Bernie Sanders was hospitalized last night for chest pain. The cardiologists found he had severe coronary artery disease. They removed the blockage and inserted two stents to keep the arteries open.
This is an event that has two meanings.
To start with, today is the second day of the period called “days of awe” .. the days between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. During those days Jews are taught that the Deity judges his people and decides who will be given another year to live. In the synagogue, on Yom Kipor, Jews undergo a confession .. not to a priest by to themselves. The goal is to find where you have done wrong and then take a vow to fix any harm you have done. This is called Teshuvah, in Hebrew תשובה ..
Then there is life itself. Stenting is not a cure. Bernie’s stents will relieve his chest pain but he likley will not live any longer then if he had not been given a stent. Other treatments may help …there are drugs that may prolong his life.
The combination of Yom Kippur and stents must be awesome for any Jew, even an atheist like myself or Bernie. Still, I think he should consider תשובה Teshuvah. We need a president without the risk of another MI. This season, these days of awe, would be the right time for Bernie to resign from his campaign and offer to work for whomever he supports as the next President of the United States.
We really do not get Presidential candidates without some health risks. Makin it to 35 may give you experience and character but may also give you stents. Voters do take health into the voting booth, but it is an unknown, this could end Bernie’s run, but it is his call. The campaign trail is rigorous, and we are not likely to go back to candidates standing on the front porch and saying little. And we now have tweeting. If you want Bernie all you can do is pray or light a candle, accept reality that he is mortal. Or all the candidates are mortal.
Sorry, no. This is far more serious then you suggest. He now has a documented and very real risk. That does not mean he is about to die but it is not reasonable for him to run.
Could any man or woman who is deaf, blind, disfigured, ugly, stutters, or is in a wheel chair become President today? Roosevelt skillfully was able to keep up an illusion of being able to walk, but today he would be unable to keep the full illusion. Great Presidents reside in places we will not look as we have become enamored with TV perfect worlds and people. It definitely helps to be tall and beautiful to run for public office. We so adore baubles and certainly would not listen to the blind person in any Greek play, not that the Greeks often did. Making wisdom that most necessary quality often in short supply in todays US politics.
A dead man or a severely disabled man (Wilson) would be disaster as President. Comparing that to the inability to is absurd.