I try to take complaints of ageism seriously, but really I am "only" 52 and my brain is mushifying. I don't mean I have dementia (hopefully not!), but I can see how I am less quick to incorporate new information, less able to react appropriately to stressful situations, and of course much less likely to have any idea what the fuck The Kids are up to these days.
For a variety of reasons (cough boomers cough), many US institutions have failed to provide promotion opportunities for younger people to the extent that "younger people" just about means people who are my age.
I don't think all elderly people need to quit and go away, but my take on Congress is similar to my take on academia: fine, don't retire, keep teaching your students when you are 70, but maybe stop trying to run the place.
