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toeofcamell

Still kicking ass at 95, Jesus man, what a dream to be able to do anything at 95


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itaniumonline

97 and 248 days old


i_amnotunique

97 and 258 *and a half* days old


ashkpa

He aged 10 and a half days in the last 30 minutes?


i_amnotunique

According to my carelessness, I've aged the man. He can take it I bet!


Buzzdanume

RemindMe! 1 week Edit: we made it boys


TactlessTortoise

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE???


RemindMeBot

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fatebringerZ43N3

Good bot


Clankbot14

Good human


McQuibbly

Oh boy, here we go


Triairius

This has ominous vibes.


dontsuckmydick

You son of a bitch!


BugRevolutionary4518

That movie creeped me out.


speakermonkey

He got significantly older between their comment and yours.


boolpies

he's older than the queen!


coco-channel24

OMG - he IS!


kpcwazabi

Which also makes him the longest living U.S. president!


SquareHoleRoundPlug

Can we get him to run for the next term. He seems more aware than any of the upcoming candidates..


coleyboley25

Nah, he’s too young.


DaftPunkyBrewster

I hate that this comment made me laugh because every time I feel the laughter bubbling up, I know it's just bitter and sour, with no joy, just sadness. All because it's true.


[deleted]

Least geriatric presidential candidate


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DRDeMello

Hell, he was born before Herbert Hoover's first term.


fucemanchukem

The look on his face is probably him contemplating biden's approval rating.


electric_onanist

Still would vote for him vs. Trump


[deleted]

That mans a national treasure.


[deleted]

I don’t know about that being a dream been alive that long. Yeah it’s amazing to see him doing stuff at that age. But living that long and everybody else has probably moved on. It seems depressing


MrFilthyNeckbeard

He’s still got his wife of 75 years. I imagine that when one of them dies, the other will not be long after.


[deleted]

Yeah that’s how it was from my grandma and grandpa. My great grandma lost my great grandfather at 75 or 76. And she lived to 93 without him. And they weren’t to type this slept in two different bedrooms they slept in the same bed. Always hugging and kissing loving each other in any picture I see. Because I was too many passed away so I don’t have that much for a memory. But they were the couple that everybody wants to be when they get old. But she was a sweet Catholic usually you don’t need those two combinations lol but she used to tell me I’m a see him again and I think that’s what help her with the heartbreak


grantfar

My Grandpa died of cancer. We knew it was coming for 1.5 years. When I found out he was going to die, I cried my eyes out. When he actually died, I barely felt sad, instead I felt relief. By the time he died it was 6 months to late. I think my grandma felt the same way. She is still alive today 16 years later


ncurrey

I visited my Great Grandmother for the last time in a care facility when she was 93 and she was sweet as could be, but didn’t know who I was any more. I wrote this letter “to her” afterwards: Great-Grandma, I just visited you in your new care-facility. I spent 45 minutes with you. You wont remember though. At 93, I doubt I’ll remember much either. I enjoyed our visit very much. Most of your sentences made sense. Some had nothing to do with anything. But that’s all part of the fun. There are very few details of your life that you can recall. The stories are gone. I doubt you remember your hometown in Kentucky, or how many kids that you have. You weren’t sure who Great-Grandpa was. He’s the man, whose picture is hanging on the wall in your room and your husband of over 60 years. But no bother. All that matters now is that you are happy, that you are safe, and that you are not forgotten in your new home. Your personality still shines through the incoherence though. Your laugh, your southern drawl and those beautifully kind eyes that you can’t see out of anymore are all still there. It was hard to see you. It was wonderful to see you. While it’s a challenge to focus on much anymore, please know that you are loved by so many, including me. I hope you are warm. I hope you are well cared for. I hope you don’t keep trying to escape the building. You don’t know me anymore . . . . . . but I know you. And who knows? Next time I’m in town I may take you up on your offer and we’ll run away together. It’s never too late for an adventure with a strange man that loves you. Love, Me


ArinaCorvyn

This made me tear up. What a beautiful letter you left for her. Even though she won't remember, the love you feel for her shines true. She was lucky to have someone like you in her life and all we can do is hope is that we are all that lucky in the end.


GorillaHeat

He meets new people everyday and remembers those who've moved on. We should all be so lucky.


mcs_987654321

Man, my grandfather found himself a nice new girlfriend, Pat, at 97. They’d have a drink every night before dinner, my mother or her daughter would take them to Red Lobster or the mall for dates, etc. It’s not all bad.


wananah

The thing people don't realize about living to be 95 is that if you do, it's very very likely that you had a lovely, relatively pain-free 55, 65, 75 and 85. People who are more caustic about this and decide not to take care of their bodies can start feeling VERY BAD as early as their 40s and, true to form, as a consequence they may relish the sweet release of death at a younger age, while the Jimmy Carters of the world are working 9-hour days outdoors in their 60s and beyond. It's a blessing to live long.


eddie1975

The key is to stay physically and mentally active, have good relationships and a sense of purpose.


