Posted on 10/27/2017 2:15:04 PM PDT by Kaslin
The recent allegations against former President George H.W. Bush for "sexually assaulting" young women who stood next to him during photo shoots are obscene -- but not because of what the president did or did not do. Enough is enough. President Bush is 93 years old. He sits in a wheelchair, and anyone who witnessed his appearance last week when all the living former presidents gathered to help raise funds for hurricane victims can plainly see that he is much diminished, physically and mentally. Unlike former President Ronald Reagan, who publicly announced that he was suffering from Alzheimer's disease, neither Bush nor his family has talked much about his declining mental capacity -- but it is clearly there.
President Bush did not assault young women when his hand, which rests at a lower level because he cannot stand, touched their bottoms and he covered up his awkwardness with a bad joke about his favorite magician, "David Cop-a-Feel," as they allege. His behavior is perfectly consistent with what doctors who treat patients with dementia call sexually disinhibited behavior. The risk of developing Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia increases with age, doubling every five years after age 65. At age 80, 1 in 6 people will have developed the disease. By 85, it goes up to 1 in 3, and by 90, 85 percent of people lucky enough to still be alive are likely to have some dementia, according to the Alzheimer's Society.
Like many elderly men -- and women -- President Bush said and did something inappropriate not out of malice or with the intent to harm but because he now lacks the judgment to behave as he did all his life. And those who are using this incident to score political points or to turn themselves into victims akin to women who have been assaulted by individuals with all their mental faculties intact should show a little mercy.
saw this behavior firsthand with a relative who had Alzheimer's for at least 10 years before dying of the disease at 93. One of the first signs that something was wrong was inappropriate sexualized talk. At first, the comments were just out of character and inappropriate, but they grew to be very disturbing over time. As far as I know, nothing physical ever happened, but having spoken with those who work with the elderly in nursing homes, it happens every day, and both men and women engage in such behavior. It is one of the most embarrassing things about dementia for those whose family members suddenly start acting in ways they never would have if disease were not eating away at their brains.
According to a scholarly paper on the issue published in Current Treatment Options in Neurology, inappropriate sexual behavior "should be seen as a part of the symptom cluster of behavioral and psychiatric disturbances associated with dementia, which is disruptive and distressing, and impairs the care of the patient." It isn't something for which others should shame someone, much less criminalize. We should recognize when behavior is driven by disease -- in this case a devastating, fatal disease that strips individuals of everything that made them who they were.
It broke my heart to see President Bush onstage with his son and other former presidents. His eyes were vacant. He seemed not to know where he was or even why he was there. When the national anthem played, his hands stayed at his side and his eyes wandered. Does anyone think that President Bush would have sat there so confused if he were in control of his faculties?
The former president's office has issued an apology on his behalf to the women who have come forward, which is absolutely appropriate. And perhaps the family should say more about the former president's condition; President Reagan's candor did a great service for those families who have suffered through the experience of their loved ones' dementia. But to treat this incident as if it were akin to the stories about men who used their power and fame to demean women and solicit or force sex or sexual contact is disgraceful. It not only hurts an honorable man who served his country but also demeans the real victims of sexual assault.
I'm all in for that suggestion.
What goes around comes around.
George H.W. Bush and Jennifer Fitzgerald
Bush met Fitzgerald when she became his personal assistant in 1974. He was serving as special envoy to China at the time, but Fitzgerald stayed on, following Bush Sr. to his post at the C.I.A. and as Ronald Reagan's vice president. According to former U.S. diplomat Louis Fields, Bush and Fitzgerald shared a private cottage in Switzerland during an official visit in 1984 (all the while, Barbara Bush was out promoting her book C. Fred's Story, about the Bush family dog). Much to the frustration of the Clinton camp, this story never received nearly the coverage of the 42nd president's numerous affairs. That's not for lack of trying, either: In a May 1992 interview with Vanity Fair, as her husband was being dogged by allegations surrounding his affair with Gennifer Flowers, Hillary Clinton was quick to remind everyone that President Bush had his own Jennifer.
Three little princesses wanting to get in on the act. This is some super dumb sh*t.
HW calls Bubba his son. It obviously doesn’t bother him that Bubba raped and assaulted women, shamed the office of President and let his wife trash the women he hurt.
Bushs have no class
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
You obviously have tomatoes in front of your eyes. Other wise you would have noticed that Mona Charen and Linda Chavez don't look alike. The only both have in common are the first three letters "CHA" in their last name and that's it.
That the exact same pictures are used at the top of both articles is irrelevant as they are put there not by the authors but the person who sets up the page source.
It's obvious to me that you did read neither article, otherwise you would have noticed the difference.
HW was a heroic, decent and very honorable man. Great career. In retrospect W not so much.
It’s my understanding the secret service tells them not to stand next to his wheelchair.
There were two old boys in the high 80’s who got kicked out of the skilled nursing facility where my mom was. One of them propositioned a nurses aide to perform a lewd act on him for $10. The other old boy said that one of the girls touched his you know what. There was also a 90 year old woman who got kicked out because she made a lesbian advance on the CNA while in the shower. That stuff happens with old people. It might sound funny, but if you have to find a new nursing home because your father groped a nurse that is nothing to laugh about.
He would need a forklift.
“Uncle Leo”
GHWB never seemed to mind when a Clinton was disparaging him. He should have become a Democrat when he moved to TX; he would have been happier with the Dems.
Keep groveling for the Bush's. It's the articles you like best.
It's clear to me he didn't read neither article.
GHWB said he was voting for Hillary and that Bill was like a son. None of the Bush family endorsed Trump. They are total frauds who used the GOP to further their political and pecuniary interests. They were/are the very definition of RINOs.
Can you be any more ridiculous than that?
Winner! The sex assault is Bush’s shiny object diversion away from the JFK killing.
Just keep smiling. The Bush's are better than you. And you know it.
You must have missed W’s speech last week.
I knew an old man who, when his twenty something granddaughters went to see him, his first words were “Gettin’ any?”
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