DramatistDreamer

I stand corrected. I've read that Carrier will be keeping 800 jobs in the U.S. and shipping 1300 to Mexico. At a cost of $7K to Indiana taxpayers. @JaneAusten I think the idea of a regional or a coastal healthcare marketplace exchange is a promising one. On the East Coast where I live for example, the NYC Metro area all vote blue pretty consistently, although with Christie being the governor of NJ, I don't know how that figures into it but I know that CT already has a state exchange which could be strengthened if it joined forces with say, NYC. Already many people work in NYC and live in CT, and to a lesser extent, vice versa. States like Rhode Island and Delaware, that are small may also benefit from a regionally run exchange, including shared responsibilities with a website, as I imagine a small state may find it onerous to run their own health exchange website.

So, Carrier is keeping a 1000 jobs yet still shipping 1500 jobs to Mexico? I've been reading about this. It reminds me of people who work for international companies in the U.K. who voted Brexit and are now worried that their companies will pull up stakes and go to Germany or Switzerland.

I just read yesterday that Garcia claims she will not be playing Fed Cup next season. This will forever be my image of U.S. Men's tennis in this day and age.

Many on the Professional Left have been too busy throwing POCs under the bus for this election loss while ignoring the fact that 53% of White women voters were for the p*ssy grabber. Just yesterday, I saw two people arguing on social media about this until one person finally admitted that they didn't know the actual meaning of intersectionality. Are we serious? In this day and age? Imagine being so privileged that you don't have to think or acknowledge such things.

Although on its face, it seemed promising, I knew that it probably wasn't as great as it's being made out to be when even news reporters don't know the precise details of the detail. Also, many companies like to make a big show in the immediate aftermath but the real test is a year from now when no one is looking at what Carrier is doing, will they still funnel jobs away? People should also keep in mind that during President Obama's administration, there was an average of 40K jobs created weekly. Trump should be held to an even higher standard since he made much higher claims of job creation success. On another note, Elizabeth Warren is cautioning everyone about Trump's pick for Treasury but I don't expect much introspection in the way of Trump supporters, who don't question anything he does- coincidentally, they are the same folks who made a stink about HRC's paid speeches for the same Goldman Sachs.

Never have I seen a truer likeness of Ghouliani!

And he played that 5th set with a broken finger on his left hand.

I think Borna was/is still recovering from surgery.

It may seem like I read Trump news items daily but after two weeks, I really don't anymore. I am kind of exhausted of it unless something really compelling comes up and on the weekend, I read a long-form article. I do get irritated when I see headlines from newspapers discussing conflicts of interests that his businesses will present and I wonder where the heck was this investigative journalism during the GOP primaries or the start of the general election? Instead, it was exhaustive coverage of Hillary's e-mails. The media is trying to deflect criticism of their lopsided coverage by focusing on fake news as if their laser like focus on Hillary's e-mails, the DNC leak and lack of due diligence on all the Trump red flags, including his business conflicts wasn't part of the problem. It was.

These events seem to trigger, if not a domino effect, a chain reaction, of sorts. You have the post-election strengthening of Putin, that has increased influence over the Syrian government (which has stepped up its bombing campaign). Now Turkey is talking openly about aligning itself to Russia, and has dropped its role in the pretense of ever joining the EU. (they were in talks for about a decade,although realistically, it was unlikely that they would have become a full member). Turkey, that had agreed to step up its border control, now threatens to release refugees into Europe, unleashing anew the problems that overwhelmed parts of Europe over the summer and parts of last year- including Greece that was flooded with refugees on their way to the U.K., Germany and Scandanavia. Russia is also trying to oblige Eastern European countries to undo their ties to NATO, especially those border countries that are currently hosting NATO satellite and missile shield operations. Countries like Poland, which have been bolstering their armies for years out of concern for Russian interference, will probably have a lot of company now that many of the Baltic countries are now complaining of renewed efforts to interfere in their politics. It's very fascinating to see how these events shape up.

The fact is that as a person with a global view, I don't even have to focus or pay attention to Trump but when I look at the fact that Francois Fillion in France has become a serious contender in France, it becomes impossible to ignore or diminish the right-ward trend that is happening worldwide and the fact that what has happened in Great Britain and the U.S. has emboldened that shift. I see what you're sayin @Khan but I also think that people need time to express themselves, gird themselves, prepare and move on with life. I don't watch cable news and these days even on the way to just checking e-mail, I see headline after headline, most of which I avoid. I'm still processing this and when you're calculating how an unhinged man taking the highest office in the land will affect you, it's kind of difficult to put it out of your mind and push past it. I'm guessing that in time, we'll all adjust to the new (bizarre) reality.

Has anyone seen Google maps lately? I don't know if this is still the case but when I looked this morning it was...Trump Tower in Manhattan was listed as Dump Tower.

That sounds about exactly what I saw on the screen in the scenes that I saw.

So Trump is questioning the legitimacy of an election...that he won? Because HRC joined the recount effort? Hillary showing us all how fast Trump can implode once the 'mask of civility' falls off. Donald Trump is now questioning the legitimacy of the election he won If the Democrats were going to rig the election, I'm pretty sure, they'd rig it so that their candidate won both the Electoral College and the Popular Vote, not just the Popular Vote which can still lose the election.

Did anyone see the Davis Cup final though?! The crowd was insufferable but the tennis was absolutely riveting! It must be crushing for Croatia to lose at home but I was so happy for Argentina and especially Juan Martin del Potro because this is their first ever Davis Cup, after 5 Finals! Congrats to them. It's especially amazing given Delbonis' clutch straight sets demolition of Karlovic and the fact that this time last year, Del Potro was still uncertain of how much of a future he'd have in tennis but he wanted to give it a go. I guess you also saw it, LOL. Amazing! These guys played with such heart. I read that this was the 1st time that DelPo had come back from 0-2 sets to win!

