Are Biden’s handlers guilty of elder abuse?
Even back during the 2020 campaign, I heard the claim that Biden’s handlers – and also Jill Biden – were guilty of elder abuse in having him run for president and cooperating with it and facilitating it. I noticed today a commenter here (“Brooklyn Boy”) making the very same point: “His handlers are guilty of elder abuse.”
And surely, if it was true in 2020, it’s even more true now, because unlike fine wine, Joe Biden has not improved with age.
But I disagreed with the “elder abuse” premise in 2020, and I disagree with it now. I suppose your opinion on the matter depends on how you evaluate Biden’s cognitive state at the moment. I have long used phases like “cognitively challenged” for Biden, whom I see as having many cognitive deficits but as still being cogniscent of what’s going on around him and possessed of what is commonly known as “agency.”
The man was never sharp or wise, so that’s not the issue. He was never a truth-teller. Nor was he possessed of solid political principles, whatever they might have been, left or middle-of-the-road. He was a great vice president for Obama because he was a policy chameleon, willing to go along with whatever Obama wanted, which was to move ever leftward. It was just fine with Biden, whose overwhelming motive has always been his own personal ambition. Becoming VP in his golden years was a dream come true, although it was a dream he thought he’d fulfill much much earlier in life.
And becoming president was even more of a dream fulfilled for Biden. He has willed it for his entire adult life, and he has achieved it. And he still has will, despite his cognitive limitations which are hardly absolute. Being president is exactly what he wants and has always wanted, and he would crawl over the proverbial broken glass to do it again in 2024. If his party wishes to remove him, it will take some doing.
Nor is Biden particularly embarrassed by his current state. He was always sort of goony, given to strange and/or shady statements and claims, many of them made up. He had no shame then and none now.
No; the only people being abused in this deal are those of us who didn’t vote for him.
Eventually, going along with somebody’s delusions is doing him no favors and as it gets worse, could actually be seen as abuse. Whether Biden’s currently at the first state is questionable; the downside for him is any embarrassment he may feel. Physically, it might be the effects of drugs which keep him as sharp as he is now, not much, at the cost of earlier failures.
As you say, his ambition is such that whatever embarrassment he may feel might seem to him to be worth the cost.
There’s getting busted on a lie. Happens to him all the time to no bad results for him. No problem.
I deliver Meals on Wheels. Sometimes people are slow to the door because of what we, at our age, refer to as being “indisposed”. The step beyond that could be embarrassing…but you do what you have to do and that’s why they make Depends and why, in this case, you have staff.
We should not confuse what we would feel seeing this done to a loved one with what the total result is for Biden.
Tough luck for us. Whether we voted for him or not. Tougher for his supporters; they have to rationalize this mess and their part in it.
someone on gutfeld compared to the movie misery, with us in the james caan role,
its the humiliation broadcast to the world,
I tend to agree. Granted I’m no neurologist or expert on human cognition, I’m just an ordinary observer. While he certainly has issues, it does seem like he still possess agency. He may stumble on stairs, regularly forget names (mild aphasia), and slurr his speech to the point of unintelligibility, but those don’t necessarily mean he isn’t generally aware of what’s going on around him most of the time.
That said, these symptoms are concerning though. And recent polls indicate that most Americans (including many Democrats) tend to agree that he’s probably too old to be president. Not that that signifies much at this point. As we all know there’s a big distinction between feeling a candidate is perhaps too old for the job and actually voting for the other guy. especially when that “other guy” is like… Literally Hilter!1! and stuff.
I knew a lot of guys like Biden back in the day. They were disproportionately Irish. Jewish too. But of course no ethnicity or race has a lock on the type. That was just my experience where I came from. Fast-talkers, scam artists, bullshitters. Smilin’ and lyin’ to your face while figuratively sticking the knife in your back. Maybe a lot of them borderline personalities, or sociopathic. When cornered by one and subjected to their BS I frequently had to fight back an urge to punch them in the face. On a few occasions I actually did. Biden is in that category. He’s very punchable. But then, so are many (most?) politicians. Again, the type cuts across all ethnicities and races.
When Biden does that shuffle and pitter-patter walk of his, I want to puke.
One good thing from all of this, normal people using their common sense can see that the Dems are totally corrupt for putting this guy in office.
The Dems are the party of criminals and corruption.
Maybe if we had sane political parties that were concerned with the good of the nation instead of “how can we get rich while sticking it to the other side” our situation wouldn’t be so bad. But here we are.
If you go back in history, what’s going on today almost seems like the norm. Woodrow Wilson stroked out and was an invalid for part of his second term. Everyone in DC knew FDR was going to die, maybe not even make it to Inauguration Day in 1945; that’s why they removed Wallace from the ticket. JFK had a variety of ailments that were hidden from the public. LBJ was a drunkard, although that was hardly a secret in DC. I’d bet that neither Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, nor Obama could pass an FBI background test, if those were given to candidates.
The point is, covering up for illnesses and/or criminal activity is accepted with a shrug by large numbers of people. I’d even go so far as to bet that if the walls start to close in on the Bidens his defense attorneys will use his diminished capacity to argue that he’s not competent to stand trial.
I think neo accurately describes Biden during his 3 – 4 good hours per day.
Richard Aubrey (3:49 pm) said: “Tougher for his [Biden’s] supporters; they have to rationalize this mess and their part in it.”
