Okay, so, I have a lot of criticisms of Joe Biden, and I do think his age is a potential concern (anyone over 80 should raise red flags in general for the presidency), but, I do think a lot of the anti Joe Biden left, is starting to sound a lot like the anti Joe Biden right. And much like with Clinton in 2016, as a leftie critical of establishment democrats, there are a lot of criticisms that were legit (like the dems rigging the primary to ensure her victory), and a lot that weren't (benghazi, pizzagate, her health, etc.). And the same thing happens with Biden at times. There are valid criticisms of Biden policy wise, but then there's just weirdos who act like Biden has dementia and belongs in a nursing home.
I'm no medical expert, but when I listen to Biden speak, I don't think that he comes off as having dementia to me. People at such advanced age do experience some levels of cognitive decline, but there's differences between normal cognitive decline associated with aging and LITERAL DEMENTIA. Now, I do want to say that it is concerning that someone so old is in office, and is "the guy" to run for reelection, but this is the horse the dems bet on in 2020, and honestly, Bernie wasn't any younger. Now we're stuck with him.
Honestly, when I look at Biden, whatever cognitive decline he has sounds a lot more like normal aging to me. It's largely cogent, he flubs some words here and there, but he's largely able to get his point across. The dude has always had a stutter, and as he ages I think it's getting more apparent again. Again, gonna happen when you slow down a bit. But still, my argument is this is more "general stuff that happens to people in their 80s" as opposed to "he's losing his marbles." If you want someone who actually lost their marbles, look at Dianne Feinstein. That IS someone who literally has dementia it seems, and you know what? It is long past time for her to resign. But...Biden seems way more together than that, and the two situations aren't even comparable.
Why am I going to such lengths to defend Biden? Because Im sick and tired of hearing the dude has lost his mind and belongs in a nursing home, that's all. It's extremely ageist, and seems to be a dishonest talking point from those wishing to demonize him, but can't actually criticize him on something substantive, like policy (or if I wanna be cheeky, lack thereof). Ya know? There's no reason to criticize someone's health dishonestly when we can criticize his policies. That's how I see it. I mean, I might be biased as fudge, but I at least am honest and say what I think. I don't need to make crap up or embellish stuff to criticize my political opponents.
Anyway, the white house has a document from Kevin O Connor, the physician to the president, that actually did a write up of Biden's health. I know some will say we cant trust what the white house says, and I guess I can see that point, I remember Trump had a lot of fake documents talking about how great his health is and you could easily tell that he basically wrote it and could read it in his voice, but yeah. This seems to be a fairly honest and fair handed discussion of the president, and I figured it would be worth going over this document and discussing the ailments Biden does have.
Sadly, the document doesn't allow me to easily copy and paste, so I'll largely just discuss the issues he has directly.
First, he HAD COVID. It was a mild infection, because he was fully vaccinated, and the vaccine worked. And then he got anti viral therapy on top of that. His illness was mild and his recovery was complete. As expected from someone who got fully vaxxed.
Second, he had atrial fibulation. I had to look this one up, but apparently it's a condition that can lead to irregular heartbeat and increase the risk of blood clots and stroke. However, it's well controlled by medication, and he experiences no symptoms. It is not really uncommon for older people to develop various issues with their cadiovascular system as they get older. And they can go on for years or even decades with them before they succumb to them. OR, it could sneak up and kill them tomorrow. Still, if we're going to criticize Biden for this, we probably shouldn't have anyone above like, say 60 or something in the white house, which excludes literally almost everyone running. Because as you get older, you get these issues. Biden's health here is no different than someone in their 60s or 70s here. And if we want someone like that in office, why not Biden? And again, not like Bernie is any better, remember his heart attack on the campaign trail? Yeah. So this crap happens.
Third, he has hyperlipidemia. Basically high cholesterol for those of us who aren't medical geniuses. It's well controlled with medication. Again, older people get this crap a lot. And a lot of people far younger than Biden have it. Again, unless you wanna exclude anyone aged 60 and older from running, disqualifying over this is minor. Older people get issues like this all the time. And they're often well controlled for years or even decades. It's actually fairly normal.
Gastroesophageal reflux....so basically, heartburn. Causes him to have sinus issues and clear his throat more often. Controlled with over the counter medication. I mean....I'm in my 30s and I get symptoms of this. And I use the same med to control it. NEXT.
