I’m in awe of the work you do. Keep going. Keep fighting. Keep voting.
I was happy to read your positive feedback on Joe Biden. I’ve read so much negative today that I turned my phone off. I just turned it back on and yours was the first thing I read. So thank you for the boost!
Yes to ALL this. How anyone can look at Biden and say 'Parkinson's' has clearly never been around any with that terrible disease. Thank you for this, and thank you so much for your work.
And even if he had Parkinson’s, someone who has that (not in late stage but anything before) can still be fine to lead. It’s sickening the ableism and blatant use of whatever disability they could come up and use it as a weapon.
Yes. My grandfather had Parkinson's. It took a couple of tries sometimes to get up from his chair and he walked slowly and shuffled stiffly. You had to wait for him to speak, sometimes wondering if he'd heard what you said. But it was worth the wait. He remained sharp as a tack with an incredible sense of humor until he passed at the age of 90 years. He worked as a bookkeeper well into his 80s, stopping only when his vision became too poor to drive. If Joe Biden thinks he's up to the job, he is. And I'll vote for him.
I love what you said about the world burning and the media supplying lighter fluid. When Biden’s age and presentation fall before ageist media scolds, shame on the people who buy into this scurrilous narrative. I see very little evidence of mental decline. What I do see is that Biden has always spoken as if he has a mouth full of marbles, I think because of the effort involved in speaking through his stammer.
Years ago I took some acting classes and got to know a bunch of actors. Several of the people in the speech class I took had speech problems. Learning to overcome a speech problem was very difficult for them. I benefitted because my speech was full of Ohioisms because both of my parents were from Ohio. I no longer say “Warshington” the way my parents did. It was interesting to learn how many famous actors had speech problems. Onstage they were fluid; offstage they were not. (Note I deliberately have not used “impediments” because I think it is pejorative.)
A stammer is a neurological problem and isn’t something a person can will themselves to change. A speech therapist helps with that. In fact, I’d recommend watching “The King’s Speech” to get an insight into that struggle. Still, even when a person is fatigued or ill or feels under pressure they may fall back into their stammer. That doesn’t mean they have Parkinson’s. And as I have said elsewhere take a look at Michael J. Fox, who is still making films in spite of his Parkinson’s.
The threat of Trump is so great, and the stakes are so high that bringing up these very legitimate concerns about Biden's ability to do one of the most demanding jobs in the world for another 4 years is fairly warranted. He was the nominee by default - there was no real primary, Dean Phillips barely registered as a contender for the nomination, it's usually considered a faux pas to not back your incumbent in an election, so no real candidates stepped forward to run. We are allowed to have concerns that he might not be up to the task, if not right now, then maybe sometime in the coming 4 years. It's a legitimate concern, especially considering the only alternative. Even if RFK Jr. could be considered a legit 3rd party candidate, we're still left with no real good alternative. Trump might be a liar, but he's extremely confident in what he says, regardless of how far removed from reality it actually is. That false bravado in contrast to the kindly grandpa who can't remember where he parked and can't find his readers because they're already on his face is going to sway more people than we might expect. Ignoring an obvious weakness because it's inconvenient is not a safe move. If Trump wins, it's not going to be because Biden did a lousy job his first 4 years, it's going to be because when it matters most, he had too many senior moments in comparison. Trump hides his own moments in a bluster of rambling lies, Biden doesn't match that level of energy to conceal his own. The rank and file "true blue" democrats will vote for him regardless, just like the far right would vote for Charles Manson if he was the candidate because he had (R) behind his name on the ballot. You're not the voter bloc Biden is at risk of losing, it's the independent voters who will not just be casting their votes along party lines and will be looking at who appears more competent and asking if they're willing to risk things like Project 2025 over a leader who asks a room if Representative Jackie was around... Despite having expressed condolences about her death 6 weeks prior.
These are legitimate concerns. To sweep them under the rug with so much at stake and adopt the attitude that everyone just needs to get on board and quit talking about it and just white knuckle things to November is anything but a sound strategy. This needs to be discussed, period, because the alternative is so much worse.
Tiffany this brought tears to my eyes and gave me chills. Thank you my friend for so eloquently expressing what I’m not able to. ❤️ Moms are badass!
I’m in awe of the work you do. Keep going. Keep fighting. Keep voting.
