The past, out of touch (0.00 / 0)

There are potent angles of attack that McCain's age reinforces -- that aren't about age in itself.  

It's easy to paint his policies/approaches as "from the (failed) past", and that he's out of touch with the present, and today's America.  

---

by: Crab Nebula @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:08:35 PM CDT

Age is Not Race or Gender (0.00 / 0)

Hi Chris,

I'm not so sure that the argument you make here necessarily follows through.  In essence - age is not race and it is not gender.  In fact, a person's age is more akin to the discussion that occurred earlier in the election cycle about religion!  Non sequitur?  Here's my thinking:

The fundamental objection that progressives have to gender- or race-based identity politics is that in a just world without prejudice, racial or sex-based biological differences have no bearing on decision-making or policy.  

Mitt Romney explicitly tried to invoke this in combating what he argued was a systemic bias akin to racial and gender stereotypes, with regard to his Mormon faith.  

Several columnists (I remember a Slate article) responded very critically to this line of reasoning, pointing out that religious adherence has a concrete and tangible affect on one's political beliefs, and is therefore highly relevant for public dialogue.  I believe this meme won out in the media in many ways.  

This notion has a direct bearing on the appropriateness, at least, of discussing and actively framing John McCain's advanced age as a political issue, as a liability.  A person's age, unlike gender or race, can be correlated statistically to various risks and potential decision-making liabilities - even in the aforementioned just world without prejudice, where black and white people, and men and women, achieve and are treated equally, there are relevant obstacles and challenges that will still face people of advanced age (greater risk of death - in this case, death in office - among them... with Reaganesque senility or Barlett-style MS real issues!).  

All of this said, all I've done here is try to establish that age may be fair game.  Your point, Chris, is that (whether it's fair game or not) the backlash against this framing might be damaging, and therefore not worth pursuing.  

I'm not convinced (I'd love to see some good polling or message-testing on this one!).  My fiancee's father, a 68-year-old strong Republican with libertarian leanings, has said that he feels uncomfortable supporting McCain because he himself "feels too old to be a good President" !  I think it's much more possible that, since age really isn't akin to race or gender, many seniors might agree that McCain's too old to be in office - they'd respond negatively perhaps to prejudicial attacks (referring to his appearance, perhaps, or to his memories of long-ago events) - but would seniors respond negatively to the simple admission that McCain's age makes him more likely to be(come) senile, more likely to wear out under stress, more likely to die?

---

by: Syrith @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:13:06 PM CDT

Age IS different (0.00 / 0)

There is no objective reason that someone female or black shouldn't be President on those criteria alone, other than racism/sexism, so it provokes a backlash.  But age is different.  I'd say that 72 isn;t too old to be a Supreme Court Justice or Senator, but President is something else, given the multiple crises and issues that arise.  

Further, anyone who is getting on in years knows they are slowing down, not as able to do what they once could etc.  I'm 65 1/2 and I can feel it.  So I'm not at all sure there may be such a backlash, in fact older folks may be more realistic.  I think at this point in the race much of the "age gap" is latent racism, or fear of the unknown.  Many people are not aware just how old McCain is, but that is going to become more and more apparent.  

The issue has to be handled with care, but I don't think there is nearly as much potential for a backlash as with race and gender.  Obama needs above all to make older voters become comfortable with him.  Digs about McCain's age are best left to others, but they aren't off limits at all.  It is a legitimate issue, partiucularly in light of the stresses he has undergone in his life.  And it makes his VP choice a legitimate issue as well.

John McCain--He's not who you think he is.

---

by: Mimikatz @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:23:35 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Agree with this (0.00 / 0)

Elders themselves are surprisingly willing to testify that they wonder whether they still have the stamina to be President. The campaign needs those kinds of comments amplified (by others) while Obama need to convey that just because he is younger, that doesn't mean that he doesn't appreciate the experience of those who have gone before. I suspect he'll know how to hit that note.

Can it happen here?

---

by: janinsanfran @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 18:25:41 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Age or Generation? (4.00 / 2)

I think there is considerable confusion between Age and Generation in these discussions.  

Let's just lay a few facts:  Those now in their late 60's probably cast their first ballot (if they could register to vote) for either Richard Nixon of John Kennedy -- with Kennedy winning by less that 150 thousand votes.  

