DramatistDreamer

In the comments section on You Tube, someone brought that wacky jewelry commercial to my attention, what fun! As a kid, I remember that song by Janet Jackson and Herb Alpert and thought it was a clever use of the song in a commercial, lol. They also taked about the semi-incestuous scene between Billy/Beau and Laura. I think we've discussed some similar storylines (Iva and "cousin" Josh/Angel Laing and father Henry Laing) that Marland has done over the years. Seems like there was a progression from pseduo to a real incest story on ATWT. I'm not sure why Marland was fascinated with writing one but maybe it was due to the taboo nature of the topic.

Time Magazine's "Man of the Year".

There is the defense of free speech but history tells us to be wary of when speech crosses the line into action. The problem is that in America, there has been a history of white supremacists also being terrorists. The Klan would most likely be regarded as a white supremacists group yet historically their members were known for committing crimes like cross-burnings on the lawns of Black families in the South, as well as lynchings and kidnappings. Sure, now they are known for marching and meetings in conference suites in federal buildings but White supremacists also have a history of transgressing beyond hateful speech. For someone like me, who would most likely be in their cross-hairs, it becomes muddled and more complex than a simple question of whether they have the right to exist as an entity.

For awhile, it seemed like Becker and Marian Vajda had a good thing going because Vajda didn't want to travel as much and Becker did lift Djokovic to a more consistent player, but I always thought that Vajda was going to be Djoker's main coach, even with Becker's supercoach status. I don't know what 'upset' that balance or if it was just that in the end, Djokovic felt that Becker was never meant to be longterm (over years and years). Several weeks ago, Becker also claimed that he felt Novak became less motivated with that absence of Federer and Nadal. Was that really a factor though??

ICYMI, relying on militias can be a dicey proposition, even when there is little else choice but Libyans are cautiously optimistic about driving out Daesh: Jubilant Libyan Militias Declare Victory Over ISIS in Surt

Not a surprise actually. Becker had been missing at several Tour events. I mentioned to someone that Djokovic's Spanish meditation guru was seen in his box several times in a prominent place, and wondered what would that mean for Becker. I guess I got my answer. Djokovic posted his statement on FB but here's Becker's thoughts on the split: Boris Becker says Novak Djokovic wasn't practising as hard over past six months Actually, there's been a coaching carousel in the last week and a half. Kvitova and Pliskova switched coaches. Milos Raonic parted ways with Carlos Moya. Madison Keys, we all know about already and Anne Keothavong takes over the Great Britain Fed Cup team from Judy Murray.

I saw the headline on this yesterday, and it struck me as a purely political move to try to cut through the backlash she received regarding the acceptance of Syrian refugees before the coming elections. When France tried to implement this policy, I don't think it had the intended consequences- in fact, I think it ratcheded up the rhetoric even more with no beneficial results to anyone except the Burkini lady. We'll see, I guess. (shrugs).

I'm talking mainly about NYC, not the rest of the country. It's been present in words, but I'm talking about the daily assaults happening. I lived in NYC during/after Sept. 11th and there were some acts of aggression, mostly graffitti and name calling but pushing women down the stairs??? And did I mention that some of these men were taunting and yelling Trump's name over and over while they committed these assaults? Yes, this is a new low.

Three Muslim women attacked in NYC in the space of less than a week. I'm just disgusted at how quickly the mask of humanity has fallen.

and just as the numbers of homeless in most major cities was decreasing. Sigh.

NYC Mayor Bill DeBlasio wants the federal government to pay for security for Trump Tower.

Matteo Renzi the Italian PM who was recently feted at a State Dinner has resigned. The PM of New Zealand has also resigned today. People are now speculating on who else will resign before January 20th, 2017. I don't think either has to do with who'll be entering the White House next month (both, I believe had referendums whose outcomes disappointed the PMs) but the coincidence is getting a few chuckles. Park Geun-hye of South Korea, could be next, if she hasn't already tendered her resignation, IMO. One bit of positive news in the U.S. The Standing Rock protesters celebrate that the Army Corps of Engineers (on word from POTUS) has decided not to grant easement for the pipeline construction. I sincerely hope this lasts.

Steve Bannon’s data firm in talks for lucrative White House contracts

...Aaaannnd as expected, China has launched a complaint. (Oh well, as long as that Trump branded hotel in Taiwan is still on schedule, right?) Trump’s Phone Call With Taiwan President Sparks China Complaint Could India next in line after Trump's call to the Pakistani PM?