The episodes that I saw, Justin seemed as though he was elsewhere in mind and spirit. In retrospect, it seemed like he had one foot out the door and HBS didn't have much latitude to build chemistry. Their scenes looked pretty flat to me but I'm only going by what I see of them on You Tube, which is not a whole lot. Others might have memories from back when it actually happened in '84.

Longform and worth the read due to its detailed chronology of events, putting the puzzle pieces together to form the overall picture. How Russia Pulled Off the Biggest Election Hack in U.S. History

There is a pro-Russia Serbian mercenary who has much to say about Russia's machinations in Europe: in short, they have been busy busy busy bees. Finger Pointed at Russians in Alleged Coup Plot in Montenegro This Op-Ed piece speaks to yet another way that a group's members can vote against their own interests. What Unions Got Wrong About Trump “There’s an irony here,” he said. “Unions are probably the most consistent voice for the broad middle class of any organization today, yet the voice of the middle class was seen as an important part of Donald Trump’s victory. The further decline of labor is going to hurt many members of the middle class.”

Leonardo Mayer was definitely the weak link in the doubles, from what I saw today. I question the wisdom of putting in Juan Martin in a match that heavily favored the Croatians in the first place when it ensures that DelPo will be playing three days in a row. I guess since it's the final Argentina felt that had to risk it. (shrugs).

Democrats and Republicans will be observing the recount regardless of the fact that Stein initiated it. Trump should show the confidence that he purports to have and just let the recount happen. He's as thin-skinned as hell. Maybe losing the popular vote by millions has made him even more insecure (if that's even possible).

Jill has little credibility to conduct a recount at this point. If the recount has credibility it would be from someone who is actually considered a credible candidate. It's not like Hillary will run again anyway. E.T.A. Are folks still believing that bullsh*t that Trump is going to prosecute Hillary when he doesn't have the power to do that on his own? M'kay.

If Parker Posey is in, I'm in (lol)!

People have been brushing off a lot of what Castro said even before he stepped down in 2006. His criticisms of Obama, he said them but his heart wasn't really in it. Even he knew that time marches on and changes had to happen, which is why he was pretty silent on the opening of diplomatic relations, the embassy and lifting restrictions on travel to and from the island, looking the other way while Cuban families opened business on their properties (which technically was illegal). Castro has a complex legacy and I knew personally that many Cubans (in Cuba) are disillusioned in the failure of the Revolution to live up to its ideals but many also take a dim view of the exile community who they worry are lying in wait to usurp the land and make it another Miami. It is also true that Cuba and Castro is revered in other Caribbean countries for what they see as promoting pan-Caribbean solidarity and standing up to what they see as an imperial power. Like @AdelaideCate007 mentioned, many people saw his stance against apartheid as not only championing the cause of the oppressed underclass but also putting the U.S. and Great Britain under a microscope for their hypocrisy in supporting the apartheid regime, even in the face of calls to divest itself of South Africa. Ironically, Castro also went to the Dominican Republic to help with the effort to vanquish another dictator, Rafael Trujillo (ever heard of him?) who was slaughtering Haitians and Dominicans in droves (mostly Haitians). In my family, there are Cuban trained doctors and Cuban trained doctors have the highest regard, so highly that President Obama praised them in how they dealt with the ebola crisis in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. The U.S. government was roundly criticized when it was discovered that they were trying to poach Cuban doctors in the middle of a health crisis. Castro could be ruthless and brutal in the way his regime dealt with detractors and enemies- both real and imagined. Even as HIV+ patients got better care than what many got in the U.S., many were locked away for years in sanitariums. And many speaking on behalf and part of the LGBT community were dealt with as harshly as the pro-democracy advocates. The sad fact is also that the U.S. unfortunately, enabled the Batista regime before him and that eventually paved the way for Castro's entry into the Cuban political arena in the first place. The Batista regime was utterly corrupt and so disliked that when Castro and his band of fighters rode into Havana, they were welcomed with open arms by the people. It would be more than a year before people actually began to question Castro's political agenda. Prior to Obama (only Carter was the exception), U.S. leadership only strengthened Castro's hand by giving him an excuse to rule with an iron fist, claiming to be a little island going up against a mighty imperial power, casting himself as a pugnacious underdog. Perhaps if other U.S. presidents had approached Cuba the way Obama did, Cuba would have had no other choice but to do likewise. Who knows? I'm sparing a thought for the people on the island who are cautious of what the future will bring. I'm side eyeing people who voted for Trump (who has despotic dreams) but rail about Castro's fiery speeches and suppression of personal rights and freedoms. The same people who try to repeal Roe v. Wade every single year. I'm also reminded that as long as Castro lasted (is it 10 U.S. Presidents come and gone?), he in fact is still just a mortal man and passes away like any other mortal man.

Yesterday, I watched a couple episodes from 1988 just as Margo ran off after she discovers that she's pregnant with Hal's kid and I couldn't help but think Taylor might have come in handy story-wise. I recognize the complaints about Taylor coming off as a bland blueblood which really makes me question the logic of how she and Casey could have possibly gotten together in the first place, given their personalities. Having Shannon and Tom dance around each other didn't do much for me though. There never seemed any possibility of it going anywhere romantic. They always seemed destined to remain helpful, platonic friends-this aspect had an air of unchangeable inevitability about it. As bland as Taylor might have been, there was the possibility, at least, of her roping a vulnerable Tom into a relationship. Margo even recognized this when she was still with Hal but drawn to Tom. It's pretty much what pushed her back in Tom's direction (remember the "Tie" scenes?).