Where Have You Gone, Adam Kinzinger?

 A Nation Turns Its Lonely Eyes To You

Woo, woo, woo

As many of you know, I’m a huge fan of Simon & Garfunkel, so I couldn’t resist.  But of course, I digress.

Where have you gone, Adam Kinzinger?  Or Liz Cheney.  Or Paul Ryan.  As I proudly carry the label “RINO” as

a badge of honor, I put forth various Republicans who have held office, who I would gladly vote for.  I’m sure there are more on both sides of the aisle.  Doesn’t anyone with some semblance of intelligence, who isn’t old as dirt, want to be President anymore?  It used to be that young politicians grew through the ranks and strived to reach the highest office, President of the United States.  I really can’t remember the last “up and comer” that was out there, that everyone viewed as a strong Presidential candidate.

 And what are we left with?

On one side we have the incumbent, Ralphie.  I think most of us would agree Ralphie was a great kid, good intentions, grew up into a relatively good adult, seems like a good guy, ended up a Democrat, but I won’t hold that against him completely.  But, and here’s the big but….  He’s 81 years old.  If he gets elected, he’d be 86 when he finishes office, if he doesn’t die before then. 

On the other side we have Scott Farkus.  I think most of us would agree that Scott Farkus was an asshole as a kid, and at least for me, I find that he’s even a bigger asshole as an adult.  Plus he’s a con artist and a criminal.  Oh, and by the way, while he would depict Ralphie as old and senile, he’s “only” 77 years old.  If he gets elected, he’d be 82 when he finishes office, if he doesn’t die before then.

Recently I was having a phone call with Bob McDonald, my son-in-law Tom’s brother, and Bob asked my opinion on age and politics.  I had really been thinking a lot about this recently, and I told Bob, I think the maximum age to run for President should be 52, that way if you get re-elected, you’d be leaving office at about 60 years old.  I think that should be the maximum.  Now, having said it and rethought it a bit, I would put the maximum age a bit higher, maybe 58-60, but no higher.

The rationale for my thoughts on this?  I know at 63, I’m not nearly as sharp or quick as I was at say 53.  I don’t have quite the stamina or the ability to work extremely long hours.  And based on some of my colleagues and former colleagues, I would say it goes for them also.  I just don’t believe anyone in their 60’s or past their 60’s should be holding the most important position in our country.  Think about it, all of us are encouraged to retire sometime in our late 60’s, and there’s a reason for that, we just don’t have what we used to when it comes to a sharp mind and stamina.

One of the best examples of this is Ronald Reagan.  Still probably my favorite President, President Reagan clearly struggled during his second term, when he was in his mid-70’s.  There were many rumors about dementia and issues running the government due to his cognitive abilities.  He simply wasn’t as sharp toward the end, and he is on the younger side of either Ralphie or Scott Farkus.

 Maybe, just maybe, it’s us?

As noted, we don’t seem to have any younger politicians who want to rise through the ranks and make it to the most important position in the country.  Maybe there’s a reason for that.  It used to be, while we had a liberal and conservative side, we used to begrudgingly seek compromise to move the country forward. We now have more and more of a huge gap between the two sides, and, in many cases, each side is willing to sacrifice the good of the country to further their own goals.  Why would anyone want to preside over that?

We like to hold ourselves out as the greatest country, but I think it’s a sad indictment of this country that no one of a reasonable age and intelligence wants to hold the highest office.  Think about it, would you want to?  Would you want to deal with the far left day in and day out?  Would you want to put up with the Freedom Caucus, who can’t even get along with the rest of their own party?  No thank you, I’ll pass.  But we’re the ones who put these people in office, and have kept them in office.  Maybe, just maybe, we’re the problem, and we’re the only ones who can fix it.  Based on all the rhetoric I’ve seen from both sides, I don’t see us fixing this, just as our politicians are moving further into the extreme, so are we. 

 So this is the best we’ve got?

As I look ahead, it appears very apparent that these are the two choices we have.  On one side, a nice, old man, who does not, or will not, have the mental capabilities to be President.  And on the other hand, a mean, old man, who not only does not, or will not, have the mental capabilities to be President, but is also a criminal and a con artist.  So in November, I’ll go into the voting booth, throw up a little in my mouth, and vote for a potentially senile, old man since I made it clear several years ago, I’d vote for a pile of my dog’s poop before I’d vote for Scott Farkus.  Ralphie kicked the shit out of Scott Farkus a couple times already, I hope he’s up for one more round, but for me, it will be a hollow victory. 

 As we inch closer to election day, November 5, I’ll continue to hope and pray that somehow the Republicans will get their shit together and put forth someone reasonable to run for President.  I don’t think they’ll ever get Adam Kinzinger out of retirement, but I’d settle for and embrace someone like Nikki Haley.  There is no doubt the Democrats won’t abandon an incumbent, so there is no hope on that side.  And quite frankly, there is probably no hope for any of us, but then again, we created this pigsty, so I guess we’ll have to wallow in it.