Michael Allen's Blog: Michael Allen Online, page 16

Nate Diaz and Logan Paul in a Street Fight, Guess Who Won?

Nate Diaz and Logan Paul have been beefing for a minute and we were all looking forward to a possible fight. That might not happen now that they caught up to each other in a street fight and things were set straight there.

Logan Paul is a decent boxer. What can I say? He could kick my ass. But I’m an old man and he’s in his prime. He should be able to kick my ass.

I’ve just always thought that he jumped into professional boxing because of his online status and that’s not fair to the other boxers. Just because he can bring in the fans doesn’t mean he’s worked to get there or qualified to be there. Some boxers have bled and sweat for years to get to where, kicked back because an online influencer has millions of followers but no experience in the ring?

So, he fights people he thinks he can beat and most of them haven’t even been boxers. His last fight with a boxer did go his way and that was with a guy who had a chance. So, I give him that one. It’s a good show for the fans and a great purse for the contenders. That’s business, baby. It’s just business.

Nate Diaz on the other hand is a beast in the octagon. He’s trained with his fists, his feet, and several disciplines of martial arts. He knows how to use everything at his disposal and he’s been a veteran in the octagon for years.

Of course, Logan Paul wants to take him on in the ring but I don’t think Diaz has a problem with that. He’ll take him on anywhere. Like in this video. They meet in the street and as everyone knows, there are no rules there.

Will Nate Diaz and Logan Paul ever see each other in the ring? I’m not so sure after what happened here.

Nate Diaz Chokes out Logan Paul on the Street… pic.twitter.com/78Fxj6hh7J

— Fight Mate (@FightMate) April 22, 2023

The post Nate Diaz and Logan Paul in a Street Fight, Guess Who Won? appeared first on Michael Allen.

Lake Superior State University Has Banished The Word GOAT

With the Super Bowl coming tomorrow, this news hits just in time. Lake Superior State University of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan makes a list every year of words they think should be banished and for 2023, they have added the word GOAT.

Patrick Mahomes will be playing in the big game tomorrow as Tom Brady has just recently left the building and GOAT is very much a part of our vocabulary, thank you very much. With LeBron James recently becoming the all-time highest NBA scorer, the debate still rages between Michael Jordan and James over who the actual GOAT is. This word isn’t just going to go away.

The Greatest of all Time is actually hard to nail down. There is always going to be a long list of names that have all accomplished great things. No one is in agreement about Michael Jordan and LeBron James. Everyone pretty much agrees that Tom Brady is the GOAT…for now. Patrick Mahomes is on his way. But if Lake Superior State University had its way, we would have to find a new term to use to label the one person who has made the greatest contribution to the game or whatever field they’re in.

That wasn’t the only word or saying that was banished by the way. The list also includes Inflection point, Quiet quitting, Gaslighting, Moving forward, Amazing, Does that make sense, Irregardless, Absolutely, and It is what it is. Rodney S. Hanley is the university’s president who defended the list by saying that they fit a certain set of criteria that includes, “misuse, overuse, and uselessness.”

I agree with the list to a certain extent. “Irregardless” is just a silly word that serves the same purpose as regardless and makes the speaker sound uneducated. “It is what it is,” explains nothing, and “amazing” is an extreme word that is used way too much. Your dinner was not amazing. Throwing your water bottle into a trash can five feet away is not an amazing shot. A dancer really has to stun me into disbelief before I will call their performance amazing. Very few things in the world are amazing and that level of description should be kept for those things that actually are.

But I’m keeping GOAT. In fact, I might say it now more than ever, and speaking of the GOAT, Patrick Mahomes has a particularly interesting curse to break tomorrow. The last nine quarterbacks to be awarded NFL MVP and go to the Super Bowl in the same year have lost the big game. Mahomes is looking to break that streak and bring home the win tomorrow, but he’s up against the Philadelphia Eagles and they aren’t too shabby either. Plus, we don’t know how he looks yet since suffering an injury to his ankle earlier in the playoffs.

The post Lake Superior State University Has Banished The Word GOAT appeared first on Michael Allen.

Tom Brady Gets Roasted By Kelly Clarkson At The NFL Honors

With the NFL football season coming to a close, Kelly Clarkson was tapped to host the 12th Annual NFL Honors. She is clearly a Cowboys fan as she wore a dress with their colors and the infamous star with the names from Elliott to Prescott to Lawrence, Diggs, and Lamb.

One of the highlights of the ceremony though was when Kirk Cousins came out on stage with Kelly Clarkson to sing a song in tribute to Tom Brady. It would appear the GOAT is retired and he means it this time. He might be able to get his wife back since his return to the game is what caused the divorce in the first place. But put that aside for now because this is hilarious.

