A recent health scare for Mitch McConnell has raised concerns about the age of America’s politicians.
Can’t imagine it has anything to do with all the laws that disenfranchise college students and young adults not living in the same town as their parents.
“Voters weigh in”
You mean like how they do every other November? When they put those geezers in office?
People tend to just vote for the incumbent, which is how we’ve got senators so old they’re stroking out on camera and have conservators, because they refuse to yield power or retire. This is why we need term limits.
If not term limits we really should have age maximums to go with the minimums that already exist. People over 70 shouldn’t be making policy decisions they likely won’t be alive to see tye affects of.
That’s just lazy and not a good excuse IMO. If people actually wanted change they would fight for it.
That’s the thing. Most people don’t. Most people are actually fine with the status quo, and figure their district is doing ok, so leave it as-is. Folks tend to think it’s other places that are the problem.
Then things shouldn’t change. That’s how democracy works
People don’t want change. They want stability and to not starve. If those two qualifiers are met then voters don’t really care what the government does and they’re not inclined to vote incumbents out.
Many people have simply given up. They see the government as trash with nothing that can be done to change it.
Yes.
I don’t think the issue is that politicians are old or not. You may be old but still have fresh ideas. The problem is that without term limits those fresh ideas become stagnant and start to smell of prune juice farts and old tapioca pudding.
you might reasonably assume that if they were too old they’d vote for younger ones
The problem is demographics. Boomers have been the largest voting bloc and that’s only really changing now that they’re getting old and dying. (Currently boomers are 59-77 years. Biden and them are technically silent generation.)
Gen x is to “quiet” to make a big fuss and boomers don’t respect millennials (nevermind gen z) so they’re never going to vote for some one younger than themselves.
It was until ‘19 that boomers were finally outnumbered by a different generation.
Most of us GenXers gave up on trying to make any significant change in anything. Those that are still active have already sided with the enemy.
OK but even so, I don’t support the disenfranchisement of boomers so like, it is not improper that they vote for candidates they think represent them
using that logic… you’re disenfranchising anyone who isn’t a majority generation.
also, keep in mind there’s already limits on age and who can run for office. saying a cap at, say, 65, is “ageist” is laughable… when there’s already a minimum age of 35. Nobody questions the wisdom of that minimum limit, so why do [* checks notes] Old People™️ get to insist on not having a maximum as well?
any argument you make about 66 being okay also applies to 34. Or 75 and 25. Like I said elsewhere, the problem isn’t that they’re old. the problem is that they’re “senile”. their mind is going. It’s a problem.
If you let people opposed to your ideology vote, they will inevitably vote against your interests. Disenfranchisement is the only real option available to producing meaningful political change that doesn’t involve violence. It’s the same strategy used against the rest of us by conservatives and neoliberals. We’re stupid for not using it against them.
You’re an idiot for thinking this way
Disenfranchisement is the only real option available to producing meaningful political change that doesn’t involve violence
Cool. No leftists get to vote.
Wait you meant just disenfranchise people you don’t like?
The gerontocracy runs the political parties. The party determines the candidates. You will rarely see a candidate on your ballot that wasn’t approved by them. And they will only approve of other old people and those that agree with their policies… which are inherently conservative in nature.