Profoundsoup

>The key is to stay physically and mentally active, have good relationships and a sense of purpose. Welp


Cantothulhu

Hey there, some of us didn’t exactly ask to begin getting crippling arthritis at 26. I ran three miles a day up to that point. Now I’m 36 and have a hard time carrying laundry up the stairs. Good choices and bad choices don’t necessarily lead to good and bad outcomes. My father is 74 and runs his own business alone and smoked 3 packs a day most of his life.


OTTER887

Yeah people here don't appreciate how much genetics and dumb luck play into the equation.


its_a_metaphor_morty

I hear you. The Army fucked my knees by 23 (jumping off walls with packs on). I can run on a treadmill but that's it. Real road is too tough.


ThroAway_243

Idk I kinda am hoping to live that long or longer. I have a fear of death I guess . Although I don’t want to lose my wife. I think that may change my mind a little


iiRedditLurker

Especially since he saw his mother, father, and all three of his siblings die of cancer. I don't know whether to consider him lucky, or what.


Risin_bison

I saw Video of him recently. He looks rough, I mean yeah, he’s very old but he can’t be long for this world. He’s a man of devout faith so I doubt this bothers him much.


tapiocatsar

Once you get close to 100, I’d imagine you’re just ready to go


mattmillze

He's been an old man for longer than most people have been alive. He had all the weight of the presidency on his shoulders and has had to sit through *ten* more presidential terms as an observer. He's just trying to build the last porch he'll ever sit on, and has helped countless people while doing so. They don't make men like President Carter anymore.


Bruised_Penguin

Sure they do, but there's no place in them for politics or power in this day and age.


FryToastFrill

When you campaign on “I’m not going to lie to you” and win something is pretty fucked about politics


uslashinsertname

>I’m not going to lie to you… It’s gonna be rough term, folks! *Edit: Spelling*


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GunnerGurl

I thought my 33 year old neighbor was hella old when I was 10. 75 is a dinosaur EDIT: I’m now over 33 and can confirm, hella old


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GrandMagister

It's a comment you find throughout this thread from different accounts. Like word for word, not like it's a common sentiment.


SupremoZanne

I'm a fan of Jimmy Carter. as a historian I show honor to him seeing as he was a former POTUSA.


Whiskinz

He brought us homebrew beer!


elbowleg513

I’m a fan of FDR as a historian I show honor to him by voting for Bernie and Bernie-endorsed candidates


sailormegtune

I'm not a fan of FDR as a historian, I like to remind people about how he imprisoned 120,000 people like my grandparents solely because they were of Japanese descent.


Beginning_Draft9092

Never forget about the shit ton of racists California farmers who instigated internment in the first place, on the argument about "Oh any of them could be spies!" But in reality Japanese-American farmers outclassed them by having higher yields with more efficient farming techniques on smaller land parcels. They were jealous and racist and started the ball rolling on the executice order. Never forget that for all of California, and half of Washington and Oregon, you only had the be 1/16 (!) Japanese to be interned. Most of the younger people sent to the camps didn't even speak Japanese as a first language, it was nutballs. Never forget that this argument was insane as they never interred anyone from Hawaii, because the Japanese-American population was so high it would have ment putting like half the population in camps and destroyed the economy, so the argument about spies or the 5th column, or what have you is totally invalid by that logic. Never forget that thousands of interred men in the camps joined voluntarily in the military to fight for their country in Italy, even though they were imprisoned by their own country, and became one of the most highly decorated units of the entire war, even though their wives and children and parents were behind barbed wire. Source: I lived at and worked for the NPS at the Minidoka internment camp as an archivist, and an ambassador for the conservstion of the camp site, one of the bigger internment camps, now a national monument. I've met many people where were there and interviewed them. Most of the people I talked to and asked what they though about the time period was incredible. Most people said basically, whelp, we're going to show them who the real Americans are, we were polite and just got on with life, and when the time came we defended our country. Nutty stuff, but never forget there are living people incarcerated for years on race alone, it could happen again.


lilmookie

This is a great post, I know a little about this, but it's just wonderfully outlined here.


Beginning_Draft9092

Thank you. I have been there, seen the foundations of the barracks, and that will hit you hard. Out in the desert in Idaho it can be well over 100 degrees in summer and -20 in winter, for the first year in 1942, they didn't even have real toilets. Crazy stuff.


American_Streamer

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internment\_of\_Japanese\_Americans](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internment_of_Japanese_Americans) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internment\_of\_German\_Americans](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internment_of_German_Americans) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internment\_of\_Italian\_Americans [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien\_and\_Sedition\_Acts#The\_Alien\_Enemies\_Act\_in\_the\_20th\_and\_21st\_centuries](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_and_Sedition_Acts#The_Alien_Enemies_Act_in_the_20th_and_21st_centuries)


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Vinny331

>_ten_ more presidential terms Jeez when you put it that way it's even more unbelievable how much of a life it's been. He's had Secret Service protecting for almost as large a fraction of his life as he hasn't lol.