It’s not a song about his achievements or what he means to the game. It’s about him being gone finally. To the words of Kelly Clarkson herself, “Since U Been Gone,” the duo sang “Now That He’s Gone.”

My biggest takeaway from NFL Honors is that Kelly Clarkson was way better than I thought she would be and that she should go on tour with Kirk Cousins #NFLHonors pic.twitter.com/46LpEBYQb5

— John Breech (@johnbreech) February 10, 2023

Dak Prescott didn’t look too happy about that. After all, he did beat Tom Brady in his final game. Of course, that was after Tom Brady beat the Cowboys in every other game that they met. So, Prescott can think about that for a moment.

And just in case you missed it, that was Tom Brady in his underwear on his bed in Miami overlooking the beach. He is promoting his underwear. But as I understand it, the reason he is doing it this way is that he lost a bet. Of course, he would have to have lost a bet. That doesn’t seem in character with something Brady would have done otherwise.

But a tear-jerking highlight of the ceremony was when Damar Hamlin came out on stage. He was met with a standing ovation. If you don’t know, earlier in the season, Damar collapsed on the field suffering from a cardiac arrest. The game was canceled. I had never seen anything like that in my life and I hope I never do again. It was good to see Damar walking across that stage and the speech he gave was touching. He brought all the first responders and the entire medical staff involved in his recovery on stage with him to honor them as well.

Damar Hamlin, ladies and gentlemen #NFLHonors pic.twitter.com/e7f1xxCOn7

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) February 10, 2023

The post Tom Brady Gets Roasted By Kelly Clarkson At The NFL Honors appeared first on Michael Allen.

LeBron James Stands Alone As He Breaks All-Time Scoring Record

I don’t know who took the timeout for the huge celebration that took place on the court after LeBron James became the all-time leading scorer in NBA history, surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The NBA is going to have to sort that out or maybe they just took one for themselves to give the man a celebration deserving of the feat.

At the age of 19, LeBron James joined the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003. Since then, he went to the Miami Heat in 2010, back to Cleveland in 2014, and finally to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018 where he’s been ever since. On each of those teams, he’s accumulated points that as of last night’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder in which the Lakers lost, those points add up to 38,390. Before that, Kareem held the record at 38,387.

[image error]

He has often been compared to Michael Jordan as to who is the GOAT. There are fans on both sides of that argument and this achievement will definitely up LeBron James another key point when it comes to the comparison between the two athletes.

It’s a fact that when Michael Jordan played the game, he changed it. Period. He played sick. He played amazingly. He left a bright shining glow on the game when he left that is still there to this day, that James himself has had to play under as he has risen through the ranks.

That would be the reason many believe Michael Jordan to be the undisputed GOAT. But let’s not rain on LeBron James’ parade. He became the highest scorer of all time, and after scoring those points at the end of the third quarter, he was done for the night. He didn’t score for the rest of the game, an entire quarter left and he didn’t contribute much of anything else finishing the night with 38 points to go along with 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals!

Michael Jordan would have won the game. Just putting that out there. In all seriousness, congratulations LeBron! That’s an amazing achievement that solidifies you as a legend of the NBA with a phenomenal legacy that will always be remembered.

The post LeBron James Stands Alone As He Breaks All-Time Scoring Record appeared first on Michael Allen.

The Genius of ‘Flowers’ by Miley Cyrus

I saw a meme on Facebook about Miley Cyrus buying herself flowers while back in the day, we had the Dixie Chicks telling us how to get rid of Earl. We are not the same. I had no idea what it was about. As always, I am late to the conversation. I’m late to the party. I’m late for the show. I’ll be late for my own funeral.

But let’s talk about Miley Cyrus who must have been in a good bit of pain over her breakup with Liam Hemsworth and the fact that there might have been an affair between him and Jennifer Lawrence while the two were still together in their on-again-off-again romance that ended in divorce in 2020. In an old clip of Jennifer, she admits to kissing him while they were working together filming The Hunger Games. Did it go any further than that? Who knows? But fans are speculating and Miley might know.

There are Easter Eggs all over the “Flowers” video released as well as the song itself. First off, it begins with Miley Cyrus in a gold dress that looks the same as what Jennifer Lawrence was wearing when she went to The Hunger Games movie premiere with Liam. That just begins all the brilliant references Miley put in her work.

There’s so much that it can’t be caught all at once. Things happen so fast and some things in the video aren’t even known until the information is leaked but here’s what I have so far.