I was happy to read your positive feedback on Joe Biden. I’ve read so much negative today that I turned my phone off. I just turned it back on and yours was the first thing I read. So thank you for the boost!
I’m glad! It’s hard being an eternal optimist who is also very realistic, but I don’t think hope is ever a mistake.
Yes to ALL this. How anyone can look at Biden and say 'Parkinson's' has clearly never been around any with that terrible disease. Thank you for this, and thank you so much for your work.
Of course! Thank you for the kindness.
And even if he had Parkinson’s, someone who has that (not in late stage but anything before) can still be fine to lead. It’s sickening the ableism and blatant use of whatever disability they could come up and use it as a weapon.
Yes. My grandfather had Parkinson's. It took a couple of tries sometimes to get up from his chair and he walked slowly and shuffled stiffly. You had to wait for him to speak, sometimes wondering if he'd heard what you said. But it was worth the wait. He remained sharp as a tack with an incredible sense of humor until he passed at the age of 90 years. He worked as a bookkeeper well into his 80s, stopping only when his vision became too poor to drive. If Joe Biden thinks he's up to the job, he is. And I'll vote for him.
❤️❤️
I love what you said about the world burning and the media supplying lighter fluid. When Biden’s age and presentation fall before ageist media scolds, shame on the people who buy into this scurrilous narrative. I see very little evidence of mental decline. What I do see is that Biden has always spoken as if he has a mouth full of marbles, I think because of the effort involved in speaking through his stammer.
Years ago I took some acting classes and got to know a bunch of actors. Several of the people in the speech class I took had speech problems. Learning to overcome a speech problem was very difficult for them. I benefitted because my speech was full of Ohioisms because both of my parents were from Ohio. I no longer say “Warshington” the way my parents did. It was interesting to learn how many famous actors had speech problems. Onstage they were fluid; offstage they were not. (Note I deliberately have not used “impediments” because I think it is pejorative.)
A stammer is a neurological problem and isn’t something a person can will themselves to change. A speech therapist helps with that. In fact, I’d recommend watching “The King’s Speech” to get an insight into that struggle. Still, even when a person is fatigued or ill or feels under pressure they may fall back into their stammer. That doesn’t mean they have Parkinson’s. And as I have said elsewhere take a look at Michael J. Fox, who is still making films in spite of his Parkinson’s.
The threat of Trump is so great, and the stakes are so high that bringing up these very legitimate concerns about Biden's ability to do one of the most demanding jobs in the world for another 4 years is fairly warranted. He was the nominee by default - there was no real primary, Dean Phillips barely registered as a contender for the nomination, it's usually considered a faux pas to not back your incumbent in an election, so no real candidates stepped forward to run. We are allowed to have concerns that he might not be up to the task, if not right now, then maybe sometime in the coming 4 years. It's a legitimate concern, especially considering the only alternative. Even if RFK Jr. could be considered a legit 3rd party candidate, we're still left with no real good alternative. Trump might be a liar, but he's extremely confident in what he says, regardless of how far removed from reality it actually is. That false bravado in contrast to the kindly grandpa who can't remember where he parked and can't find his readers because they're already on his face is going to sway more people than we might expect. Ignoring an obvious weakness because it's inconvenient is not a safe move. If Trump wins, it's not going to be because Biden did a lousy job his first 4 years, it's going to be because when it matters most, he had too many senior moments in comparison. Trump hides his own moments in a bluster of rambling lies, Biden doesn't match that level of energy to conceal his own. The rank and file "true blue" democrats will vote for him regardless, just like the far right would vote for Charles Manson if he was the candidate because he had (R) behind his name on the ballot. You're not the voter bloc Biden is at risk of losing, it's the independent voters who will not just be casting their votes along party lines and will be looking at who appears more competent and asking if they're willing to risk things like Project 2025 over a leader who asks a room if Representative Jackie was around... Despite having expressed condolences about her death 6 weeks prior.
These are legitimate concerns. To sweep them under the rug with so much at stake and adopt the attitude that everyone just needs to get on board and quit talking about it and just white knuckle things to November is anything but a sound strategy. This needs to be discussed, period, because the alternative is so much worse.
Tiffany, thank you for saying what all of us who were there think and haven't been able to articulate! We need Joe Biden! Four more years!
I adore you Ione! I'm so glad you are with me!
Back at you, Tiffany!