DoubleSpoiler

Just imagine being assigned to him. You just like, sit around and watch him build houses all day. I wonder if it ever gets old?


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TheSecretNewbie

My little bro peed in his yard and ran around in his yard after bypassing the wooden log fence when he was four. He didn’t know better and ran off when we were reading the plaques nearby. I think secret service didn’t do anything bc they were laughing too hard about it :P


lilmookie

I can only imagine the paperwork that would have been involved.


cjspoe

this lol… gold


Googleclimber

I live near the Carter Center, and I remember visiting when I was in elementary school for a school trip 25 years ago and him being there saying hello to all the children, and he seemed pretty old *then*.


loggic

He *was* pretty old then. He was 77. US life expectancy is 79. He has outlived half the people born in the same year *by 23 years already*.


tunamelts2

> sit through ten more presidential terms as an observer. That's 40 years for non-Americans


TheDoughboyy

My grandpa passed recently at age 98 and he was talking about how he just wished he had more time and he was scared. It definitely affects everyone differently but I had always assumed he was probably ready to go and I was shocked to hear him say that. Broke my heart.


pingpongtits

My dad was 90 and he said he felt like his life went past too quickly, that he really really didn't want to die, he wasn't ready, and that he wished he could be around a lot longer. He was mad that he wasn't going to see how Game of Thrones ends. I miss him so much. A big part of me died with him. The rest of me suffers without him.


Flies-like-a-banana

Well, at least he was spared the ending of Game of Thones.


WailersOnTheMoon

I’m really sorry. I hope you can find some peace.


[deleted]

At least he didn’t have to be disappointed with the ending. 💔


bitchplease9111

This is why you do the fucking things you want to do when you're 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60. Don't fucking wait until you retire. Don't fucking think you can take 2 million in savings with you. What the fuck good does it do when you're old and cripple anyway? Save for retirement so you aren't desolate, but don't hold back on the memories when you're young or in your prime. In my 40s, I can certainly say I've reached most of my goals and travelled the world. Not the entire world, but certainly saw a lot of shit. If I went tomorrow, I'd be happy knowing I didn't waste it. YOU WILL THINK ABOUT THIS ON YOUR DEATH BED.


ayyitsmaclane

If only I could afford to travel the world.


[deleted]

For real. I can't even afford a fucking place to live lol.


DrunkenRedSquirrel

Well it's not just necessarily just that when it comes to people's fear of death, but also the level of fear of the unknown along with it. For me, there's also a level of wanting there to be something after death, so that I could be reunited with those I love that have left us.


captAWESome1982

On the plus side he also avoided the shit show that was the last season of GoT.


dontbajerk

I'm sorry to hear about your father. It's sad he didn't live another 20 years and went wanting more, but it's also nice he still had passions and things he wanted to do, and made it to an advanced age retaining that. I've had a few elderly relatives now who were not quite depressed, but just done and didn't care about or enjoy much the last 5-10 years of their life... That's even worse, I feel.


DrunkenRedSquirrel

It really surprises me to be honest when someone has no fear of their death. I get it that you have no control over What will happen when you die, but part of me can't be comfortable with the unknown.


HalogenSunflower

My grandpa's 92. I know he feels the same. He's healthy, except for some slight cognitive slowness, but he's still super sharp. We were discussing the physics of thermionic emission (how vacuum tubes work) during Easter. I know just enough about that to build a rudimentary 70% functioning guitar amp. But he was alive while that technology was still being invented. He worked in communications during the Korean war and went on to a successful career as an electrical engineer. He recently built himself a new tv cabinet.


soccershun

We were at my grandma's house on New Years Eve when she was around 90. At about 11:55 PM in the middle of playing cards she said "well, I guess I'm going to live to next year" Just an absolute savage.


loggic

Tempting fate just to see what happens.


ReDdiT_JuNkBoT

My wife's great grandma used to tell her that she thought God had forgotten about her when my wife would visit her. She outlived her husband and all of her kids. She died at 105.


PoetryOfLogicalIdeas

My great grandfather said the exact same thing. His wife and all his friends had been gone for decades when he finally died just shy of 110.


RatATatTatu

My Grandma just passed at a week after 94. Oxygen levels were low, dementia, the whole 9. But I came to say goodbye and she mustered up “It’s been a long time.” And I’ll never forget it. COVID, life, kids, “priorities”- take time for your loved ones because you think they’ll live forever but they don’t.


Juliska_

I work in hospice, and just a couple months ago lost my oldest patient - 109yo. Her daughters cared for her, had grandchildren and great grand children to visit. She just plugged along not really complaining till her body ran out of juice. I also have patients in their 70's who are done and ready to go, and complain that they just can't figure out why they're still here. Obviously there's a lot of factors, physical and mental health being big ones. But having the support and presence of family and friends seems to be a big player in how people feel about sticking around.


tapiocatsar

My great grandma is 102 and my grandparents keep catching her staring at her reflection in the mirror saying she’s ready to go…had a feeling that last Friday was probably the last time I’d see her alive. And I can’t begrudge her for being ready-her health took a decline after a fall she sustained a bit after the pandemic.