At their wedding, Liam dedicated the Bruno Mars hit “When I was Your Man” to her. Miley reverse engineers that song when she sings, “I can buy myself flowers / Write my name in the sand / Talk to myself for hours / Say things you don’t understand / I can take myself dancing / And I can hold my own hand / Yeah, I can love me better than you can.”

The Bruno Mars hit goes, “It all just sounds like ooh, ooh, ooh, hoo / Mm, too young, too dumb to realize / That I should have bought you flowers / And held your hand / Should have gave you all my hours / When I had the chance / Take you to every party ’cause all you wanted to do was dance / Now my baby’s dancing / But she’s dancing with another man.”

But wait! There’s more!

I sound like a salesman on TV. But, there is more. The house that is in the video was the same house Liam rented to cheat on Miley. Like damn!

Then, the suit that she’s dancing in at the end of the video is the one in a famous clip where they are on the red carpet event for Marvel when she’s acting wild and he tells her to behave. She plays it off and pushes him away, but he was trying to change her and there is no changing Miley.

Have I covered everything? I’m not really sure. There are probably more layers. But if that was all, that’s enough. When she released the music video on Liam’s birthday, that kind of says it all. Doesn’t it?

The post The Genius of ‘Flowers’ by Miley Cyrus appeared first on Michael Allen.

Things That Were Said During Vacation And Sex #SaidDuringVacationAndSex

Where funny hashtag trends come from is anyone’s guess. Jimmy Fallon has a habit of starting them on his show. He’ll ask for audience input on a topic and overnight it will blow up. This trend is about things people say during vacation and sex, but it wasn’t Fallon this time.

Where it originated doesn’t matter, but the fact that it’s picking up steam with some of the funniest answers does. Imagine the funniest line to say during vacation and sex. Imagine yourself on Whose Line Is It Anyway? doing “Scenes from a Hat.” Have fun with it.

What normally happens on vacation when you order room service? Take it low and you’ve got your first joke.

#SaidDuringVacationAndSex

An 18% gratuity will be added to the bill for parties of 8 or more.

— Whoa Chris (@Whoa_Chris) January 25, 2023

When a cost is involved, the more participants the lower the cost normally. It doesn’t hurt to ask.

Is there a group rate?
#SaidDuringVacationAndSex

— meow (@nobodyi91716093) January 25, 2023

Another joke about getting a discount. That’s actually a dead horse that can’t be kicked enough.

There's a Groupon for this? #SaidDuringVacationAndSex

— Joey Scozz (@OrangeCPlus) January 25, 2023

Imagine having sex on the beach and waking up in the morning with your loved one in your arms after having sex the night before or getting ready to have sex again. It’s always so hot and sexy in the movies. Is it that way in real life?

Everything looks so much better in the brochure. #SaidDuringVacationAndSex

— Joey Scozz (@OrangeCPlus) January 25, 2023

What’s more annoying than someone constantly asking when you’re going to get there?

Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? #SaidDuringVacationAndSex

— DeFuture (@Donald_J_Pump) January 25, 2023

The camera has actually been very useful and the fact that everyone has one means that we are catching more footage than ever. But, it does get annoying at times. Especially, when someone refuses to put it down.

Can you please put the camera down and just enjoy the experience #SaidDuringVacationAndSex

— Bama, Braves, and Beer (@BamaBravesNBeer) January 25, 2023

You plan your vacation. You put in for vacation days. You wait for the day to come and the closer the day gets, the further it seems that it is away. Then, you’re finally off on vacation. What a bummer it is on the last day of vacation and it seems like it was over in no time at all.

It’s over already? #SaidDuringVacationAndSex

— Marc (@LanceCasual) January 25, 2023

My book The Deeper Dark has been available on Amazon, but it’s finally available on Apple Books now! If you’re one of the millions with an iPhone or any of the other Apple devices, I’m proud to say that it’s available to be read on your device. It’s a psychological thriller about a soldier who comes home from the war to find out that his life went on with him and now he has a new war to fight as a corrupt network threatens the only person he has left in his life.

The Deeper Dark on Apple Books

The post Things That Were Said During Vacation And Sex #SaidDuringVacationAndSex appeared first on Michael Allen.

Alec Baldwin and the Case of Manslaughter

Imagine having a stellar acting career that dates back to 1982 with 147 acting credits and 23 producing credits including Rust, the movie that was being made when Alec Baldwin suddenly had the worst day of his life. It’s a shame that it could all come to an end with an involuntary manslaughter conviction that holds up to 18 months in prison according to New Mexico law where the charges are being filed.

