Little Red Corvette (Kerry's mid-life crisis) - Hugh Hewitt

Weekly Standard ^ | 5/6/04 | Hugh Hewitt

[Steven W.]

Do pictures of John Kerry in his Lycra cycling suit make you wonder if he's running for the right reasons?

WHEN JOHN KERRY took a spill from his bike this past weekend, it triggered thoughts of Jimmy Carter's collapse in a road race, Gerald Ford's much-mocked stumbles, and of Kerry's own misadventures on the ski slopes earlier this year. But it wasn't until the pictures of Kerry on his bike appeared that the real damage was done. The electric-lemon Lycra look probably won't play well outside the metrosexual caucus, and it can't be particularly inspiring to the troops living in holes outside of Falluja. Presidents can golf, and they can run, but they can't get dandied up and dart around on bikes in tights and fluorescent helmets.

Kerry's obsessive, if ill-fated, displays of physical activity also raise issues other than decorum. I've seen this sort of behavior before in men of a certain age, usually from their early 50s to their early 60s. And then the thought stuck: Are John Kerry's presidential ambitions and the shape and images of his campaign more about a mid-life crisis writ very large than any underlying set of ideas?

First, note that there aren't a lot of ideas over at Kerry Central, other than the U.N. blathering which, in the aftermath of oil-for-food-for-cash-for-Kofi's-friends, doesn't even persuade United Nations employees anymore. And Kerry's paper thin record of Senate accomplishments over two decades doesn't provide us with a reason for his running either.

So who's to say that it all isn't just an effort to head-off old age via the biggest sideshow of them all.

There are warning signs of mid-life crisis. At least a couple of these--excessive time spent on personal appearance and the constant reminiscing about one's youth--seem spot-on in the context of Kerry. And the big gun experts on male mid-life melt-down, such as Jim Conway, author of Men in Midlife Crisis, warn that some candidates for mid-life crisis "seem to have a lot of power, leadership, and ability, yet many of them express great insecurity, and feeling worthless." Kerry may be hiding a lot of angst behind his façade of lift-tickets and SUVs and his Shrumian rhetoric.

Presidents Bush, Clinton, and Carter arrived in the White House before the age when the mid-life demons descend, and President Reagan and candidate Dole had passed the age of such smash-ups.

But Kerry's definitely in the danger zone. Maybe those Lycra shorts are just a cry for help. Maybe he needs help. Maybe what the Kerry campaign really needs is a red corvette.

[Dog]

Slim.....MurryMom got banned....I saw her flame out on the thread announcing the death of Pat Tillman.....she said something very hateful.....and was booted.

[Arrowhead1952]

I think SanFranciscoDemocrat is a troll. Also posted garbage on the ZOT thread.

[SpinyNorman]

I missed the "electric-lemon Lycra shorts".

Would those be the (probably ultraexpensive) lycra shorts with the cushioning "I had a prostate operation" chamois inserts that look like a giant panty shield?

[EggsAckley]

Oh Geez! You did it again! LOL @ Sponge-John.

[Dog]

LOL!

[EggsAckley]

I hadn't seen him before today, but there's something about the screen name "SanFranciscoDemocrat" that just makes my skin crawl.

He knows he's on thin ice; wait and watch.....heheheh

[nuconvert]

LOL!

[Tijeras_Slim]

Really? Her profile page is still active. I figured she had better sense, having survived here since 1998.

[hellinahandcart]

It appears we have an opening for Token Liberal after all.

Are you a fan of the writings of Mark Morford? (Answer carefully---this is an interview)

[GailA]

hanoi john reminds me of my hubby's nephew, you mention you did something, and right away he did it, and did it better. Often times bragging he did something he never did. Wonder what the Shrinks call this syndrome?

[nuconvert]

Well, thanks for that explanation. Makes sense.
Was Kerry out for a 50 mile ride that day?

[Tijeras_Slim]

Are you a fan of the writings of Mark Morford?

I trust that question was not directed at me. :)

[man from mars]

LOL the photo with kerry in training wheels.

Way to funny

[Hodar]

Was Kerry out for a 50 mile ride that day?

I doubt the poser could make it 5 miles. For him, it's a costume.

[Arrowhead1952]

I hadn't seen him before today, but there's something about the screen name "SanFranciscoDemocrat" that just makes my skin crawl.

He knows he's on thin ice; wait and watch.....heheheh

8 posts since joining yesterday. Nothing to say but left wing garbage.

[nuconvert]

delusional?
One-upsmanship?
I-can-do-it-better-than-you-can-osis?

[sphinx]

In citing other examples of gravitationally-challenged politicians, you left out George W. falling off the Segway. Ineptitude knows no political affiliation.

Hey, that was just product testing. The manufacturer's misleading and potentially dangerous claim was that you couldn't fall off a Segway. W disproved the claim. He should get a medal.

In fact, he probably sustained more injuries in his fall than ... oh, never mind.

[nuconvert]

"For him, it's a costume"

That's what I thought. He can identify now......, he doesn't own an SUV, you know.