This essay is a caricature of Trump's grumpy old white men. A Greek painting depicts Hercules with Geras. Geras is a Greek personified figure of old age. In the painting, the muscular Hercules towers over the bald, bent , emancipated Geras leaning on a crooked stick with his reversed genitals. Geras represents Trump's elderly white male voters .
First , a few statistics of males aged 65 and older: 1. 24.8 million 2. Median income $35,808 3. 1 in 10 live below the poverty level. Another 2.6 million near poor 4. Life expectancy has decreased 1.8 years, largely because of increases in mortality due to Covid -19, unintentional injuries, heart disease, homicide, and diabetes. 5. Percentage of divorce and separated spouses absent has increased since 1980. 6. 76% of persons were not of racial or ethnic minority populations 7. 51% live in Florida and Texas. 8. 10.6 million or 18.9% were working, or actively seeking employment 9. 20% assessed their health as fair or poor, compared to 27% of the population aged 75 and older 10. They have at least one chronic health condition and many have multiple conditions. 11. Leading chronic conditions include arthritis 47%, coronary heart disease 14% ,myocardial infarction 9%, angina 4%, cancer 26% ,COPD, 11% ,and diagnosed diabetes 21% 12. 9% reported they were current smokers, 30% were obese ,12% prescription medication for feelings of worry, nervousness or anxiety. 11% prescribed medicine for depression , and 97% reported they had a usual place to go for medical care. 13. 18% reported they could not function at all, or had a lot of difficulty with the least one of six functioning domains. Specifically, 21% trouble seeing even if wearing glasses , 29% had difficulty hearing even if wearing hearing aids ,39% had trouble with mobility ,walking or climbing stairs, 8% had difficulty with communication, understanding and being understood by others, 20% had trouble with cognition, remembering or concentrating and 8% had difficulty with self-care such as washing and dressing.
Second, In my 60s, I completed the one day 100 mile Tevis ; I was an age division winner in the one day 100 mile Western States endurance run; and with my partner Jonathan ,my horse Gypsy, won the one day 100 mile Swanton Pacific Ride and Tie .Also, the males in It Has Nothing To Do With Age read were competing in extreme sports at age 65 and older .
Third, further descriptions of Trump’s white men : 1. They repeat sentences, questions and stories over and over which are associated with failing short-term memory. They don't necessarily realize that they are telling the same story again because they don't recall having already told it. Listen to a Trump when off script .He rambles with incomplete and run-on sentences and repeats the same theme over and over again . His verbal presentations are associated with his failing brain ..
Fourth, humans grow . The spine extends with resilient cartilage in the vertebrae as bones elongate . Then gravity takes over. Now,there's a sagging head , double chin, jowls hanging , flabby skin on upper arms, enormous belly , and even earlobes grow long toward the floor. Trump and his kind gaze downward to watch their step while descending the stairs. As the body changes, nastiness also appears with wicked stories , twisted gossip about surgical mistakes, bad doctors, crooked relatives ,scandals, accidents and finances. The Geras types also watch the vicious cycle of afternoon soaps and bizarre pathologies exhibited on talk shows .
Fifth, old people lie awake in the dark, at sleep in the daylight as prescribed sleep of eight hours dwindles. In earlier years, the involuntary urination did not disturb sleep , but in later years the urge to urinate interferes with sleep , Christian monks who lived in desert caves tried to banish sleep altogether. They believed that pagan powers approached pious souls through dreams. In the United States ,80 different sleep disorders have been cataloged and there are 337 sleep disorder clinics. In our republic , 10% of the population reported nightmares at least once a month.
Sixth, names of family members merge . It's difficult to put a name to the face ,walk to the right door, and match a pair of socks .The Geras group have difficulty speaking as an adult ,feeling as an adult and thinking as an adult.
Seventh, every decade after age 50, the brain loses 2% of its weight; the motor area of the frontal cortex loses between 20 to 50% , visual area in the back loses about 50%; and the physical sensory part also loses about 50%. Did you remember correctly to take your pills , do you remember names, dates,and words ?
Eighth, the brain is held responsible for memory loss. The inability to recall this morning's conversation, last week's visitors are examples that occur while aging . Trump’s people tend to spend more time taking stock of their life in review. They tend to remember the traits of parents, who attended the wedding and some things that want to return from the distant past .Old age gives time to commemorate and embellish achievements. There is more of a desire to return to the past and not to look forward. Some might argue that forgetting may actually be the truest form of forgiveness and a blessing.
In conclusion, the long term short-term memory issue makes sense when thinking about the slogan Make America Great Again. Simply put, when in a Geras state , one compares an earlier time with the present, it's obvious that the past represents youth, growth and thrills. There was once upon a time when an individual “dominated. " White supremacy ruled without question in every area of our society and culture. Trump's Apprentice program was designed to represent power ,supremacy and control over others. The past can be embellished, changed ,and/or distorted. But now , come to the present and future. How many elderly white men are looking to the future with their frailty ,illness ,and incapacities of a failing mind and/or body ? Their future doesn't look terrific when their present is represented by inadequacy, despair and pain on so many levels. In other words, for the grumpy elderly white Geras men ,It's about the past and not at all about the future.
Reference
Hillman, James. The Force of Character.
No comments:
Post a Comment