Anyone heard Senator Byrd lately?

[ripple]

He's speaking now on CSPAN2 and while I'm used to his long-winded anctedotes, complete with frequent pauses and a shuffling of notes, I have to say he sounds worse than I've ever heard him.

Don't get me wrong, I like Byrd well enough (although I disagree with him about the use of coal, which is what he's speaking about now), he just wears on me a bit when he speaks. He really doesn't sound well at all today. Perhaps he's recovering from a cold or something. His speech is slurred, so maybe he's been hitting the codiene-laced cough syrup.

It's just been a couple of months since I've heard him speak and I'm shocked that he appears to have deteriorated so much. Has anyone else noticed this?

[Greeby]

1. Sadly, given that he lost his wife not that long ago

Can't say it's suprising :(

[TwilightGardener]

2. Husbands seem to go downhill very quickly after their wives die.

I expect Billy Graham will too. It's just a sad truth. Women, however, seem to cope with widowhood much better.

[ripple]

3. I'd forgotten about that

That might very well be the culprit.

My heart goes out to him. :patriot: :loveya:

[Rydz777]

4. He's 90 years old (born in 1917.) If I reach 90, I hope that

I will still have as much stamina as he has. He just keeps ticking like a well-made watch, but sadly,the parts eventually wear out.

JFK was also born in 1917. If he had lived he would also be 90. Ted Kennedy is 75.

[Warpy]

5. Well, he's OLD

and one thing that happens when we get old is that our nervous system slows way down due to years of damage. That's why old folks generally speak slowly and deliberately, why their reaction time is longer, why they walk slowly, why it takes them so much longer to do everything while we stand in the checkout line and roll our eyes.

I think he will have to retire soon.

Or he might be curing a cold with something alcoholic. Who knows?

My bet is on the ravages of age, though.

(and he has to love coal. It's about all that kept West Virginia going for much of his long life)

[Norquist Nemesis]

6. He's had those sniffles for quite some time now

and sounded like he's stopped up due to a cold (maybe allergies?) for months. I've been worried about too.