The Grouchy Editor

R.I.P. 007

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I’m at the point where I don’t plan to vote for or against Trump or Biden. I’m going to vote against the media.

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Since most of us agree, at least in theory, that what’s good for the goose is good for the gander, I’m suggesting to conservatives that, should Trump lose the election, they immediately launch investigations, lawsuits, and impeachment proceedings against President Biden.

Hey, if that was fair for Trump, it must be fair for Biden.

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Should things go badly on Tuesday, and America rushes toward its destiny with George Orwell’s 1984, I am envisioning my future self as either a) Rod Taylor’s character in 1960’s The Time Machine, in which I will be stranded in a society of airheaded snowflakes (Millennials), who are periodically terrorized by the physically repulsive Morlocks (Deplorables); or b) the old man (Peter Ustinov, above) in Logan’s Run, who is the only person left on Earth with memory of things like free speech and books.

Above, a Deplorable attacks a Millennial in The Time Machine

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My fear is that, should Biden prevail, it will be because people who don’t follow politics believe that the only way to halt our endless riots, boycotts and protests is to give Trump the boot.

These folks might sigh heavily and say to themselves, “I give up. Let’s try someone else.”

OK sure, Biden might bring some (temporary) relief. But at what cost?

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What No One Seems to Be Talking About:

Maybe we don’t talk about this because we already have our plate full battling the coronavirus, but … what’s to stop some other evil entity – be it China again or some other country – from unleashing another virus on the world? And what if the new virus is even more deadly?

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I’m old enough to remember the “British Invasion” of the early 1960s, and it was a thing to behold – especially in music and movies. The Big Three back then were The Beatles, Alfred Hitchcock (The Birds, Psycho) and last but certainly not least, Sean Connery’s James Bond.

So, forgive me if I’m a bit depressed over the passing today of another giant of my childhood.

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Dinkle (Not) vs. King

Last week, I said I’d get back to you if Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit went sour. It didn’t.

I’m going to give it Grade: A.

I don’t do that very often.

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It’s Halloween. Let’s end this review with the scariest ad of the season:

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I don’t know how to play chess. In the past, I didn’t care to learn because chess seemed like a boring game to me. Today, I confess I don’t play because chess intimidates me. If I were to begin playing and then suck at it, and continue to suck at it, I might have to admit to myself that I am not smart enough for this intellectual pursuit.

But that doesn’t mean I’m not intrigued by the so-called Game of Kings. I read a book about American chess genius Bobby Fischer (Endgame), watched a documentary about him (Bobby Fischer Against the World), and was moved by 1993’s Searching for Bobby Fischer, Steve Zaillian’s drama about a child chess prodigy.

And now there is Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit, an addictive miniseries about another chess wunderkind, played by Anya Taylor-Joy (pictured above).

I am finding the climactic chess matches between Beth (Taylor-Joy) and whatever (always male) opponent she is matched with just as exciting as Rocky Balboa’s boxing encounters with Apollo Creed. No, wait; I am finding the scenes in Queen’s Gambit more exciting.

Rocky can swallow all the raw eggs in the world and cry “Yo, Adrian!” until he’s blue in the face, and he is still not as intriguing as the socially stunted, steely-eyed Beth Harmon in Queen.

Of course, I’ve only seen the first three episodes. If future episodes suck (unlikely), I’ll get back to you.

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Kristen Welker was surprisingly good as a debate moderator. Also, she looked smashing in that outfit.

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At this point, I’m guessing that everyone who is going to vote knows who he or she is going to vote for.

Then again … I remember driving to my polling place in November 2016, and still not being entirely sure about who I planned to vote for.

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Dinkle vs. King

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Silly me. I thought the week’s big news would stem from Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation hearing, which instead has been the week’s big snooze.

Although I will have to say, it’s good that we got to the bottom of whether she hates puppies (Sen. John Kennedy) and whether she’s raped anyone (Sen. Mazie Hirono).

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“Why would the NBA take 500 million dollars-plus from a country that is engaging in ethnic cleansing?” — Megyn Kelly to Mark Cuban

“So basically, you’re saying nobody should do business with China ever,” Cuban retorted. “They are a customer of ours, and guess what, Megyn? I’m OK with doing business with China.”

By that logic, Cuban would have had no problem “doing business” with Hitler in 1944.