Those now in their early 70's -- 73 plus, cast their first votes in the Eisenhower Stevenson elections of 52 and 56.  One would need to be at least 81 to have voted for Truman or Dewey in 1948.  

In otherwords, this generation of elderly came to political maturity in relatively conservative times, and while the partisian divides were not as great in the 50's, as they would become in the 1980's, this is a generation that began political participation as significantly conservative -- and probably have become more so over the years.  The few from the FDR generation, they are in their late 80's and 90's, and there are fewer and fewer of them all the time.  

Thus what we assumed about elderly voters in previous cycles may not hold true with this generation of elderly.  Yes, probably about half of the over 69 voters voted for Kennedy in 1960 if they could register -- but the other half voted for Nixon.  Three or four cycles back, elderly meant Truman/FDR voters, which probably meant 60%+ of that generation.  Those generations were dependable Democrats.  I would argue that for the this, and the next few cycles, we enter the world of an electorate where the majority of the Elderly will have an established pattern of predominately voting Republican and Conservative.  Message content and GOTV need to be strategicly deployed so as to target the proper slices of Elderly.  This will be true as the elderly generation works its way through those who supported Nixon in 68, then Ford, then Reagan, then GHWBush, and finally the current Junior Bush.  

This doesn't address whether the stress of the Presidency is recommended for someone in their 70's, though that question should clearly be raised carefully -- even though the current late middle aged President clearly has work habits more like the partially retired.  

---

by: Sara @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 23:19:19 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Losing His Bearings (4.00 / 2)

This phrase is a good indicator that the McCain camp is itching for this fight. The term has its roots in a nautical metaphor, "bearing" meaning a compass direction, and the loss of which would indicate confusion and a lack of direction. Given the context, this is what Obama meant.

However, the McCain camp responded as if he had meant machine bearings, the implication of which would mean that McCain is old and worn out. That's not really what Obama was saying, he was calling McCain confused, but it's the meaning the campaign reacted to -- basically, they took his comments and reframed them to create an age-based insult where none had been before. Obama then missed the opportunity to correct them, and so it's established in the narrative that Obama insulted McCain's age.

Furthermore, the McCain campaign adopted an attitude that if Obama were going to insult McCain's age, then that opened up the low road and they would insult him more openly, with the Wright issue and whatever else. Clearly McCain, who has carefully created and maintained a "clean campaigning" image, needed to give himself license to get a little dirty, since he'll need to get very dirty in order to go negative on Obama's identity. So expect more of this in the next few weeks, as McCain's people try to paint any Obama attack as an age-based one, thus opening the door for all of their crap to come. Then they will be able to say "Obama took the gloves off, we were forced to respond" and make McCain look cleaner as his campaign gets dirtier.

---

by: corax @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:17:01 PM CDT

Oh, I thought the accusation McCain was making was that (0.00 / 0)

Obama was accusing him of getting senile, confused and lost.

---

by: Valatan @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:27:49 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

I took it to mean (0.00 / 0)

a reference to his "moral compass", that he doesn't know right from wrong. And it might imply confused and lost without necessarily implying senile.

Either way, though, this is something that Obama just walked into, since McCain would've found some way to take offense sooner or later. Even McCain himself keeps bringing up his age in the negative, holding events to show how spry he is and running ads about his mother. Clearly he wants to take on the mantle of age for its good connotations and then bristle whenever someone brings up the bad ones.

---

by: corax @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:44:30 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

I don't see a real defense that Obama has from this sort of thing (4.00 / 1)

Anything that he does to try and shore up his position amongst older voters (aside from the stalwart Democratic position of defending Medicare and Social Security) is going to compromise what he did to get him this far, especially since a lot of what got him this far has been a youth based identity politics.

---

by: Valatan @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:22:21 PM CDT

Yes, That Was Dumb (0.00 / 0)

But see my post below about how he might "turn the page" on his own past mistakes.

"You know what they say -- those of us who fail history... doomed to repeat it in summer school." -- Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Season 6, Episode 3

---

by: Paul Rosenberg @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:25:42 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

change, not youth (0.00 / 0)

I think we're all getting a little too jumpy around here.