I'm glad I've been missing CBS This Morning lately. I've been giving them the side-eye since I learned of Moonves' comments. Normally, I like Gayle but her statements (at least publicly) and her demeanor speaks to an insulated/bubble mentality. She clearly will be shielded from any consequences of a Trump presidency and it shows. I know she feels she is doing her job but your job as a journalist is not to placate the public, it's not even to placate your employer. It is to deliver the unvarnished news with perspective- that means revealing all possible consequences and not to say "Well, I didn't see what's so bad about that". She said that the sometime last week and I just rolled my eyes. As a former news anchor, I would've thought she'd know better but I guess not. We know that Hillary was held to a much different standard. She was expected to be perfect and when she wasn't, she was seen as failed and flawed. The others had a pretty low bar set for them.

Yes, China has a mostly non-interventionist policy where sovereign nations are concerned. Now if we're talking Taiwan (AKA Chinese Taipei but only to the Chinese) and Hong Kong, that's an entirely different story. I'm sure this Trump conversation with Taiwan had collective smoke coming out of certain members of the Politburo's ears behind closed doors.

For what it's worth, China urged their people to stop calling Kim Jong-Un "Fatty Kim the 3rd", that has to count for something-

Oh, sh*t. Trump called the Taiwanese President and now the Chinese are pissed (lol). The first time a President-Elect has done so in over 30 years (I guess he called before speaking to the Chinese?). Oh yeah, he's also invited Rodrigo Duterte to Washington. Crazytown!

There's a thing called the "informal labor sector" or as some people I know would say "side hustles". There were also stories of people 'doubling up' in terms of shelter, families pooling their resources. It's been challenging for many years for many people. I know because during the recession, after my department was eliminated at the newspaper where I worked, I knew that I wouldn't be able to complete my Masters degree while living in my Manhattan studio whose rent was escalating quickly, so I actually moved back with family who owned a multi-family home. For me, I had some office, administrative and a variety of writing skills so I could do a number of editing tasks for other artists, writers, students and small businesses and entrepreneurs as a freelancer (which I still do). In terms of the living situation, yes, it was a challenge and it did involve a measure of loss of autonomy and I also found myself pitching in where I might not have done, had I been on my own but it was what I needed to do and I imagine others did the same and many clearly still are. Actually there are people who have probably lived most of their lives on the margins, trying to eke out a living within the constraints of the informal labor sector. It's a shame that they went mostly ignored until the 'Great Recession'.

Well, the U.S. media and some of the public may have accepted "Post fact America" but clearly Pakistan, in releasing the transcipt and going against diplomatic policy, seems intent on putting this on the record- which to me, implies that they intend to hold PEOTUS to his word, regardless of whether Trump was cavalier or not. Pakistan may have also released the transcript with the bonus of tweaking the Indians, with whom they have a very contentious relationship (if you can call it that). India's response was dripping with sarcasm. At the risk of sounding slightly salty, I have to admit, I'd love to have seen some of the expressions of those Republican leaning Indian-Americans in NJ who, a few weeks before the election feted Trump with that dinner, flew in some Bollywood actors and dancers to perform those silly dance sequences in cheesy camoflauge gear, with choreography that mimicked suicide bombers and Indians struggling against each other. Some of these people would perceive Pakistanis as enemies. I wonder how they feel about their Trump votes now? Also, Trump complementing the Pakistani PM, the country and the people-- does this mean that Pakistan citizens will or won't be on that Muslim Registry? Thanks for this. I'm chuckling reading them.

So Trump calls the leader of Pakistan out of the blue, with no preparation and expresses hope that he can pop in and visit sometime. I don't like Trump but I cannot help but think what a bad idea that is. Pakistan has an extreme element that doesn't take too kindly to Westernized politicians and personalities. Look at what happend to Benazir Bhutto. Oh well, Trump was probably just lying as he often does. ETA- According to an article in the NYT, Trump offered the Prime Minister of Pakistan “to play any role you want me to play to address and find solutions to the country’s problems.” Good grief. I'm just going to quote a comedienne who recently said, "I hope this fool don't get us all killed!"

Fresh from its help in throttling HRC's presidential campaingn, looks as if Wikileaks is aiming to take down Angela Merkel, which does not surprise me in the least. WikiLeaks publishes docs on inquiry into German cooperation with NSA

They thought there was no difference between HRC and Trump? Hopefully those folks won't be screaming about their anxiety over their healthcare because I won't want to hear it. Black women didn't idealize any of the candidates but we clearly saw and knew there was a difference between Trump and Hillary. How entitled must one be to not recognize a difference??

Welp.