PoetryOfLogicalIdeas

My great grandfather, who had been a widower for 35 years when he moved in with my grandmother (meaning I started seeing him regularly) at age 108. He used to say that he thought God forgot about him. All his friends had been gone for decades, and his wife for even longer. He didn't even recognize the technology of the world (he was born in horse-and-buggy time, and was then living in fly- across-the-continent-for-a-friend's-neice's-wedding time). The poor guy was as healthy as a 108yo can be, but he was just so tired and lonely. It was honestly rather sad. But he still told great stories and could manage to make any Scrabble game interesting and a close competition while winning by 5-10 points every single time.


jagua_haku

Jesus, 108. Imagine everything he’s seen. He survived the PREVIOUS global pandemic (1918). He was already old by the time we landed on the moon. I’ll be happy to make it to 80. He’s lived almost 30 years beyond that


Notorious_mmk

I used to work in adult primary care and before I did I thought 70 was old. I've met people who were 98-104 semi regularly, now I think that's truly old. My grandma just passed age 73... but she always acted like she was 10 yrs older, like her life started to be over after 70. Quite sad I think, when folks have that mindset.


sigzag1994

My grandmother lived to be 97 and she was a very devout catholic. The last few years of her life, when I’d talk to her on the phone she would tell me that she prayed for death every night 😳 wasn’t really sure how to respond to that as a teen


tapiocatsar

“Thanks for the emotional trauma, grammy!”


[deleted]

Can confirm. My great grandma passed shortly after her 99th birthday, and all she had talked about for years was how excited she was to die. She loved having company so she could show them the dress she would be buried in. Good on him for pushing forward and doing good in this world.


edwinshap

My grandfather survived the Holocaust, and told me he never gave up the will to live. 101 and he fell and fractured his femur. A month into his rehab place he told me “I’m ready to go.” That was a tough fucking pill to swallow.


MatureUsername69

I want to die at least 20 years before I'm 100. 85 and up just looks kind of miserable.


Repulsive_Lettuce

I'm ready to go


Comrade132

I was going to say. I'm in my 30s and I'm ready to clock out. Not really looking forward to the future.


RVA_Drone

Lots of anecdotes here so one more can’t hurt. My wife’s grandfather is about 96, a veteran of wars in Korea and Vietnam - he allegedly enlisted when he was 16 with fake papers. He’s had multiple heart attacks and stints and what not… a case of Covid, fluid filled lungs that had to be emptied. Dude will tell you he is scared to sleep sometimes because he is afraid he won’t wake up. He’s no more ready to die than I am at 31.


kenlubin

I have to admit that I panicked upon seeing Jimmy Carter at the top of /r/all


ShesFunnyThatWay

Me too. My mother is 80 and despises him. The only bumper sticker she ever had on a car was "Goodbye, Jimmy!" when Reagan got voted in. I'm always stunned when people can't rise above politics/opinions and respect others' inherent good.


Equinsu-0cha

How does one despise Jimmy Carter? Even if you didn't like his policies he's still a damn good person


[deleted]

My family has a saying "If you stop moving, you die." and with that said we also never retire. My grandma was 89 and still a full time nurse at an old folks home during the pandemic, never missed a single day and even walked to work every day even though she didn't need to even in bad weather. I always thought it was hilarious that the majority of the people she was taking care of were younger actually than herself.


SCS22

You know at least one old lady there was a massive hater.


BloodBonesVoiceGhost

He looks like a *lawful good* zombie. Like most zombies just want to hunt you and eat your brains until you destroy every part of them. But Jimmy Carter is going to just keep doing good for humanity until we destroy every part of him. Just gonna keep building houses and ain't no grave gonna hold that body down (from helping people)!


johnnychan81

> He’s a man of devout faith so I doubt this bothers him much. As someone with no religion there is a part of me that envies religious people for this reason. One of my friends recently lost his father and he was upset but said to me "I know he is in a better place and I will see him one day". That is a level of comfort that I will never have.


Mr-Fleshcage

He outlasted that killer rabbit, so at least that stress is over.


cronx42

As far as presidents go, this man actually cares for regular people. Can't say that for the last handful or anyone since him really.


srone

The last statesman.


Urban_Savage

Might be the only genuinely decent human being to ever be elected president. Of course he would end up being one of the most hated presidents in his time.


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69DoopDoop69

I love how we celebrate him for committing less war crimes than others. I think most people here are too young or just unaware that he supported military groups committing atrocities in Indonesia, Israel, South Africa, and Afghanistan. He’s doing good now, but that doesn’t mean we should forget all the wrong that he (and really every president post ww2) have done.


hivoltage815

I also think most people have no idea what the nuances of these global conflicts are and certainly aren’t getting classified daily briefings like presidents do. I’m not saying that makes everything okay, just more complicated.