Obama's approach hasn't been a youth-based identity politics, it's been a change-based identity politics which (surprise!) very effectively attracts my (Millenial, youthful) generation.

Obama has worked to play up his experience and presidentiality  (to create a word), and deemphasize his youth, and the youth base of support.  Certainly, the youth-age contrast between Obama and McCain is inevitable - I'm just not convinced it's value-negative (or -positive, for that matter).

---

by: Syrith @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:26:34 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

But he <b>has</b> pushed this (0.00 / 0)

His age was being pointed out even in the early stages of the primaries, as a contrast against Clinton.  It's what all of the talk about vibrancy and energy is about, and it's why a vague notion of change, via little but a rejection of the 'failed politics of the past' is credible.  

---

by: Valatan @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:35:11 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

God forbid (0.00 / 0)

we elect a president who is young enough to have to live with the consequences of his own actions long after he leaves the White House.  I think the age factor can be played quite skillfully by associating it with that lack of accountability rather than carrying out the simple bigotry of "old == inept" attacks.

---

by: BigTuna @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:23:36 PM CDT

Obama Coould Deliver A Real Knock-Out Blow On This Score (4.00 / 7)

by delivering a major speech on Social Security and inter-generational responsibility.  McCain--like all Republicans--is very weak and very vulnerable on this subject, so calling attention to it is really a no-brainer.  The trick is, that such a speach ought to be about more than policy--which, of course, is right up Obama's alley.  And one of the things he can talk about is how honoring and respecting inter-generational responsibility draws on the particular strengths of each generation to benefit the others.

This is precisely where he can hit the themes that (a) reassure older voters that he respects their wisdom, experience and far-sightedness, while (b) raising legitimate doubts about whether McCain does the same, and (c) drawing the distinction between seeking people's counsel, which is wise to do regardless, if not because of age, and putting someone in a stressful leadership role that doesn't really make the best use of their strengths and abilities.

If done properly, such a speech could set up the parameters or the rest of the campaign, so that Obama could repeatedly reach back to it and quote himself as a reminder of where he stands, and of the well-thought-out and considered nature of his views, which will only draw a starker and starker contrast the more that Republicans try to pelt him with swoundbite distortians and "gotcha" moments, either real or fanciful.

Naturally, it would make perfect sense to give such a speech in Florida, which ought to be a lot more competetive than polls have made it out to be.  Giving such a speech in the state would surely help to start changing the dynamic there at the same time it would serve a national purpose.

"You know what they say -- those of us who fail history... doomed to repeat it in summer school." -- Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Season 6, Episode 3

---

by: Paul Rosenberg @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:23:50 PM CDT

Yes! Intergenerational justice is PERFECT (0.00 / 0)

Paul, I love this idea, and I think you've NAILED the frame.  I haven't heard this anywhere!

It dovetails beautifully well beyond social security, into a host of other issues!

My passion is environmental sustainability, and it is an effortless transition to imagine messaging that subtly chastises the elder McCain for his lack of consideration for intergenerational justice and a healthy environment for future generations.  The same thing with "100 years of war" for future generations, long after the elders of today are gone.

---

by: Syrith @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:29:12 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Thanks for Fleshing This Out More! (0.00 / 0)

Of course I had that in mind.  It's only after seeing you lay it out specifically that I realize I should have said that myself.  No one is more aware than seniors themselves of the ways that their perspective puts a needed corrective into how society fails to value certain things that are absolutely vital.

The environment is certainly one of the main examples of this.

But Obama could also talk about the erosion of democratic principles, and America's stature in the world in the same kind of way.  Boomers who lived through Wateregate surely see the parallels with Bush, the lack of the lessons learned, and the fact that McSame has been AWOL at best, and on the wrong side at worst in preventing our democracy from getting seriously off track.

"You know what they say -- those of us who fail history... doomed to repeat it in summer school." -- Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Season 6, Episode 3

---

by: Paul Rosenberg @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:44:34 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

It's sort of a return (0.00 / 0)

to the old "tools of the past can't be used to solve the problems of the future" maxim.