Seasonal allergies. I mean, come on. And here I am struggling with this stuff with the pollen being so bad. It mentions he has had nasal surgery to alleviate symptoms, and also he uses anti allergy meds and nasal spray to control it. I mean, i havent had the surgery, but I've used allergy meds and nasal spray to deal with allergy symptoms. It's actually common.
Stiffened gait related to moderate to severe degenerative osteoartritic change/spondylosis. Basically, dude is old. Has arthritis. Old people have arthritis. He had a foot fracture that he has arthritis in, and he has degenerative disease in his spine. These are things that happen in older people. You get an injury, it turns to arthritis and hurts like heck. And degenerative joint disease in the spine is quite common especially if you have a physical job that wrecks your back. It's kind of weird for Biden to have it given he's been a senator most of his life, but it can happen I guess.
Mild sensory peripheral neuropathy of the feet. This is normally associated with diabetes, but he's not a diabetic. it is concerning, as injuries can go unnoticed and can turn bad, like what happens in diabetics, which is why many of them lose their feet. The cause hasn't been identified. I mean, all things considered, is this the end of the world? Not particularly. And I'd imagine a lot of people younger than this have these issues too.
He's under skin cancer surveillance because he spent a lot of the time in the sun, and as he gets older he has had several lesions turn cancerous and had them removed. So they are constantly checking for moles and the like that go bad. IIRC he had another one removed from his chest recently. That's...concerning. But I guess it could happen to anyone.
Other than that, he seems quite healthy.
Now, let's be objective here. Are some of these conditions concerning? Yeah. The idea of him developing skin cancer at any time is problematic, and a few other things like afib and peripheral neuropathy stand out to me in particular. Let's face it when your body reaches a certain age it's like it starts actively wanting to die, meaning that you can decline quickly from something like sudden cancer, or complications from heart disease, etc. Honestly, I'll maintain my position that having ANYONE in office in their 80s carries some significant risk for health issues. And health can decline rather quickly. You can be healthy one day and the next you're on your death bed at that age. Still, all things considered, at 82, the age when he will be sworn in for his second term, his life expectancy is actually around 7.32 years. So he can last another term, assuming his health stays good. As I said, in your 80s you kinda get to the point where with a president you don't want to run the risk of keeping them in office, even if they are healthy when they assume the office. I do think that the rate at which the body declines at that age does represent a significant risk that ideally I would not be comfortable with taking. BUT, the dude is incumbent, he has one more term to go, he's healthy as a horse all things considered.I think think he can do it.
I mean, let's be objective here. It's not abnormal for someone in their 80s to have these kinds of conditions. It's not abnormal for someone in their 60s to have these conditions. The real thing that matters is whether they are CONTROLLED, and with Biden, they are. He exercises, he eats well, avoids smoking, alcohol, drugs, etc. He takes many medications that control these kinds of things, and in theory, he can keep going for years like this. I would not be surprised for this dude to live to be 90, 95, or even 100. Most people are actually not this healthy at that age to my knowledge. Heck, my parents are quite a bit younger and they have more chronic conditions than this. I mean, I'm actually familiar with some of the stuff mentioned here because my parents have some of the same things. It's just a natural thing that happens when you age. Anyone over say, 65 is going to have at least some of these things. The fact that the dude is in his 80s and this is the only things wrong with him tells me he's a healthy one.
And of course, there's no mention of any cognitive issues. This is just made up BS by critics of Biden who want to portray him as too old to run, like he has dementia and belongs in a nursing home and blah blah blah. It's kinda fricking stupid. Especially considering most people making these arguments are Trump or RFK fans and Trump isnt exactly a portrait of good health, and RFK sounds like a ghoul from fallout to me (Biden's speech patterns are often a point of criticism these arguments rely on).
So let's stop this crap. If we want to criticize Biden for something substantive, criticize Biden for something substantive. But claims of him having dementia are unfounded. The dude's healthy for an 82 year old. The only issue with his health is that he will in fact be 82 when he takes his second term in 2024, and that that is kinda old and his health could sour at any time for any reason. All kinds of things start going wrong in your 80s. Your body just breaks down. BUT, let's be honest, if I were a betting man, objectively speaking, I'd bet on Biden surviving his second term. I'd give it like a 75% chance give or take based on the data presented here. Between his age, life expectancy, and general health prognosis, that's actually pretty good.
The only problem with this is that...yeah....maybe we shouldnt take the risk on someone who has a 25% chance of dying in office. That still is kinda high. But again, the problem is the age in general, not a specific health problem with Biden.
Idk. TLDR, Biden is in good health, but his age is still problematic. But let's not act like it's more problematic than it actually is.
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