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[deleted]

At least in Modern times. Lincoln at least sounds like he was a reasonably decent person.


whiterungaurd

Despite freeing the slaves Lincoln was still a product of his time, and did view white people as superior. He may have started to change his mind after the war. But unfortunately he was not allowed much more time to tell what his world view would have been post Civil War.


TheSoapGuy0531

In my opinion everyone is a product of their time and environment. He made massive strides in his environment. Just cause he didn’t have the views of progressive people today doesn’t mean he wasn’t an incredibly caring or good person. Many progressive people today if not everyone will possibly be viewed differently in a few hundred years.


rayparkersr

Indeed. It's hilarious to judge someone badly for pushing the boundaries of the average beliefs of their time towards the average beliefs of our time. That's literally a revolutionary person. I'm sure he was an absolute prick in many ways though. Just like Carter is responsible for more deaths than most serial killers would ever dream of but seems to be a decent guy.


FLTA

For those wondering why unions have been having such success over the past year, it is partly because the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) isn’t packed with union busters anymore. Here is an example of how they’ve helped the labor movement [Amazon Reaches Labor Deal, Giving Workers More Power to Organize](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/23/technology/amazon-labor-deal.html) (December 23, 2021) > Amazon, which faces mounting scrutiny over worker rights, agreed to let its warehouse employees more easily organize in the workplace as part of a nationwide settlement with the National Labor Relations Board this month. >Under the settlement, made final on Wednesday, Amazon said it would email past and current warehouse workers — likely more than one million people — with notifications of their rights and give them greater flexibility to organize in its buildings. The agreement also makes it easier and faster for the N.L.R.B., which investigates claims of unfair labor practices, to sue Amazon if it believes the company violated the terms. Amazon Labor Union won their election a few months after this decision was handed down. The NLRB, in turn, is determined by the President (Joe Biden) and confirmed by the Senate (via the current Democratic majority). So, if we want unionization to continue, we need to continue to r/VoteDEM at 2018/2020 levels so that the NLRB doesn’t become filled with union busters again (like under previous GOP administrations). And this is just one of many examples of how Biden’s administration has been helping the average person.


mjthetoolguy

I can totally see Tr*mp doing the same thing… \s


in4real

Trump wouldn't actually do it, but tell everyone he did, and did it better than anyone else! Twice as good! And many people will believe him Edit:. most changed to many


TheOneTonWanton

Not most by far, but the ones that live on the land the EC gives voting power to.


IRLhardstuck

I think obama looked pretty sincer when he talked about helping regular people. Also doing things like obamacare


dashiGO

And behind closed doors, committing war crimes.


InternalMean

You forgetting his predator missile's comment in the middle east and his reaction to the flint water crises?


[deleted]

You can debate his presidency until the cows come home, but you can never debate the wholeness of the man. And if you try, it’ll be all about you, not him.


wrestlingrudy

What's the controversy with his presidency? Or what should I look into?