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I’ve always felt that the danger of “election interference” from Russia pales in comparison to election interference from Mark Zuckerberg, Sundar Pichai, and Jack Dorsey. Seriously, who has more influence on social discourse in America, Russian political ads, or the overlords of Facebook, Twitter and Google?

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The Banality of Evil

I used to think the face of evil looked a lot like this:

Not anymore. Now I think the face of evil looks like a frat boy:

        Mark Zuckerberg                      Sundar Pichai                       Jack Dorsey

The problem with these guys is that they have no background in journalism, yet their platforms have been thrust – big-time – into the arena of politics. And nerds-at-heart Jack and Mark and Sundar want nothing more than to be in with the “cool” people. Because they are nerds.

Come to think of it, that’s the same problem most mainstream journalists have.

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Twitter and Facebook are censoring Donald Trump, the White House spokeswoman, House Republicans, and the New York Post – and there are still Democrats who scoff at the idea that social-media titans are attempting to swing the election to Joe Biden?

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What she said.

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I’m throwing another lifeline to Netflix’s To the Lake. It’s a good show that is apparently getting zero attention (a measly three reviews on Rotten Tomatoes). If Netflix could give a boost to Schitt’s Creek, surely it can raise the profile of this gem.

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It’s been years since I watched The Price Is Right, but I happened to be home in the daytime recently and good grief. Is there a more attractive woman than Price model Manuela Arbelaez (below)?

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“Wokeness” rules the day in Enola Holmes

Enola Holmes

Watching Millie Bobby Brown in this Netflix movie, I was reminded of early Hayley Mills. Brown and Mills started out in kid-friendly hits (Disney flicks for Hayley; Stranger Things for Millie), then both branched out into more tween-oriented fluff: Enola Holmes and The Moon-Spinners.

We’re talking about two youthful Brits with charisma up the butt, appealing to both kids and adults. When I was a youngster, I was infatuated with Hayley. If I was a tween today, I might well be equally smitten with Brown. For both of these charmers, the word “spunk” comes to mind.

As an adult, however, I was put off by Enola Holmes’s heavy-handed feminism and the imposition of woke sensibilities on 19th-century Britain.

But this is 2020, and that sort of thing is, apparently, inevitable.

Kids grade: B+

Adult grade: C

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Some election-outcome advice:

The tough thing is going to be maintaining an even emotional keel. Just remember, if your guy loses, it’s not the end of the world. Also good to remember: If your guy wins, most of the problems we have right now are not going to go away.

You’re welcome.

Now if only I was confident that I will be taking my own advice.

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Everyone was on pins and needles, anxiously awaiting the (supposedly) traditional “October Surprise.” Leave it to Donald Trump. He doesn’t do surprises; Trump does bombshells.

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Debate Takeaway:

I was surprised to learn, courtesy of Chris Wallace, that a small group called the Proud Boys is largely responsible for all the violence plaguing our cities. Silly me. And good for Chris, son of Mike, for pressing Trump on why he won’t denounce this scourge on society, these “Proud Boys.”

I am so clueless. Here I was, thinking that it was leftist groups like Antifa and Black Lives Matter that were wreaking all the havoc.

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I keep harping on this, probably to no avail. But Tucker Carlson put it better than I could:

If we could just get a handle on our outrageous income inequality, 95 percent of our other problems would go away, or at least diminish. Everyone has to have a shot at The American Dream — or at the very least, believe they have a shot at it.

What she said. Although, I would also put the onus on Republicans.

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Dinkle vs. King

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Above, Kasper and Birgitte kick political ass in Denmark

How to Make a Great TV Show … and Ruin It

Midway through my binge-watch of Denmark’s acclaimed drama Borgen (2010-2013), somewhere during season two of the three-season series, I decided I was watching the best political show television has ever produced. And yes, that includes The West Wing and House of Cards (American version; I haven’t seen the British original).

Borgen isn’t as rah-rah patriotic as West Wing, with the latter’s rousing speeches and good-guys-win storylines. Nor is it as melodramatic as House of Cards; no reporters get pushed into the path of an oncoming subway train.

But the show’s balance of governmental machinations with the toll taken on participants’ personal lives is unparalleled.

Yet a funny thing happened on the way to Borgen’s third season: They demoted the most interesting character. Pilou Asbaek, as the prime minister’s charming-yet-conniving “spin doctor,” Kasper Juul, went from one of two main reasons to watch Borgen (the other being Sidse Babett Knudsen as Prime Minister Birgitte Nyborg), to brief, token appearances in the third and final season.