---

by: Syrith @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:49:46 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

intergenerational justice (4.00 / 3)

One idea we've been trying to advance in the sustainability movement is that intergenerational justice is simply the logical extension of all the significant intragenerational (current) justice movements, many of which were stuck on single-issue silo politics until more recently.  

Linking inter- and intra-generational justice is a natural platform-building plank between ethnic, gender, racial equality coalitions on one side, and environmentalists on the other.  This is very much in keeping with Crashing the Gate, I believe, and I think the "sustainability" frame is a beautiful way to pursue it.  

Two other key tenets of sustainability (besides the "meeting present needs should not compromise the ability of future generations to meet their own needs" definition from the UN Brundtland Report in the 80s) are:
• That there are limitations to nature's capacity in terms of energy and resources, and these limitations should be respected, or even creatively embraced.
•That nothing is isolated, as the world is interconnected across environmental, social, and economic boundaries; as a result each of these areas should be considered in decision-making.  

These two principles can be terrific building blocks for "non-green" progressive political issues, just like "intergenerational justice."  For instance, the "limitations of energy and resources" tenet gives us environmental conservation, but it also implies fiscal responsibility and good governance.  "nothing is isolated" gives us a frame for international engagement and diplomacy, and for the sort of urban policy that restores the vitality of communities.  

The possibilities are endless.  

---

by: Syrith @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:01:25 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Excellent Points All Around (4.00 / 1)

The environment is never just about the environment.

That's because the environment is where we always are.

"You know what they say -- those of us who fail history... doomed to repeat it in summer school." -- Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Season 6, Episode 3

---

by: Paul Rosenberg @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 18:41:59 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

It's not Boomers he needs (0.00 / 0)

So much as Silent and the last of the GI Generation.  I think this is a good frame.  I've heard that many older people despise Bush and the GOP for wrecking the world they worked hard to provide for their children and grandchildren.  

Intergenerational justice is a natural for Obama since he was raised in part by his grandparents, who are GI Generation.  Florida as a venue for the speech would be great.

John McCain--He's not who you think he is.

---

by: Mimikatz @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:32:30 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Sorry, I Was Sloopy. (0.00 / 0)

Also in a hurry.

What I meant was that anyone old enough to be a Boomer would remember Nixon and Watergate, yadda-yadda-yadda.  Obviously, this would also apply to those older than boomers.

"You know what they say -- those of us who fail history... doomed to repeat it in summer school." -- Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Season 6, Episode 3

---

by: Paul Rosenberg @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 18:16:41 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

I'm not at all convinced that this wedge (4.00 / 2)

would work exclusively in Obama's favor. Look at the answers of several Republican Senators to the VP question:

Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)
"When I was much younger I would have probably said, 'Sure, I'll be glad to accept it,' but I'm 70 years [old] and they need a younger person for the job. I would probably tell them, 'Look for somebody else.' "

Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.)
"No. I'm too old."

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa)
"I'm too old to be vice president. But I am young enough to be reelected to the Senate."

Sen. John Warner (R-Va.)
"No, I'm not getting into that. I'm happily in the twilight of my retirement."

Now, they could argue that they're responding to the specific perceived need of a younger VP to help McCain's chances, not that they are not qualified because they are simply too old. But they are voicing common concerns.

There's no reason to believe that seniors of either party will monolithically support a senior for president. Yes, some would get pissed off by perceived "ageist" rhetoric, if it were to materialize, and even if it were simply to be concocted by the McCain camp. But others would actually feel that an elderly person would not be the best leader of the free world.  

---

by: along @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:32:35 PM CDT

dammit (0.00 / 0)

I meant to write "exclusively in McCain's favor."

---

by: along @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 14:34:57 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

I wonder if seniors also make up the largest number of race-affected voters... (0.00 / 0)

My mother told my recently that my two 85+-year-old grandmothers, diehard Democrats both, were expressing dismay that Obama was going to be the nominee.  They worried that blacks would take over everything and push a sense of entitlement over whites.  It was a shocking and disheartening revelation for me to hear that two people I love, admire, and respect said such things. Both of them lived most of their lives in Sirota's Race Chasm, the semi-rural and blue collar Midwest, so I suppose demographically it shouldn't come as a great surprise that they might have more divisive racial attitudes.  It makes me wonder how many other, dyed in blue, Democratic seniors feel this way.  Do senior Democrats constitute the last large demographic of race-affected voters (it hurts say 'racist' when its family) left in the party?