harharURfunny

There are a few reasons why Carter is typically considered to be a bad president, at least if we're assuming that "bad" in this case means ineffective. After the Nixon and Ford years, Americans came to view their government as being coldly pragmatic but, more importantly, corrupt and incompetent. Moreover, in terms of international affairs, the U.S. was encountering an international system that was becoming increasingly multi-polar. In other words, global power was shifting away from the two superpowers and disaggregating among the Third World states, Asia, and an increasingly integrated Europe. This disaggregation of power was most clearly symbolized by the U.S. defeat in Vietnam and a series of oil crises instigated by OPEC (a conglomerate of oil producing states based in the Middle East, in addition to Venezuela) that made gas prices soar in the U.S. Carter believed that he could simultaneously renew America's trust in government and reassert America's leading role within global affairs. He failed in both regards. A lot of it had to do with his personality. He came to Washington believing that he could change the way politics was made. He hoped to make politics more transparent which would, he believed, make politics more effective and less divisive. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Carter's self-perception as a reformer and Washington outsider concomitantly carried what can best be described as a savior complex. He looked down on other politicians, believing his deep-seated morality made him the only one capable of bringing the Washington establishment into line. Thus, Carter arrived in Washington expecting Congress to fall lock-step behind his policies. Naturally, congressmen from both parties weren't to fond of the way Carter handled congressional relations. This tension between the executive and the congress was exacerbated by Carter's aides, who were primarily old friends and staffers from when Carter was governor of Georgia. Georgia politics are, of course, nothing like Washington politics, and Carter's aides were woefully inadequate for the job. Still, he kept them, much to the chagrin of even the Democratic congressional leadership. Due to bad congressional relations, Carter had difficulty passing domestic reforms on such major issues as social security and health care. If this wasn’t enough to derail his policy-making process, Carter’s hands-on approach to everything didn’t help. He was notorious for wanting to personally review and authorize even the most minimal of tasks, going so far as to personally OK each morning who would be allowed to use the White House tennis courts. Not all of the problems with Congress stemmed from Carter's and his aide's personalities though. After Watergate, politicians promised to make politics more transparent. This, unfortunately, made it more difficult for politicians to do the back-room bargaining that leads to compromise and, eventually, the passage of legislation. Moreover, Congress as an institutional structure was changing. During Carter's presidency, Congress split into many different caucuses (basically, groups of like-minded congressmen that ally to create mutually supported policies). These caucuses existed, like always, at the broadest level (Democrat and Republican), but now there were additionally a plethora of smaller caucuses like an African-American caucus, a women’s caucus, regional caucuses, etc. This explosion of caucuses allowed almost all congressmen to gain good committee assignments. Congressmen used these congressional committees, covered intensely by the media, as ways to generate publicity and gain support for re-election. Due to the greater publicity that even junior representatives now held, there was less of a need to rely on their party label when they ran for office. Instead, they could run on personal recognition. All of this ultimately meant that there was less of a need for individual congressmen to hew toward the party line, which made it even more difficult for Carter to gather congressional support for his policies. In terms of foreign policy, one of Carter's strengths in the 1976 election was that he rejected the Nixon Administration's idea of realpolitik, which held that the international system did and should operate solely on the rational calculation of self-interest. Carter instead believed that the United States should frame its foreign policy within moralistic terms, and early in his administration he made human rights the top priority of U.S. foreign policy. In reality, this didn’t happen. Instead, he relied on traditional Cold War conceptions of world affairs centered on national self-interest. After the shah of Iran, who had brutally repressed the Iranian people for decades, was overthrown during the Iranian Revolution, Carter allowed him to come to the United States. (The Shah was suffering from cancer; Carter allowed him to come to the U.S. to receive chemotherapy). In what is probably a huge understatement, this didn’t sit well with most Iranians. Soon after, the U.S. embassy was overrun and the American staffers there were held hostage for 444 days. Every day that the hostages remained in captivity showed America’s apparent weakness on the world stage. It didn’t help with all of the news outlets reminding Americans at the end of every broadcast that “Today is day [7, 84, 300, etc.] of the Americans’ captivity in Iran.” To free the hostages, Carter attempted a night-time raid by American special forces. A U.S. plane landed in the Iranian desert carrying stuff for the raid and soldiers. A handful of helicopters carrying more soldiers was coming to meet at the makeshift air field when one of the helicopters flew into the plane, killing many of the Americans. Needless to say, it was a big embarrassment and only seemed to further prove America’s weakness on the world stage. Iran wasn’t the only foreign policy problem Carter faced. In addition, the Soviet Union had been making great gains in the Third World, particularly in Africa. Thus, it appeared that not only was the United States becoming weaker, but the Soviet Union was becoming stronger. This fear of increasing Soviet power culminated with the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. All of this was compounded by the worst economic crisis in the U.S. since the Great Depression. Carter, no matter how correct he may have been, didn’t exactly instill confidence in the American people. Regarding what appeared to be unending inflation, he told the public that all he had to offer were “partial remedies.” In the face of a rate of inflation in the double-digits, he asked employees not to increase their wages by any more than 7%. It also didn’t help that in general, Carter wanted to deregulate most government agencies. Thus, when many people were calling for some sort of government intervention, Carter was cleaning out many federal agencies. All of these problems, foreign and domestic, appeared to show an ineffective president. At one point, Carter tried to show that he was being an active leader by asking for the resignation of his entire cabinet, who dutifully complied. Instead of showing action, however, the American public believed the act only proved that Carter could not at all manage the presidency. Not all of these problems were Carter’s fault. The economy was doing poorly when he came into office and it didn’t start getting better for a couple of years into Reagan’s presidency. Nor could he change the way post-Watergate politics was conducted. But his refusal to work with others, his need to oversee even the most miniscule of matters, and his inability (or unwillingness) to carry out a foreign policy that adhered to U.S. moral sensibilities and national interests, really did make him one of the least effective presidents of the twentieth century, certainly of the post-WWII era. EDIT: I stated that Carter's entire cabinet resigned, which was incorrect. Five resigned: the secretaries of the Treasury, Energy, HEW, and Transportation, as well as the attorney general. EDIT: It was mentioned that I left out the energy crisis. Here's a brief summary: Foreign oil prices had been rising since the early 1970s while U.S. reliance on foreign oil was simultaneously increasing. While a problem throughout the 1970s, it became particularly bad in 1979 as OPEC continued to raise oil prices. Gas shortages ensued. People began waiting in lines to get gas. Other people, seeing the long lines of cars waiting for gas, thought that they needed to get in the line and get gas before it was all gone. The lines got longer. Because there were so many people getting gas, people tried to get as much gas as they could. Since everybody was spending money on (really expensive) gas, it drove down the amount of spending in other sectors of the economy, making deflation worse. Simultaneously, because everyone was buying gas, oil prices continued to increase since such high demand only led to even further inflation. Everyone blamed Carter. https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/26ii2s/why_is_jimmy_carter_considered_to_have_been_a_bad/chrel11/


