Of course age can be a factor and often suspect of senility, but I don't believe that Ronald Reagan, for example, ever penned a socialist view following his own clinical wasting of "brain-muscle" - neither in the form of Alzheimer's nor any general dementia expressed beforehand.
"Do you really think the FreeRepublic is a liberal piece of crap website?"
Hyperbolically, yes. In reality, no - it is still a useful tool for conservative agendas. We are miles off-course however, but thankfully, too, Republicans are well above modern-day democrats in all ways that matter (or at least culturally and policy-wise...).
More personally, I am questioning my own views of elitism and intellectual leadership. This is a classic conundrum, recognizing the certainty of failure and incompetence, but wishing to respect the freedom and deserved opportunities of everyone to excel as individuals.