In my view it shouldn't be acceptable for a bunch of dinosaurs to be running for president because they don't have a stake in the future they're helping to carve out. If I had it my way nobody older than 50 would be allowed to run for a first term. I'd love to see something similar done for people running for congress too. I think Obama was the perfect age for a president.
then those are the kinds of candidates you should select on your ballot. Me, I think Obama would still care plenty about the next generation ten or twenty years later and probably until he dies. Older people have a stake in the world they are leaving their grandkids and great grandkids. Its not the number. Its the person holding that number that matters.
Ageism as insidious as sexism and racism. Lets not enshrine it in the constitution. Here you go, sir
Ageism - Wikipedia
Ageism, also spelled agism, is stereotyping and/or discrimination against individuals or groups on the basis of their age. This may be casual or systematic.[1][2] The term was coined in 1969 by Robert Neil Butler to describe discrimination against seniors, and patterned on sexism and racism.[3] Butler defined "ageism" as a combination of three connected elements. Among them were prejudicial attitudes towards older people, old age, and the aging process; discriminatory practices against older people; and institutional practices and policies that perpetuate stereotypes about elderly people.[4]
While the term is also used in regards to prejudice and discrimination against adolescents and children, such as denying them certain rights
(e.g. voting),[5] ignoring their ideas because they are considered "too young", or assuming that they should behave in certain ways because of their age,[6] the term is predominantly used in relation to the treatment of older people. Older people themselves can be deeply ageist, having internalized a lifetime of negative stereotypes about aging.[7] Fear of death and fear of disability and dependence are major causes of ageism; avoiding, segregating, and rejecting older people are coping mechanisms that allow people to avoid thinking about their own mortality.[8]
Contrary to common and more obvious forms of stereotyping, such as racism and sexism, ageism is more resistant to change. For instance, if a child believes in an ageist idea against the elderly, fewer people correct them, and, as a result, individuals grow up believing in ageist ideas, even elders themselves.[22] In other words,
ageism can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
In a classic study in 1994, researchers analyzed the effects of ageism among the elderly.[23] They performed memory tests on three selected groups: residents of China, deaf North Americans, and hearing North Americans. In the three groups, the Chinese residents were presumably the least exposed to ageism, with lifelong experience in a culture that traditionally venerates older generations. Lifelong deaf North Americans also faced less exposure to ageism in contrast to those with typical hearing, who presumably had heard ageist comments their whole life. The results of the memory tests showed that ageism has significant effects on memory.
The gap in the scores between the young and old North Americans with normal hearing were double those of the deaf North Americans and five times wider than those of the Chinese participants. The results show that ageism undermines ability through its self-fulfilling nature.[22] The study was investigating the effect of the stereotype threat, which has been explored as a possible reason for memory deficits,[24] though the stereotype threat has been criticized.[25]
On the other hand, when elders show larger independence and control in their lives, defying ageist assumptions, they are more likely to be healthier, both mentally and physically, than other people their age.[22]