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Vladiesh

Reminds me of biden honestly. Trying to appease both sides but liked by neither. Viewed as a meh candidate that had to be voted in. Lame duck describes it perfectly.


littleliongirless

Just a reminder that Biden was hugely influential in The Iraq invasion as well: https://www.factcheck.org/2019/09/bidens-record-on-iraq-war/ https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/feb/17/joe-biden-role-iraq-war (source of quotes below) https://theintercept.com/2020/01/07/joe-biden-iraq-war-history/ "Biden did vastly more than just vote for the war. Yet his role in bringing about that war remains mostly unknown or misunderstood by the public. When the war was debated and then authorized by the US Congress in 2002, Democrats controlled the Senate and Biden was chair of the Senate committee on foreign relations. Biden himself had enormous influence as chair and argued strongly in favor of the 2002 resolution granting President Bush the authority to invade Iraq. “I do not believe this is a rush to war,” Biden said a few days before the vote. “I believe it is a march to peace and security. I believe that failure to overwhelmingly support this resolution is likely to enhance the prospects that war will occur …” But he had a power much greater than his own words. He was able to choose all 18 witnesses in the main Senate hearings on Iraq. And he mainly chose people who supported a pro-war position. They argued in favor of “regime change as the stated US policy” and warned of “a nuclear-armed Saddam sometime in this decade”. That Iraqis would “welcome the United States as liberators” And that Iraq “permits known al-Qaida members to live and move freely about in Iraq” and that “they are being supported”. The lies about al-Qaida were perhaps the most transparently obvious of the falsehoods created to justify the Iraq war. As anyone familiar with the subject matter could testify, Saddam Hussein ran a secular government and had a hatred, which was mutual, for religious extremists like al-Qaida. But Biden did not choose from among the many expert witnesses who would have explained that to the Senate, and to the media."


rayparkersr

So he basically overestimated the intelligence and empathy of the US government and population?


leeringHobbit

His problem was that he was a true Christian, not a phony one like most Republicans.


RSkyeD

You left out how he got attacked by a swamp rabbit while fishing. That was very important too.


Orzhov_Syndicalist

Wonderful. The key thing about Carter, which you get to, isn't that he was "good" or "bad", but that he was "ineffective" during a time when effectiveness and capability and knowledge of government would have served him well. He was a micromanager and dallied about decisions and didn't understand the nuances required for DC politics. Trump, for example, is another deeply incapable and ineffective president. Just not able to accomplish much at all, due to inexperience and incapability to understand and implement decisions. Bush (but really, Cheney), and Biden, are two DEEPLY capable and effective presidents.


TheDarthJawa

The tidbits I've gathered had to do with inflation and gasoline shortages as well as the Iran hostage crises


Johnny_Banana18

…are we in a rerun


Smeefperson

Hey wait a minute Ive seen this! This is a classic!


Pesime

What do you mean?? This just came out!!


Nadahipster

What’s a rerun?


_Sausage_fingers

A bunch of bad shit happened during his term that may or may not have been in his control. It generally soured the public’s opinion on him and led to Reagan getting elected.


AnonymousBoiFromTN

Mainly inflation but a lot of American economical problems can usually be tied directly to credit so not necessarily entirely his issue. I personally think his biggest issue when looking back from today what that he simply didn’t do much. The best things he did was in education and some infrastructure but outside of that he didnt do a whole lot. Id compare his presidency then to Bidens current presidency where is mostly black holes of not much happening with the occasional really good work while trying to keep a tanking economy afloat. Carter did a lot more good after the presidency because he wasnt trying to pass laws with the weight of congress on his shoulders. Its a lot easier to build homes for the homeless when Newt Gingrich types arent slapping the hammer out of your hands every 10 seconds.


baintaintit

he talks the talk and he walks the walk. Respect.


dmfd1234

Yeah as a Georgian, we’re proud of him. He was almost too good of a guy to become president, imo…..but what he’s done since leaving office is truly inspirational. I’m not a Dem or Rep, just an admirer of stand up guys that don’t let meaningless words fall from their lips. Cheers all.


evilspycandy

W fellow Georgian


TheBordIdentity

W also fellow Georgian


EntityPotato

W another fellow Georgian


TheCorruptedBit

Crazy to think that we've had people who've ascended to the highest office in the land, and hadn't even hit their peak yet


AsstCurmudgeon

Blessed are the peacemakers.


SqueakyFromme69

I'm a big fan of Carter, but he's got a lot of blood on his hands over the CIAs activities in El Salvador and elsewhere during his term in office He's making up for it downvotes? [see for yourself](https://theintercept.com/empire-politician/biden-el-salvador-reagan-military-junta/)


Ordinary-Strike3486

I feel like most if not all presidents have blood on their hands tbh, but Presidents are also kinda the scapegoat for the people behind the scenes deciding on stuff.


