• QuadratureSurfer@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I agree that we need younger people in these positions. We need those more in touch with what the average person is going through these days.

    However, I disagree that we should set a hard age limit. If anything have them take some sort of cognitive exam every few years once they hit a certain age.

    • RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      You need an impartial hard limit. Otherwise you get people like trump getting doctors to lie about their health. Sorry if you’re in good health and get the boot, but you knew what the limits were when you signed on.

      • QuadratureSurfer@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Makes sense. Perhaps it could be something variable based on the average lifespan of the people in the country… it might even give them a little incentive to come up with a working healthcare system if it means they get to stay in office a little longer.

        • RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          That’s a good idea. But cynical me says people in power like to keep that power, and they’d manipulate and restrict what data they used to calculate that average as it applies to their tenure.

          • QuadratureSurfer@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            True, but you can only fudge the numbers so much. And it would help to keep things in check if medical advancements are made in a way that only allows the rich to have a drastically longer lifespans.

        • ryathal@sh.itjust.works
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          1 year ago

          You’d really want a hard number right around 65-70. People by that age have some level of cognitive decline, there’s evidence that around 50 is where it starts going down.

          • QuadratureSurfer@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            Right, what I mean by “based on the lifespan of the people” would be more of a percentage… not the full expected average lifespan.

            So, for example, it could be 80% of the average life expectancy in the U.S. which looks to be around 76, so that would put the cap around 61.

            But perhaps we could base it on studies of cognitive decline instead. If some future medicine is discovered (that most people have access to) which would allow everyone to continue functioning well at an older age, then I don’t have a problem if the average person is still doing well at an older age. In this case we could use some percentage of the average age of cognitive decline instead.

    • bendak@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      A cognitive exam would be a good idea regardless of any age. They need to be fit to serve.