So, Is This Ageist Too? (Limerick & Commentary)
I hope I’m wrong. But I’m concerned that cowed (and confused) Dems may be backing off valid John McCain criticism out of fear of being called ageist.
As some Republicans see it, Democrats are deliberately talking in code about the presumptive 71-year-old GOP nominee as part of an attempt to highlight his age.
…
Obama aides deny any strategy to highlight age, and Obama, 46, himself told reporters last month that age should not be a factor. Indeed, he used to compliment McCain’s “half-century of service” to the country as a Vietnam War veteran and a member of Congress, but after McCain campaign manager Rick Davis argued that it was a sly way to inject age into the debate, Obama dropped the reference in February.
…
But when Obama foreign policy adviser Susan Rice and Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) each described McCain as “confused” last week, Republicans became convinced that Democrats intend to run a crypto-ageist strategy, using words that create a subtle impression in voters’ minds.
…
But the dynamic of Obama’s running against a candidate who’s a quarter of a century older is nonetheless creating an environment where some Democrats see the need to self-censor, proving that the McCain offensive is already working.
“I was going to say, ‘He lost his grip,’” said Democratic consultant Jonathan Prince, recalling a recent appearance on CNN’s “Situation Room.” “Those are normal words you use when you are involved in campaigns. You say, ‘They are nuts, they are off their rocker, they lost it.’ They have become very adept at grabbing every opportunity they can to turn it into a personal slur.”
The problem with John McCain isn’t his age per se. McCain’s problem is he lacks the wisdom and maturity that ought to come with age.
And that brings me to my latest limerick:
So, Is This Ageist Too?
By Madeleine Begun Kane
Wah, wah, wah! Don’t critique John McCain.
If you do so you’re ageist — Insane!
I think that just maybe
McCain’s a big baby,
Too puerile to win this campaign.[tags]McCain Criticism, Democrats Humor, Campaign Satire, Election Humor[/tags]
They say those things about the little people dear.
You should hear them talk about “senior moments,” dementia, senility or alzheimers.
Old people get a lot of shit the don’t deserve including being regarded as worthless votes as when Randi Rhodes said Hillary Clinton’s sole support was from old white women.
Throw a few jokes about viagra in there. Or the scooters the seniors use to get around. Seniors are a very important part of this nation and deserve to be heard on a variety of very important topics. Of course the price of pharmaceuticals is at the top of the list.
And if you want some support in Florida you are going to have to treat them with some love and respect.
Get off your high horse, Eddie. John McCain shows evidence of the onset of senile dementia. What are my credentials for saying so; am I a doctor? No, I am the son of a parent who suffered Alzheimer’s disease and ultimately died of its complications. I witnessed my mother’s appalling transition from a brilliant, energetic woman to someone not rooted in reality… and I see some of the same signs in McCain.
This is beyond age. This is beyond politics. No one on the edge of dementia should be president, whatever their age or political persuasion. McCain may rightly be criticized as a presidential candidate, not for his age, but for his incipient dementia.