Old People Are Against Obama. Inexplicably.

It’s a black thing.

Romney’s white. Of course they favor him…”it’s the way things always were.”

Proof positive that the adage about needing to respect and listen to your elders because of the great “wisdom” that they accumulated over their lengthy lifetimes is a myth that should be called out as such as quickly as possible.

Truthfully, this is not remotely inexplicable at all. Have you talked to any of these people? It seems that at least 80% of senior citizens are conservative for no other reason than… just because. Did anyone pay attention to the average age of people rolling out of many of those Sarah Palin conservative pep rallies. A huge number of them are in scooter chairs, Hover-rounds or toting oxygen. They are irate that a black man is in the White House and thrilled that they have a 24-hour news channel in Fox that makes them feel that their prejudices are warranted. There are always exceptions to the rule, but most of these people seem to love to be misinformed so long as it bolsters their personal prejudices and they have no interest in seeing or hearing any evidence to the contrary that threatens to crack the notions of their pre-conceived, hermetically sealed bubble.

The most amazing thing I see though is how they unilaterally refuse to be upset enough at the voting booths at the party that wants to destroy their prized Medicare and Social Security. Watching these people cheer on someone like Dick Armey – who is outspoken about Medicare being “tyranny” – while sitting in their scooters courtesy of Medicare is positively surreal. Topped only by watching them twist themselves into pretzels trying to rationalize their support by insisting that “they don’t mean depriving people like me! Only the undeserving ones!” Which in their aging minds usually means everyone else but them. Why on earth these people are under the misguided lunacy that if the Republicans successfully destroy Medicare and Social Security that they will be exceptions held to the side is something no therapist on earth could possibly fathom.

What can I say other than that America – with our senior citizens leading the way while displaying their brilliant “wisdom” – continues to march lock-step over the cliff and out into the void.

My husband’s elderly uncle said once, while agreeing that then-Republican Senate candidate Oliver North was an insane, dangerous criminal, “…But ya gotta go with the Party Line” – and vote for him. My husband and brother-in-law were speechless.

On the other hand, a friend’s elderly and racistly Republican mother, ciggie butt dangling from her lips and brushing hot ash off her mumu’d chest, announced in 2004 that she was voting for “that Gore” because “that Bush” was going to make cigarette-smoking illegal.

For the first and only time in her life, my friend told her mother she was absolutely right.

Sometimes, not often enough, stupidity in the right hands is a gift. We should tell these old idiots “that Romney” wants to take NCIS off the air and outlaw no-cost-to-you Rascals.