It’s just me writing after 8 beers and a gazillion separate text messages, pondering what it must be like to be the President of The United States right now.
2 Likes
I would never want to be president. Wouldn’t have wanted to after 9/11 like Bush, during Great Recession like Obama or this. I also don’t like being people’s boss. I am in charge of people and it’s the least favorite part of my job by far.
But I was saying that age limits doesn’t protect us from unpopular candidates like Hilary and Trump. It merely protects us from unpopular old candidates.
I’m still for it because at least in theory we would assume a 50 year old to be more fit physically and mentally than an 80 year old. Not always but on the whole. It’s just we shouldn’t need all this. Yet we do!
Nick may be right maybe it’s time to make it harder to vote! I probably don’t actually think that but sometimes I do. I also think it’s insane you need a license to drive and to cut hair but any idiot with a hard on can become a parent. But I don’t have a non hitler style solution to that one either.
I think it might protect us from quite a lot. For instance, if we didn’t allow people over the age of 65 to run for President, we wouldn’t have Donald Trump in office. We also wouldn’t have Joe Biden running for office as the most viable alternative.
I think that’s a good start.
1 Like
If no one over 65 was allowed, we wouldn’t have had:
Trump, Reagan, Harrison
If no one 65-or-over, we wouldn’t have had any of the above or Buchanan.
…
I think the U.S. would be a lot better off with a 40 year Presidential age limit. Zero would have made the cut.
Dr. Fauci is going to turn 80this year.
Certainly agreed, the concept of age related neurodegeneration needs to be factored in when electing an elderly candidate.
I’m not particularly educated pertaining to prior US presidents, but I do believe (correct me if I’m wrong) Ronald Reagen was somewhat senile whilst in office towards the end of his time as president.
When I look at current speeches/interviews regarding Donald Trump/Biden stemming from now compared to say… Ten years ago; verbal and/or grammatical inconsistencies seem abundant. Conversational coherency from both parties during conversation appears unintelligible, incomprehensible at times. If you can’t adequately word a conversation, you probably aren’t neurologically competent to be president.
On a further note, whilst I fucking despise Trump (his morality… Or lack thereof particuarly gets to me), I can’t say I dislike everything he’s done.
- Recognition of Jerusalem as the capitol of Isreal
- moving the US embassy to Jerusalem
- Middle East peace plan was alright… Aside from stating the illegal settlements were there to stay…
I’ve been smoking a disproportionate amount of grass to calm my nerves, typically only late at night to avoid getting caught.
Inclined to disagree with this. There probably is a dispoportionately high rate of sociopathy/narcissism within politicians; but I also believe some politicians are in it to help others/society as a whole.
I disagree, America’s (in my opinion) federal
expenditure regarding defence/millitary is disproportionately high, seriously… You could cut the defence budget in half and it’d still be higher than that of China
For countries with real risk of serious, imminent conflict (Isreal) I certainly understand the rationale for mandating service within the general populace. Otherwise, I see no reason for millitary service to be mandated.
Furthermore if service was to be a requirement they’d have to dramatically loosen criteria for eligibility. Certain individuals I would also think are “unfit” for service. Those with chronic pain, mental illness etc probably shouldn’t be required to join the army.
What about medical professionals (a few exist on here)? State govenors… Presidents of other nations… Trump isn’t the sole person stressed out here, yet others aren’t continually lying/making misleading statements to the general populace… Or pulling petty shit like this
So… What kind of beer are you drinking? There’s a really good one I had in Belgium… Type of Geuze (sour beer). I’ll find the brand name again.
Don’t drink much anymore, but I’m typically down for a refreshing cold one on the right occasion.
I personally hated some of Raegan’s policies… I believe he is somewhat responsible for the epidemic of mass incarceration in the US… I dislike the vast majority of Trump’s policies.
Mandatory public service would be preferable to military service. There are a lot of people who shouldn’t go anywhere near a gun. Some of them are already in the military.