---

by: Ricky @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:03:01 PM CDT

I think it's a different issue (4.00 / 1)

Most black voters didn't move to Obama because he was being attacked -- they moved to him because they'd love to see a black man win, and Obama is the first one ever to have a shot.

Most women didn't move to Hillary because she was the target of sexist attacks -- they've supported her all along because they'd love to see a female president. Especially older white women.

Call me crazy, but I don't think a lot of seniors are craving to see the first 72-year-old newly inaugerated president. Most presidents are old, it's nothing new. And I've read polls where the highest concern over McCain's age is amongst seniors, because they know the presidency is not an old man's game.

So I really think you are comparing apples to oranges. Yes, the Obama camp shouldn't make fun of McCain's age in explicit terms, but a Bob Dole type campaign about "past" vs "future" is just fine. I don't remember any big backlash of seniors supporting Dole in 1996, but you can prove me wrong if you have the statistics.

Obama is losing seniors because of race issues (older folks are more biased, sorry) and because of the divisive primary (lots of older Hillary voters currently saying they will vote for McCain over Obama). But once these people get to know more about McCain's plans, his support will drop.

We can't stop late night comedy or pundits from bringing up McCain's age, and I sure won't stop (look at the name of my blog), but in any event I don't see a massive senior consolidation like what we saw with Obama and Clinton on other identity issues.

---

by: existenz @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:12:43 PM CDT

Bob Dole and SNL (4.00 / 1)

To this day, I cannot think about Bob Dole without seeing that parody in my mind.  I don't remember which comic did the bits, but they had Dole wandering around grunting, "Where's Bob Dole?"  "Why won't Bob Dole debate me?"  It also made fun of his campaign ads where he spoke about himself in the 3rd person.

I can't wait until SNL strats making fun of McCain.


"It sounds wrong...
     ...but its right."

---

by: SpitBall @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:26:10 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

the best thing (0.00 / 0)

Norm McDonald ever did.

---

by: along @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 16:35:47 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

If anyone knows that getting old is a bitch, it's old people. (4.00 / 3)

I don't think that senior citizens will react in a monolithically negative way to the age argument.  If it's played respectfully, and not contemptuously, then I think a lot of them will agree -- getting old really drags down your body and even your mind, and being president is not a job for an old person.

The key is to play it in respectful and subtle ways only; it's true that mocking and dismissive material would offend them.

Also, Obama is going to be very weak with this demographic regardless.  If playing the age card causes him to lose further ground here, but define McCain negatively among everyone under 45, that's a fair tradeoff.  

---

by: texas dem @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:13:23 PM CDT

I Agree: Old People Know McCain Is Too Old (0.00 / 0)

My mother is in her mid-80s and told me the other day that people in her nursing home think McCain is too old for the job. If he were a spry 72 years old it would be one thing, she said. But McCain looks like he's sick. Her words, not mine.

---

by: C-Pluckhahn @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 17:34:17 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Disagree (0.00 / 0)

I think age is in a different category than race or gender.  When people bring up age, race or gender as a reason not to support a candidate, people in those groups pull-back and put themselves in the position of the candidate being attacked.  While, it is obviously offensive to any African-American or woman to be told that from birth they were never capable of being President, I think seniors view this differently.  

Most people past the age of 60 know that they have less stamina and less energy that they did 10 years ago.  Many of these people are either retired or contemplating retirement.  I think you could make the argument that this group understands better than younger voters how much of a problem McCain's age is going to be for him.  

As other's have articulated, Obama needs to show respect for the the wisdom and experience of older voters, but should also be highlighting the "difficult challenges" faced by the next President and the "energy" required to meet those challenges.  He should talk about traveling around the world to restore America's image and bringing our allies together to solve our common problems.  

To the extent to which process stories are inevitable, he needs to push process stories about how he wakes up at 6am and campaigns late at night, 7 days a week.

   

A vote against Health Care Reform is a vote for ten 9/11s every single year!

---

by: Schul @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:19:41 PM CDT

Hmm... (4.00 / 1)

Didn't hurt Bill Clinton...  Are we forgetting that aspect of '92?  

