Dear editor,
Having family in Iola and Moran, I read The Iola Register.
Saturday’s paper ran the Associated Press story, “Biden celebrates 78th.”
Obviously, I wish President-elect Biden a “Happy Birthday” and to be fair, I likewise wish President Trump and anyone else a long and happy life. I am patriotic to the max, and I voted in this most recent presidential election.
Honestly, I went to the polls with the full awareness that we (as a society) just might be voting for the successor of Mr. Trump or Mr. Biden, given their advanced ages; and the possibility of incapacity of (heaven-forbid) dying-in-office.
Trump is 74 and a half, and now Biden is 78. Official data indicates that the average lifespan in America is 78.87 years. The presidency tends to “rapidly age” the officeholders. Although Mr. Trump has been vigorous, his hair has gone snow white after the election when he forgot his hair dye and even Mr. Biden, bless his heart, may have early signs of cognitive problems.
To me, the Presidency of the United States requires somebody with absolute vigor and vitality; and not be in the vulnerable-age brackets. Not only considering Covid-19, but many senior citizens fall and break hips and have sudden deaths as a complication of poor recoveries.
I wish we had another Theodore Roosevelt or John F. Kennedy; but none is on the horizon yet. Granted, we are all mortal. Nobody is guaranteed a “tomorrow.”
However, presidents or candidates shouldn’t be so close to mortality tables.
Granted, my grandmother had a cousin live to age 104; my dad had a first-cousin live to 101. Those were exceptions and neither one was aspiring to hold the office of president, where agility, split-second decision-making, youthful agility, and higher chances of serving out a complete term of office are enhanced.
America must and should do better. I’m 56 and “independent.” I had concerns about both men, but I had to “hold my nose” and vote for one of them. Even Catholic Bishops are required to tender their resignations at age 75. I think this is a wise precaution. We already have a “minimum-age” of 35 to be president. We might as well have a maximum age of 75, too.
James A. Marpes,
Esbon, Kan.