Easy-peasy — Orange Man Bad. That’s really all the “rationalization” [ahem] that’s necessary over on that side. The whole lot of ’em are totally besotted with TDS.
M J R
I try not to agree with your conclusion. It might be what they say to us, but are they actually thinking something that simple? After all, many of them can breathe without written instructions.
As you say, Biden was never a world-changer. He’s a ward heeler at heart, from the old eastern establishment of the DNC machine – he knows the political score and has always been ready to make the deal, set up the grift. Whatever the level of his compromised abilities now, he still knows how to get the job done. It no longer really matters much, what must be delivered – that’s what staff is for, and he is surrounded by staff (I’m not talking about the freak show talent, I’m referring to the actual competent hands that know how to stay behind the scenes). When you think of it from the perspective of his long inglorious career, this is really a sunset position for him – a capper as a reward for faithful service. In his mind, he’s probably doing a terrific job, with no reason to step aside.
Can an abuser truly be abused? Is a thief justified in complaining if their stolen goods are in turn stolen from them? But if Biden is being abused, he’s simply reaping what he so richly deserves.
I’m ten years older than Biden and I can identify with his aging issues.
At 80 I was still relatively vigorous physically. But I would not have been able to do a full eight-hour day of work at that age. The presidency is very demanding unless the POTUS relies heavily on staff work. My impression is that is what’s going on with Biden. The staff is doing most of the work, he’s a figurehead.
My mind was beginning to lose short term memory at 80, but nothing like Joe. Unfortunately, his memory isn’t going to get better – except for the “dog-faced, lying pony soldier” stories, which are embedded fables that he loves.
I agree with Neo. He would not go easily. In spite of his obvious shortcomings, he’s living his dream. It’s not abuse of Joe, it’s abuse of the nation.
Neo starts the fourth sentence of her fourth paragraph with this phrase: “He was a great president for Obama … ”
Okay, we’ve all suspected that this was Obama’s third term, but if Neo has some inside information, then I want the juicy details. Don’t hold back. Is Obama a secret sadist? Does he enjoy Joe’s public torment? Is all this somehow related to Obama’s gay temptations? So many questions.
Cornflour:
Oops! Will fix.
Richard Aubrey (6:17 pm) asks: “It might be what they say to us, but are they actually thinking something that simple?”
Okay, while “The whole lot of ’em are totally besotted with TDS,” I happily concede that there are a select (?) few who are “actually thinking.” But I will maintain, based on some experience with left-leaners (and with the attendant TDS) that most are emoting or just feeling rather than thinking.
And I do intend to be saying “most”. Most people do not think things through to nearly the degree that we “neo”-philes do, and the same may fairly be said about our mirror-image counterparts over there on the left (i.e., some do think).
But for “most” people, thinking things through is just not their cup of coffee, especially if they’re not terribly inclined to pay attention to issues political (or even sociopolitical). Orange Man Bad is about the extent to which they’re willing to devote time and/or effort to the subject. It works for them.
See ya . . .
“…it’s abuse of the nation.”
More like “the rape of the nation”.
Its people.
Its values.
Its institutions.
Its mores.
Its language.
Its hopes.
(Can’t say THAT, though; because saying it would be undiplomatic. Mean spirited. POUNCING–YIKES!! AAAND, it would mean that people weren’t paying enough attention to TRUMP’s SINS)…
So…while “Biden” and “his” minions are pummeling the country, while claiming (with a wink, wink) that they’re SAVING it…
“Income dropped, poverty soared under Biden: Census Bureau;
“Inflation soared 7.8% from 2021 to 2022, marking the largest single-year increase in cost of living since 1981.”—
File under: BUT TRUMP!!!!!!!
+ Bonus:
And this is HOW they’re doin’ it:
‘ Kari Lake attorney alleges courts are ignoring manipulations and vulnerabilities in voting system;
‘”The voter registration computerized system was hacked. And that is in the complaint,” Parker said.’—
https://justthenews.com/government/courts-law/kari-lake-attorney-alleges-courts-are-ignoring-manipulations-and
David Icke may not have been entirely wrong. Our leaders may not be reptilian shapeshifters, but all Biden seems to have left is his reptilian brain stem. I exaggerate a little, but will, defensiveness, and irritability look to be dominant in his make-up.
Originally, the claim of elder abuse was directed at Biden’s family, Jill being first among Joe’s handlers. If she cared about Joe, it was said, she’d discourage him from making a fool of himself, and let him relax in his golden years. There was a feeling that Jill was moving the puppet Joe around to satisfy her own ambitions.
But the presidency was what Joe wanted, and as you say, his mind and his indominable will aren’t completely gone yet. I don’t doubt that Jill and the rest of the family wanted Joe to run, but if they hadn’t, in the face of Joe’s driving ambition (and Hunter’s), telling the old man no might have seemed more selfish than giving him what he wanted.
“Elder Abuse” is exceedingly difficult to prove. I think most people and some healthcare professionals have an idea of what it might be. But legally is another thing. It is almost as if as long as they can string a sentence together, they are “competent” to “make their own decisions.” And if making their own decisions consists of “I decide to let this person lead me by the nose,” then that is their decision, and they can choose that.
I learned this the hard way with an elderly relative who has cut everyone off but her greedy little neighbor.
However, we should have a better standard of “competency” for someone serving as the President of the United States. Much better standard.