If elected, Barack Obama will be 47 years, 9 months and 12 days old on inauguration day.  This would make him the fifth youngest president, after (in order): Theodore Roosevelt,  John F. Kennedy, Bill Clinton, and Ulysses S. Grant.
John McCain would be 72 years, 11 months, and 12 days old at inauguration.

For comparison:
Bill Clinton was 46 years, 5 months and 1 day old at inauguration.  G. H. W. Bush was the 4th oldest president at his inauguration at 64y, 7m, 8d.  Add 4y to that for comparison to Clinton during the '92 campaign.

So, Obama is about a year older than Bill was in '92.  Bush Sr. was about 4 years younger (in the '92 campaign) than McCain is now.   Seems pretty analogous to me...

---

by: tilthouse @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:23:00 PM CDT

Stats (0.00 / 0)

Just cause the table was in front of me:

It's seems (I could be off by a row, I'm counting by hand) that the median president, by age at inauguration, was LBJ who was 55y 2m 26d old.

Also, the presidents older than G.H.W. Bush were, youngest to oldest: Buchanan, W. H. Harrison, and Ronald Reagan.  McCain would be almost exactly 3 years older than Reagan.

Obama would be a bit less than 7.5 years below median age.  McCain would be 17 years, 8 months, and 17 days older than median.

Data from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L... which I sorted by age at ascension.

---

by: tilthouse @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:32:42 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Governors (0.00 / 0)

--even figureheads like George W. Bush in Texas--get extra experience points.  They're like mini-presidents.  People assume they can run things.

---

by: Upstate Dem @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:32:48 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Isn't McCain's birthday in August? (0.00 / 0)

During Katrina?  Yes, born August 29, 1936.

So he'd be 72 years, 4 months and 22 days old at inauguration.

John McCain--He's not who you think he is.

---

by: Mimikatz @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:39:21 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

72 years, 4 months, and 22 days (0.00 / 0)

You are correct.

I was using an online age calculator and I'm guessing I swapped the days and month in his birthday.  

---

by: tilthouse @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:49:45 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Did this same with Obama (4.00 / 1)

His age would be 47 years, 5 months, and 16 days at inauguration.  

Other ages came from a pre-calculated table, so are probably free from my mangling.  

And I'm not actually saying that age here should be a disqualification.  I'm just doin' the math (badly, as it turns out :-/ ).

Having said that, Things Younger Than McCain is still funny.

---

by: tilthouse @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:55:30 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Except the comment wasn't about age (4.00 / 2)

Losing his bearings, means losing guideposts or coordinates, or losing ones way i.e. getting away from his supposed values.

So their criticism was a not too clever way of trying to make it about age. It was about the absence of a moral compass.

John McCain doesn't care about Vets.

---

by: MC @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:28:27 PM CDT

100% correct (4.00 / 2)

I take the McCain camp's spin as a way to deflect this most accurate conclusion.  They weren't itching for a fight on the age issue - they were trying to avoid the conclusion you have just drawn.  

"It sounds wrong...
     ...but its right."

---

by: SpitBall @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:33:22 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Age matters... to young people (0.00 / 0)

As a young person, one thing which initially attracted me to Obama was his relative youth. He wasn't going to "wait his turn"; that appeals to me.

I think young people generally feel intelligent and competent, and won't react fondly to the "he's not experienced" argument. (I'm generalizing, of course).

Of course, the difference between young voters and older voters is that older people are much more reliable voters. Also, they're more of a swing bloc then young people (who are tending more and more Democratic).

No, I do not weep at the world — I am too busy sharpening my oyster knife.
    Zora Neale Hurston

---

by: naufragio @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 15:41:48 PM CDT

I'm sick and tired of all this identity politics! (0.00 / 0)

Everybody in this supposed melting pot of one country of united states seems to have their own little private agenda or self interest or cause or cultural or ethnic or religious or geographical identity.

I wish people tried to think critically and independently and in terms of what is in the best interests of the country as a whole and try to rise above their narrow upbringing and when they enter that voting booth, not peck at the ballot like a trained chicken.

Slacking toward the apocalypse

---

by: roberto @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 00:33:52 AM CDT