On October 21, 2021, on the set of Rust at a ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Alec Baldwin was rehearsing a scene that involved him firing a pistol. When he pulled the trigger on what was supposed to be a prop, actual bullets were fired, resulting in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, as well as injuring director, Joel Souza. Firearms in movies used to be just that, props. But more and more over the years, filmmakers have wanted more authenticity and now it appears that these “props” actually function.

Santa Fe District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies that she would be charging Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter, and also Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the weapons supervisor on set. In order for the charges to stick in this case, their actions must have resulted in a death but they never intended to kill anybody, and may not have even meant to hurt them. That part is true.

However, there is another part to it. They must have been acting in a reckless manner or in any other way that is unlawful. It comes down to that criteria. Can they be found guilty of manslaughter for the death of Halyna Hutchins because they acted in a reckless manner?

Armchair lawyers can argue all day whether or not Alec and Hannah are guilty. The unfortunate fact that needs to be remembered here is that Halyna Hutchins lost her life and her family is grieving. Firearm safety should have always been taken seriously on set and now, there stands a very real reason. If you pick up a firearm, you are responsible.

The post Alec Baldwin and the Case of Manslaughter appeared first on Michael Allen.

‘Romeo and Juliet’ Sex Scene in 1968 Center of Court Case

There is a huge gap between child pornography and art. It’s definitely not a fine line as some artists might want you to think. When a 15-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy are filmed naked together, that constitutes child pornography. This is why it’s so hard to believe that the sex scene with these two kids in Romeo and Juliet in 1968 has fallen between the cracks and totally missed the censors.

Leonard Whiting was 17 and Olivia Hussey was 15 at the time of filming as the video below shows when Whiting corrects the interviewer early in the conversation. The love scene itself does have nudity and there are some very shady details about that. As AP News reports, Director Franco Zeffirelli discussed the nudity with the kids and first told them that they would have “flesh-covered undergarments” during the sex scene, which didn’t happen.

On the day of filming, Zeffirelli assured them that they would have body makeup and that the cameras would be positioned in such a way that there would be no nudity in the film. Imagine their surprise when they attended a viewing and found out they had been lied to and that their nude bodies were on full display for the world to see. That right there is against the law since they were filmed nude without their knowledge and that’s just one example of child exploitation as far as this film is concerned.

During my amateur sleuthing, I was able to find the following at the Department of Justice, “The production of child pornography creates a permanent record of a child’s sexual abuse.  When these images are placed on the Internet and disseminated online, the victimization of the children continues in perpetuity. Experts and victims agree that victims depicted in child pornography often suffer a lifetime of re-victimization by knowing the images of their sexual abuse are on the Internet forever.”

As a result, Olivia and Leonard filed a lawsuit yesterday against Paramount Pictures for more than $500 million listing sexual abuse, sexual harassment, and fraud. During further amateur sleuthing, I found in a history of child sexual exploitation laws at Women At Risk that it would take until 1978 for the Mann Act, first passed in 1910, to include the sexual exploitation of children. That was 10 years after the filming, so that might answer how it missed the censors back in 1968.

However, for anyone following the story, Zeffirelli discussed the sex scene with the actors and made assurances that he didn’t keep. That means he had an awareness that what he was doing was wrong, or that they were uncomfortable with it. The director has been dead now for a few years and it’s no longer his problem. It’s Paramount Picture’s problem and lawyers have a lot to sort out like why is this coming to their attention now? These actors are in their 70s.

As reported by Variety in 2018, the movie was filmed in Italy and laws are different there. It appears American audiences weren’t too happy about seeing the young kids nude. Yet, Olivia defended the film, “Nobody my age had done that before. It was needed for the film.” She added that it was done tastefully. Today, she’s suing.

However, they were kids at the time and it is sexual exploitation of children. I don’t know why it has taken so long for this to go to court, but it belongs in court, sorted out, and decided in their favor. Plus, the fact that the movie currently streaming and there’s still a YouTube video with the nude scene in it has me wondering why something hasn’t been done about that. I guess we’ll just have to see if people care as much about this as they do everything else in this world.

Tell me if you don’t think he looks like Zac Efron…

The Chemistry Between Olivia and Leonard

The post ‘Romeo and Juliet’ Sex Scene in 1968 Center of Court Case appeared first on Michael Allen.

Damar Hamlin Collapses On Field During Bills Versus Bengals Monday Night Game

I have never seen anything like this in all my years of watching football. Damar Hamlin of the Buffalo Bills tackled Tee Higgins of the Cincinnati Bengals, and then collapsed.

