The Grouchy Editor

State of the Disunion

I didn’t watch the entire State of the Union address. Even Trump can’t keep me glued to a 107-minute speech. But I heard (and later read) about enough of it to make me think, Trump still doesn’t get it. People don’t care about economic indicators or the Dow Jones average or tariffs or whatever. They care about how much they had to spend five or ten years ago, and how much they have now.

Inflation was largely Biden’s fault, not Trump’s. But people are justifiably angry and it makes them angrier to hear you talk about how “great” the economy is when they can no longer afford rent or fresh meat at the grocery store. It’s that simple.

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Erika Kirk really, really needs to stop with the handkerchief-to-her-eyes crying routine. I don’t think even her fans are buying it.

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Why isn’t Ilhan Omar already deported?

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Will any Big Shots in this country — whether because of the Epstein files, Minnesota fraud, or any number of other crimes — ever face justice?

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Yes, the controversy over the guy with Tourette syndrome at the BAFTA ceremony was unfortunate. But it was also hilarious. Also hilarious was this scene from a season 3 episode of Rescue Me, featuring another guy with Tourette syndrome.

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This is what I’ve been saying about Minnesota (I’m from there). “Minnesota Nice” is a misnomer; it’s actually “Minnesota Polite” covering some not-so-nice hostility.

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Note:  I just heard about the Iran event an hour ago. I’ll have to ruminate before I have a strong opinion. My initial thought: “Oh, no. Here we go again.”

Let’s hope I’m wrong about that.

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They found a fucking glove! That’s top-of-the-page news for the New York Post.

I am so fucking sick of this fucking story.

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“May you live in interesting times” — British phrase based on a Chinese adage. Maybe.

OK, but these last ten years have been ridiculous.

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Watching Europe destroy itself, I have to wonder if we Americans, across the pond, will learn anything from it. Or is it already too late?

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On a lighter note, here is what Netflix is recommending to me. I’ve watched at least part of them all, and added a few notes:

Bottom line: The good shows are all old. The more recent the show, the more likely it’s junk.

© 2010-2026 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

Dawson’s Creek

I know, I know. I was already too old to watch this show when it aired 25-30 years ago. 

My excuse for watching the teen drama, as I recall, was that I had learned it was created by Kevin Williamson, who was also responsible for writing Scream. I liked Scream, so I thought I’d check out his new show.

As fans know, Dawson’s Creek is soap opera. It features high school kids talking like adults. But I got hooked on it.

So I was sad to learn that James Van Der Beek (front-center above with the show’s main gang), who played Dawson, died earlier this week at age 48.

Maybe I’ll go back and watch an episode or two, see if I still like it — or if I should have had my head examined.

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Body Bitching

How and when did we allow the insulting word “skinny” to describe women who are slender or in good shape? Popeye’s Olive Oyl was skinny. Women like Melania Trump are not.

I’m old so I didn’t know who Nicki Minaj (above) is. She seems funny and OK. But her ass is too fat.

Notice I said fat; not “plus-size.”

© 2010-2026 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

TV Tidbits

Best Medicine

After a blah first episode, this new comedy-drama might be growing on me. It’s a redo of Doc Martin, a long-running British show that I adore. It airs on Fox. I can’t recall the last new network show that I liked. Episode one did not feel promising. However ….

Maybe it’s because I live just a few miles from where ICE and protestors are clashing on a daily basis, but I’ve been craving something old-fashioned and wholesome. I’ve seen three episodes of Best Medicine now and … it’s still not in Doc Martin’s league, but it is growing on me.

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The Rip

Perhaps it’s because I’m an old fart now, but what I liked and disliked about this Netflix movie are the inverse of what I would have liked and disliked about it 30 years ago. Or even 20 years ago. 

A coworker watched this Ben Affleck-Matt Damon action-drama and told me it gets better in the second half. This coworker is 20 years younger than me. He enjoyed the chases and shootouts in The Rip’s second half. I preferred the first half, which was more about tension and suspense.

Bottom line: I can recommend half of The Rip. Which half probably depends on your age.

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I had the Olympics on this morning, but the way I watch the Olympics these days is by not watching; it’s just background noise on the television while I do something else. But I suddenly heard something I did not expect: the name Lollobrigida.

If you’re male and old enough, the name probably rings a bell. Gina Lollobrigida, pictured above, sometimes called “the most beautiful woman in the world” (per Grok), was a famous Italian actress. Every teenage boy in the United States knew about her sixty years ago.

Gina’s great-grandniece Francesca Lollobrigida won the gold for Italy in speed skating today. I don’t care about that. I’m just surprised because I never expected to hear that name again. And isn’t it a great name?

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I am not a big fan of Lindsey Vonn. I think that’s because with her, everything seems to be about Lindsey Vonn.

© 2010-2026 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

© 2010-2026 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

WTF Stories

“Hidden clues”? Aren’t footprints the most obvious — not to mention the oldest — clues in murder-mystery lore?

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What am I missing here? A “record” two games pitched and four games started?

I should have been a ballplayer.

© 2010-2026 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

It’s 12 degrees and snowing outside, and a few miles from where I sit, protestors/insurgents/malcontents are battling with ICE. Again.

The news is relentlessly depressing here in Minnesota. 

So, please forgive me if I prefer to look at Sydney Sweeney’s ass in the trailer (above) for a new season of Euphoria.

I don’t watch the show, but I certainly watch the trailer.

By the way … that shooting water in the above GIF: Is it some sort of subliminal comment on what male viewers might be up to while gawking at Sydney’s jiggling ass? They wouldn’t do that, would they?

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Speaking of gratuitous nudity (or near-nudity), I wondered who the guest might be on Tim Pool’s podcast. I scrolled the YouTube menu and saw the thumbnail below:

Apparently guest Arynne Wexler is more than just a pair of tits, as I discovered when I saw the rest of her on the show (below):

I feel much better now — don’t you?

© 2010-2026 grouchyeditor.com (text only)