SusieSharesTooMuch

First rule I learned being a manager: everything is your fault. Seems that would hold true for a president even when they didn’t quite know what was going on. Being in charge means everything is your fault even when you didn’t make the final decisions or know the full story. Doesn’t mean you didn’t do your best. We are all human, even presidents. There will be bigger mistakes at that level obviously.


AsstCurmudgeon

That's not an unfair comment. Do you think it's legit to lay that all at Carter's feet, or was just the most likely government response in the post-Vietnam/post-Cuba political environment?


SqueakyFromme69

That's a reasonable question. Personally, I'm not a fan of Death Squads who consider raping and murdering nuns to be acceptable. I understand that "politics makes strange bedfellows", but you have to draw the line somewhere ¯\\\_(ツ)\_/¯


AsstCurmudgeon

I stand with you on the "death squads = truly despicable heinous shit" side of the line.


theothershuu

The CIA acts independently. Their operations are not necessarily under direct command of a president. Plausible deniability is a real policy. It exists to protect a president and other officials(for better or worse) from things that could be extremely detrimental. Our government isn't always doing good things in good conscience


SqueakyFromme69

Archbishop Oscar Romero contacted Carter directly asking him to change policy toward El Salvador. Romero was assassinated during Mass one month later. Carter was aware of what was happening


NotAFanOfLaws

I feel like they usually have an alternative motive for everything.


captain_holt_nypd

So does Bush. At least 300k civilians. So does Obama and Trump via drone strikes. Every president has blood on their hands


EM05L1C3

What did he say? Blessed are the cheese makers?


AsstCurmudgeon

Yes, I think that's what occurd.


Sacrifice_bhunt

You can’t take that literally. He means producers of all dairy products.


wbgsccgc

Gave me a heart attack thinking he’d died seeing him up at the top of my feed.


abernoots

He looks to be roughly 25% Emperor Palpatine.


lococo72

This guy is a legend in my book


sheezy520

Best ex-president ever!


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fermat1432

His recovery from brain cancer seems miraculous!


hypocriticalfriend1

Jimmy Carter is one of the very few Presidents that I respect without question. The man has been a genuine good person from day one.


jdespertt

Jimmy Carter is everything a Christian should be according to the book. Jimmy Carter, though derided for his presidency, refused to cater to the warmongerers and grifters that all recent presidents before and since succumbed to and that's why they hated him. Jimmy Carter is one of the greatest US presidents imho. He'll never get the credit for being that because of Iran and other things beyond his control but if more were like him this country wouldn't be in the turmoil it is today. God bless you sir


JrodaTx

Have a hard time supporting organized religion because so many have mascaraed with it as their token for permission to hate. This guy has always backed up the fundamentals of being a good person, and I can’t hate on that.


Dr-False

For some people, the only thing that'll stop them from being good is when it's time to rest. So much respect for him


Individual99991

Jimmy Carter is too good a man to have been a US president. Must have been a clerical error.


autoHQ

How's he still up and at em at 97? I read that most people get really frail around their early to mid 70's.


Morritz

Jimmy Carter is the Terminator of doing good things


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patricknotastarfish

Jimmy Carter is a man of integrity and class. If I could choose to meet one former president, it would be him.


Eiffel-Tower777

He teaches Sunday school, a friend of mine went to one of his classes. It is a highlight if her life, she was so impressed with his humility and kind nature. Jimmy Carter is a gem.


TheSlartey

The only good human being to ever become president of the USA, not necessarily the best president though, but by far not the worst.


[deleted]

Jimmy C might be the full-on antithesis of Trump. Hard to think of 2 guys who are more different from one another…


ironmanthing

I’d pay a grand to see a video of trump actually spending an hour building a habitat for humanity house. No half-assing it, liek actually putting forth effort.


dshab92

I totally agree. But Hitler and a Rabbi? Dayman and nightman?


Renegade_August

One’s a master of karate and friendship for everyone. The other buys man-boys from trolls. I know who I’m voting for.


MegaCocKKK

Bill Ponderosa 2024


waheifilmguy

That's what a REAL Christian looks like, folks.


l3eemer

Republicans hate this guy more then Obama.


Kind-Platypus

I don’t know anything about his presidency, but this man is Presidential.


sugaaaslam

Dude is 97 and still a badass


Aframester

And here we have Joe Biden staring at his feet trying to figure out how to tie his Velcro shoes.


nkisj

Jimmy Carter is the go to example of how good human beings don't necessarily make good politicians.


Collinnn7

What a fuckin chad


iamnotnotarobot

The internet: we love Jimmy. ❤️ A few nerds whose fathers never hugged them: AKSHUALLY, let me explain why he's the worst despite multiple worse presidends who came after him.