We went for a long time without any information, just that they kept taking commercial breaks because no one had any more to say. But I saw an ambulance on the field. I heard he was being given CPR for what was about 9 minutes. That’s when I realized this was not your normal football injury. This was something much more serious.

With 5:58 left in the first quarter, both coaches got together and talked. They sent their teams back to their locker rooms. The game had been temporarily suspended and I felt at that time, there was no way anyone was going to return to the field.

It was the last thing on anyone’s mind. All anyone cared about was Damar Hamlin. Players were crying. Some were praying. Players from opposite teams were hugging each other.

I hope that Damar Hamlin comes out of this okay. My thoughts are with his family as they go through this time of need.

Damar Hamlin Clips

Football is a very violent sport with players playing at their highest level to compete. Injuries happen all the time and that’s why precautions are made to keep the players as safe as possible. Damar Hamlin brings us back to remember that regardless of the precautions, football is a dangerous sport and players need to take care of themselves as much as possible before, during, and after the game.

I give the NFL, the coaches, and the players credit for showing their humanity tonight. The game can be played another time. It doesn’t have to be finished tonight. In the meantime, there is a player in the hospital fighting for his life and that’s all anyone should be concerned about.

The post Damar Hamlin Collapses On Field During Bills Versus Bengals Monday Night Game appeared first on Michael Allen.

Strong Connections to ‘Love’s Theme’ by Barry White

Do you ever get a feeling of loss when a certain song plays that you haven’t heard in a long time? It’s like you found something that you didn’t know you were missing and all these feelings from that time come rushing back. There are several songs that do that for me and “Love’s Theme” by Barry White is one of them.

Released in 1974, it is the ultimate dance floor song for me. I see visions of people on the dance floor dressed in the fashion of the 70s. Particularly, there’s one lady dancing who is young and vibrant wearing a white dress and black heels. My emotions are often associated with imagery and I have the strongest feeling I knew this girl. But, I was a kid at the time when the song was released so I’m not sure how.

She could be from a television show or a movie, one of my mother’s friends, not sure. But imagining her dancing with a nice feathered haircut and glossy lips shining under the disco ball, it’s a strong vision. It could just be an imagination, something I made up to represent all the people from that time.

Other images come to mind like planes flying in and out of a Las Vegas airport. Beaches and blue waters of Florida. New York high rises. Los Angeles mansions with pool parties and more dancing. For some reason, it feels like I’m touring the greatest places and having the time of my life.

Images aren’t the only sensations I get when I hear the song though. I also suddenly feel cold as if someone just turned on the air conditioning. Then, I get hot as if I’m wearing a suit on a sunny day. These are some intense sensations, but that’s what I’m talking about when I say only a few songs do these things to me.

I know that’s a lot going on in one song, but the one thing I can’t shake is that the song signals an end of some kind. That’s the worst part about it. I enjoy the song. I love it. But when it’s over, it’s the end of an era. The 80s weren’t far away and there is a drastic difference between the 70s and the 80s, but it’s more than that.

It’s as if we lost our innocence and we had to grow up. We were having fun and we had no responsibilities, but that all changed. As the Barry White song ends, the lights come on and everyone leaves the dance floor. We all go our separate ways to only see each other every once in a while and catch up on how many kids we have and what we’re doing these days.

Some people got stuck in a life that never moved forward. Bumping into them years later, they’re still working part-time at the Burrito Bar and driving the same Cutlass Supreme. That life worked for them and it was easy. They didn’t even try to step into anything else.

In a very real sense, “Love’s Theme” did mark the end of an era. All imaginations aside, the 80s took us in a different direction. The 70s were a tumultuous time, but it wasn’t all bad. Being a kid, we weren’t aware of everything that was going on around us. The Vietnam War ended. Saturday Night Live starts airing. Elvis Presley died. Space Invaders comes out. Michael Jackson releases his first solo album Off the Wall.

With just those few brush strokes through the 70s, it’s easy to see how things were changing. And when they did, they did forever. Some designers have tried to bring back the styles and some musicians have tried to include some retro sounds in their music. But the 70s were gone and it was a great time for most of the people who lived through it.

As far as my life was concerned, I moved from Virginia to Maryland when my parents split. I left a life I loved and was ushered into a new life that getting used to was going to take some time. So just like the 70s gave way to the 80s, a whole world of change, my personal life had drastically changed too and “Love’s Theme” takes me back.

I feel good hearing “Love’s Theme” by Barry White but a sense of loss as it comes to an end. Do you have any connection to a song like that?

Let Barry White take you back

The post Strong Connections to ‘Love’s Theme’ by Barry White appeared first on Michael Allen.