAN IS A GENIUS

HE KNOWS PEOPLE DON'T REALLY PAY ATTENTION TO LIES
BECAUSE
HE
KNOWS
EVERYBODY 
LIES

You might like to refer to political exaggerations as not being lies
but
a rose is a rose
and
bullshit is bullshit
and
we have let the ultimate showbiz bullshitter determine the future of the United States of America.

Not only has he created international angst but his environmental policies are a legitimate treat to our health and the health of our children and their children.

THAT FACT DOES NOT SEEM TO SCARE ENOUGH PEOPLE

If North Korea follows through on their promise to stop construction of their Nuclear weapons then of course something positive has taken place.  I truly believe that China has a bigger hand in diffusing that situation but a victory is a victory. 

Our President doesn't seem to trust the United Nation's inspector's when it comes to Iran so why would he trust them in North Korea?

This last week we had the leaders of France,Germany and the UK ask "Biff" to reconsider his position and while there might be flaws in the treaty it is working as it was intended.

But when the CONSTRUCTOR says it's the worst deal ever..... then it must be true.

And the two countries that agree with him are Israel and Saudi Arabia...which happen to be Iran's sworn enemies, while at the same time receive the largest foreign aid packages from US.

THE MAN HAS LIED 
OVER
AND
OVER.......and over and over
and 
MILLIONS OF PEOPLE still believe him and follow him and like him 
and most of all  
TRUST HIM to make the decisions regarding
the best interests of the United States.

Which no matter what you might think
makes
him
a
freakin
genius.

Of course there have been other personalities in history that were considered 
geniuses 
until
they
weren't.

Unfortunately it usually took some time and very heavy tolls before those individuals were reclassified.

LET'S PRAY AND HOPE THAT HISTORY DOESN'T PUT OUR PRESENT SITUATION ON THE WRONG COLUMN OF WORLD EVENTS.

Michael Timothy McAlevey

1052

2018   April

1052

THE begins a story that never has been told

It is absolutely new and billions of years old

IT matters only to those who wonder why

And of course to those who wander in the sky

STUDY and learn about dark before light

And answers will appear that don’t appear right

BUT then it unfolds and quarks become larger than thought

And all the integers have been saved for not

WE now see NGC 1052 might not have dark matter at all

Which changes quantum theories and makes them very small

Experiments can only prove theories that math tells us are true

But without Hubble and his co-mirrored friends there is nothing we can do

NOW we can look into billions of years ago

And suddenly everything goes very very very slow

Without dark matter velocity is reduced

So maybe there is something else that keeps the universe juiced

AND thus the story of how we begin

Goes back to the period before time could end

And thus the story of how we begin

Starts with a number much less than ten

Maybe even a number below the number one

And when you stop and think about it

ZERO

Is

The

Ultimate

FUN

WE CAN SEE BILLION OF YEARS AGO

BUT WHAT WE SEE

DOESN’T MEAN WE KNOW

VISION TELLS US THERE WAS A HUGE EVENT

BUT

IT’S

HARD

TO

EXPLAIN

HOW

IT

CAME

AND

WENT

https://www.spacetelescope.org/videos/heic1806a/

Granddaughter can't get enough of Baby Beluga and

and of course.................

and I'm trying to get her into St. Vincent but 14 months might not be long enough....maybe 16 months.

I think she might be ready for The Sound of Music

Can't wait to introduce her to AC/DC

This is how I take my mind off of the White House and the EPA's attack on our water and air. 

I'm pretty sure America can withstand the Trump tornado....as long as it doesn't last too long.

Michael Timothy McAlevey