Turns out I can’t blame this disastrous development on the show’s writers. Turns out Asbaek made other acting commitments during the lull between seasons two and three, while the show’s network was mulling renewal for another ten episodes. As a result, Borgen went from a great show to … a good show.

But I highly recommend it – especially those first two seasons.

Seasons 1-2:  A     Season 3:  B+

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Question: What would happen if the media and regular folk stopped taking pictures and video at the ongoing riots? What if only the print media were allowed to report on the chaos?

My guess is that most of the madness would die out. No pictures, no story.

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For once, LeBron James and I agree on something.

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Well, it’s the end of an era, and much of America is in mourning. The news of this passing, when it came, was a blow to many of us, if not an entirely unexpected one. Alas, all good things must come to an end.

It is true that for half of the country, this announcement was not greeted with grief and despair, but rather with (tactless) glee and relief. But this is a loss felt deeply by millions of citizens, especially women.

After decades of standing strong for women’s rights, who or what will replace this icon of female power:

Indeed, “what does it all mean”?

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Oh, yeah. This woman died:

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But seriously … if the conspiracy theorists are correct and our existence on Earth is nothing more than some kind of cosmic, simulated game, the climax of which is called “2020,” can the cosmic gods please put an end to the damn thing already, or at least take a bathroom break?

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I am finally, finally able to watch Denmark’s acclaimed series Borgen, which unexpectedly popped up on my Netflix menu. So far, I’ve seen the first four episodes, and my initial impressions are:

Pros:

It manages to make politics fun. The action is fast-paced, and our exposure to “stirring” speeches and boring committee meetings is limited.  In that respect, it’s a bit like The West Wing.

Most of the characters are well-written and well-portrayed. But not all of them (see “Cons,” below). The politicians, media people, and ancillary characters do not require lengthy backstories or exposition to seem real from the get-go.

Cons:

I cannot stomach the family dynamics of the protagonist prime minister and her husband (pictured above). The husband, especially, comes off as a smug, feminist wet dream. Support his wife? You bet! Content to stay home and play Mr. Mom? You got it! Do all the Christmas shopping without complaint? Of course! Prefer his wife on top during sex? What do you think?

I am hoping that this guy, a college lecturer, has an affair with the brunette student who has her eye on him, if only to confirm my suspicion that he is actually a conniving jerk.

Our hero, the aforementioned prime minister, is also a bit too good to be true. But so was Jed Bartlet, so I suppose that’s to be expected in a show like this.

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Young Wallander

I’ve only watched the first episode, but so far, the series seems mediocre enough. Not bad, not great, just … another cop show.

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Now they are saying that the nightmare we call 2020 will not likely climax on November 3. They are saying that because of the virus and mail-in ballots and stubborn candidates, we are not likely to know election results for weeks, or even months.

And so, 2021 will likely be much like 2020. Or worse.

I believe I’ll see if I can get a job as librarian at the McMurdo Library in Antarctica.

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My ban from Omegle finally expired. Just in case you are wondering how long these bans last, mine was three months. Just long enough for me to forget what attracted me to the site in the first place.

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Donald Trump disparages the troops and Nancy Pelosi gets a haircut: no great surprise, either one.

Trump and Pelosi are highly competitive, powerful people. To get where they are, part of their motivation no doubt entails a certain contempt for those who don’t make it to where they are.

Sad but true, I’m afraid.

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Dinkle vs. King

© 2010-2024 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

The problem with these “protests” (translation: riots) is that they too often target easy prey: small businesses and innocent passersby.

This happens because it is much simpler to torch Sam’s Barber Shop than to loot Bill Gates’s mansion.

We get it: You’re angry and you want to vent. But putting the Vangs out of their shoe-store business isn’t going to accomplish anything. Oh, I take that back – it will likely succeed in re-electing Donald Trump.

If you must vandalize property and terrorize people, I would humbly suggest that you go after more appropriate, albeit well-protected, citizens. Like, for instance, the people and homes showcased on this tone-deaf series, which airs on Fox Nation:

Talk about terrible timing. Is this really a good year to resurrect Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous?

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I’m beginning to think that the mainstream media uses this “mostly peaceful” term on purpose, just to trigger its critics.

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1BR, now playing on Netflix, is a pleasant surprise. It’s a horror movie that’s somewhat original.

Like so much horror these days, 1BR takes itself very seriously, and the tone is a bit soul-sucking. But it’s also clever and I dug the ending.

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