Mitch McConnell just froze. Again.
This is a tragic issue - one in which we should put the politics aside...
This is very sad - when I watched the tape of Senator McConnell freezing earlier today, it appears he not only froze, however, his eyes look empty, and it took him a while to react and respond to his aide. There is a serious health issue.
What is so hard is how difficult it is for the person going through the decline, in this case, Senator McConnell, to be willing to recognize and acknowledge there is an issue. For anyone who has cared for an aging parent or grandparent, or anyone with mental and/or physical impairment, this is all too recognizable. The person suffering does not want to admit they are losing control. Most of us, as we age, fear as much or more than anything, having to give up control of the basic functions which we use to define we are still fully functioning human beings: these may include, without limitation, doing our jobs, driving a car, managing the family finances, being able to cook a meal, etc., etc. I am sure Senator McConnell is afraid of what his life will be like as his abilities decline - as most of us will be when and if these things happen to each of us. One of the hardest things I have had to do in my life was when I had to step in for my Father-in-Law to pay his personal bills. It was the last function he was doing himself, and even though he knew he was making huge mistakes, the act of paying his bills still made him feel he had some element of control, was still able to function, and was still alive. This was a man who had been a Cum Laude graduate from MIT, and had been one of the early programmers/adopters of IBM card-reading computers to manage his business in the 1960's - an extremely smart man. At the time, my Father-in-Law could still sit down at a piano and play from memory every college fight song (seriously, at least 100 well known and obscure college fight songs), however, he had lost the ability to add or subtract any numbers. At the time, it felt to him he was no longer human, and by extension, no longer living.
Senator McConnell is a human being first, and what is happening to him is beyond his control, and most likely frightens him more than anything else! What is critical now is for his family to step in and do what is right for him as a human being, and help him to transition to what will be a challenging time in his life. I feel the same, to be clear, for Senator Feinstein. It is tragic for their families to allow them to go through these kind of health issues so publically, although to be clear, I am sure neither McConnell or Feinstein is willing to admit they need to stop. They both have served their country, their constituents, and their families ablely and honorably for many years. They deserve to be comfortable and out of the public eye as they begin/continue to lose their abilities and capabilities.
As much as I disagree with most of Senator McConnell's positions and policies, I can only wish him well as a human being, and hope he sooner rather than later gets the help and support he clearly needs, and will require more soon.
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