1 Like
I do agree that we spend a ton of money on it. I have ZERO idea but I feel like it could be trimmed down and we’d still be #1.
Criteria’s not even that bad. Like, actually. I know so many guys in the Air Force, National Guard, and Army who are great guys, but slow, weak and unable to fight. Even the Marines I know - they can do a decent amount of half rep pullups but are no prime specimens. The only military guys I know who impressed me and gave me the impression that they were “better” than me were Navy SEALs. I only know 2. And that’s their whole point, but I’m just saying it’s not that hard to get into the Army. Doesn’t take beyond average physical capabilities.
And yes, those with mental illness probably shouldn’t be allowed in, but that’s not always an obvious thing, and now that I think about it, most of the low level miltary dudes I know are a little…off, haha. Seems to attract that type. Obviously if someone is completely unfit, it’s not for them, but the average healthy, able bodied young man could (and should, in my opinion) spend two years being (slightly) whipped into shape and made to listen to authority and serve something bigger than themselves.
I agree, but since they make it into the hands of whoever wants them, I’m ignoring it.
The criteria is stringent here in Aus, not sure what it is in America… But the vetting process is fairly thorough. I’d be rejected for my history of severe depression in response to extensive bullying when I was 12-14… And ages 7-9
This is where we disagree… I don’t believe accepting authoritative figures is a natural part of “growing up” or maturing. If one finds a certain authoritarian figure legitimately unjust for his/her policies I see no reason as to why pushback shouldn’t be expected regardless of age disparity or power dynamics at play.
Anyone who tells me that I’m a delinquent because I didn’t follow rules in school that made no sense can politely get lost. There was no reason as to why I shouldn’t have been able to call my parents, a relative, a friend from overseas etc during lunch (keep in mind I’ve graduated HS)
For some kids… Discipline would suit them well, it depends on the child’s personality. Take delinquent A, put him in the army/boot camp, it may induce a deleterious psychological alteration, may merely induce more hatred towards authoritative figures than he/she had prior. Delinquent B however finds solace and a sense of purpose within the structure, the routine, the training implimented with the millitary
It isn’t a “one size fits all” approach. Whilst impulsive delinquency does typically decrease with age. There are many who I’ve seen and thought “some discipline would give him purpose” and many wherein I think “cracking down/putting him in a millitarisric environment will be a detrimental”. Granted I don’t know for sure, it’s just my opinion.
I find the argument “rules are rules… Regardless of how fair they are” to be null… Rules aren’t to be blindly accepted if they induce more detriment than they do good… If a rule/regulation induces harm, public pushback is warranted.
Not all kids are the same, not all kids need to learn how to listen to more authority. It’s dependent on the individual… I for one as a young teenager had a knack for not listening to authority… (Particuarly relating to not getting my homework done on time) It evened itself out as I got older (by the time I was about sixteen) and realised how stupid not listening for the sake of not listening was. Granted I’m still rather mischevious at times but my misdeeds have no deleterious effect on anyone besides perhaps myself. Authoritative figures who abuse their power/enforce rules that make absolutely no sense still get on my nerves.
Stigmitisation/stereotypical attitude primed against teenagers stating they “don’t listen” is typically correct. Teenagers tend to be impulsive, rule breaking morons… Obviously not all, but a large majority. As we get older, we typically learn from our mistakes and harbour new ideologies on the basis of our prior life experiences.
In my opinion, attempting to overtly control kids at times may stifle the individual from developing these ideals as to what is/isn’t acceptable, they’ll typically lie/sneak about regardless to the best of their ability. When they’re finally let loose all hell is unleashed.
Good example would be the IDF soldiers going to Kasol post service… I’ve been told upon the release/travel to this destination rates of drug use are very, very, very high… Another example would be how sneaky the kids with ultra strict / overbearing parents tend to be.
Many kids serve something bigger than themselves. You’ve got volunteer work, some work to support their families, protests and more. Impulsivity and selfishness are very common traits amongst the teenage demographic, I don’t believe millitary service can effectively wipe out either of these traits.